I have to say that after I read Shopgirl I was hesitant to give Steve Martin another try. Hesitant, but some moments of Shopgirl made me feel like I also sort of owed him.

I am so glad I did. This book is obviously less meditative, and certainly more outright sappy--but I loved almost every moment of it.

The difference? I loved and cared about the characters. Felt closer to them each time the main character reached just a little bit more out of his self imposed bubble.

Everything worked out almost too perfectly in the end for all of the characters--it reminded me of Love Stargirl in that way--the kind of optimism that could make you uneasy. Yet at the same time I would have been disheartened with anything else. I felt like it was owed.

The style this time seemed less reaching and less verbose. It was easy and natural, yet still the voice was clear and distinct. I think the character was very believable, although admittedly I have a very limited very of this kind of mental disorder.

I guess in that breath I was also glad that the disorder was not really the focus of the novel. It was a story of a man with challenges, but it didn't harp constantly on how different and alien these challenges made him. The character even comments on this at one point, that each human being had their own secret "rules". I believe that.

This book succeeded in endearing me completely to Steve Martin. I will read his next novel for sure.