I found this book to be delightfully different.  The characters are well defined and their point of view is very clear.  Arthur is a widower who brings his lunch to the cemetery daily to visit his wife, Nola.  Lucille is his nosy neighbor who is a retired teacher, wonderful baker but quite lonely.  Maddy is an eighteen year old who lost her mother and lives with her father who doesn’t really understand her.  She’s not typical of most of the kids her age.  She spends a lot of time at the cemetery as well and eventually meets Arthur.  How these characters connect makes a wonderful heartwarming story. It makes you think about what truly makes a family.  I highly recommend this book.

The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg was a fantastic read.  The story was not in a rush to be told, but one that meandered around, much like Arthur did in the cemetery but each step brought you closer to the storyline and people.  Arthur’s wife has died.  He visits her daily at the cemetery and shares his lunch and chats.  He visits other graves and can envision what their lives are like. Some days he stops and chats with his neighbor Lucille and sits on her porch for a while.  One day Arthur meets another lonely soul, Maddy and and they slowly offer each other hope and strength and then Lucille joins them and a family is born.  

One of my favorite parts of the book is when Maddy shares with Lucille what makes a family. The story quietly fills the spaces in a life and grows outward.  I love the way Elizabeth Berg draws out the characters so finely etched to make the pictures in your mind.  Her understanding of people and how they are so different yet all needing the some things is universal.The Story of Arthur Truluv is beautiful.

4.5 Stars! This is a heartwarming book about 3 lonely people that find comfort in each other. Arthur's laid-back and thoughtful personality is what we all need. This is a short book that is a refreshing but thoughtful read and reminds us to be more like Arthur.  The character development of Maddy was great, and poor Lucille as well.  I think that the patiences that Arthur showed and the insight into understanding others was so well done.  The nose ring reminds us that he can't fully relate to a teenager, but that he still adored Maddy.  I understand why the father's role was written as it was for the book, but I loved how it all worked out and the importance of the phone calls.  Thanks to Random House publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

4 Bells
In her acknowledgements the author writes that she hopes “readers will see beyond the simple words on the page to the more complex meanings behind them.”
I believe most of us will. This goes down easy like bittersweet hot chocolate for the soul and at only 240 pages a perfect read for the times and the season upon us. It encourages you to slow down, smile, be kind, be mindful of your place in time, be a helper when you can.
It relaxed and soothed my overtaxed emotions and spirit. A reading gift given and received at just the right time; a reminder that sometimes it can be a wonderful life if we take the time to smooth off our rough edges and liberally apply healing balm.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House, and the author for this Advance Reader's Copy.

An emotionally powerful and moving novel about people who are struggling with loss but who ultimately manage to find second chances. Arthur Moses visits the cemetery every day to join his late wife for lunch. It’s a quiet and resigned existence. The one day he spots someone else in the cemetery who also goes there to find solace, a young teenager called Maddy Harris. An unlikely friendship grows up between the two as Arthur reaches out to the troubled girl. I don’t pretend that this isn’t a pretty sentimental, even slushy,  novel, but nevertheless I found is so warm-hearted and gentle that I allowed myself to sink into it and I easily put my critical faculties to one side. Charming and tender, it’s a real feel-good tale, and I loved it.

This was a wonderful story about Family and what Family is. I loved the characters!

This is the book you pick up after you have read a dark creepy mystery, or a psychologically disturbing thriller, or a heart-wrenching non-fiction book.  At times, I wondered if this book was a bit too saccharine, but then I realized that yes, sometimes we need hope, hope that a storybook ending truly exists, hope that other people are willing to care about strangers, and hope that the future will be better. In this new novel by veteran author Elizabeth Berg, Maddy is a young girl with a past history of loss and sadness. Motherless since infancy, with a father whose pain goes deeper than his desire to be a father, Maddy has attached herself to a rather feckless fellow who leaves her pregnant and questioning her choices. Enter Arthur and Lucille, two elderly neighbors who see a girl who needs a hand up. This book will make you laugh out loud at these two hilarious characters, especially Lucille who just doesn't 'get it' quite frequently.  And Arthur? Oh, you would want him for your next door neighbor or grandfather; what a lovely human being.  So yes, a bit overly sweet at times but don't we all need that in our lives? Nothing wrong with a book where your heart is warm and tender at the end:)

This isn't my usual reading fare. Normally this is the sort of book I'd actively stay away from. This is a quaint upbeat and positive sort of thing, this is too cute, too lovely, too unrealistic...and yet there it was on Netgalley and I do like stories about the elderly, particularly since the recent generations have ended up so tedious, so I thought I'd check it out and ended up pleasantly surprised. This one was actually just cute enough, never quite tipping over into obnoxiously adorable. Sure, the concept of an old man with infinite patience, kindness and love/resources to share appearing just at the right time in a young woman's life to set her straight on the path to success/good life, etc. is somewhat magical, but how nice would it be if life actually worked out like that. Now, at least, I can see the appeal of this sort of fiction...it's basically a fantasy, a dream of a nicer kinder existence manifested one or two magical characters at a time, something to get away into to avoid the real world for a while. I can't imagine anyone naïve enough to actually set their expectations by stories like that, although maybe it's a sort of aspirational thing. Wouldn't it be lovely if things worked out just like they do in books like this. Never read any other books by Berg, but she seems to have her writing fine tuned to evoke just the right amount of emotions without being overtly lachrymose or eye rollingly melodramatic, it's actually all quite charming. She's also smart enough to make it brief, a longer page count would have potentially made the story into a Lifetime movie weeper of the week, but at 240 it's just right, short and sweet, very sweet, but immensely likeable.  Thanks Netgalley.

This was one of those special books that you do not want to end. The characters were remarkably well developed you felt you knew them to the point where you could have entered their world and been part of it. Arthur was the sweet grandfather you wished you had for your own, his love for his deceased wife is gut-wrenchingly true. The teenager Maddy is the troubled girl you want to help and you are so happy that she finds Arthur. And finally, Lucille, that annoying know-it-all from next door who becomes likeable. And I want her recipes! Together they make a functional family that is supportive and loving. This is an easy enjoyable read and I highly recommend it. 

I received an early copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an unbiased review.

This book is pure joy. What a great pick-me-up! I am so grateful to Netgalley for the advance copy. It is just all about love - love of many kinds. You will find love undemanding, love faithful, love joyful, love unbelieving, love fearful, love long remembered, love cherished, love caring, love quiet, and love loud. It is the story of Arthur, who visits his deceased wife in the cemetery every day for lunch. It is the story of a neighbor lady, a school girl, and the story of faithfulness. It made me happy. It is delightful, and I was sorry to see it end!

I didn't connect with this one, it felt forced but I think I'm the minority because most reviewers really liked it.  On to the next.

I loved this sweet story. In fact I love all of Elizabeth Berg’s books. Something about her characters just click for me. They seem like friends by the end of the book and I am always sad to let them go. This book was no exception. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read this. I now recommend it to all my friends!

What a wonderful book.  I couldn’t put it down - and, no, it isn’t a suspense/thriller novel - because it is so very well written and the characters are so very interesting.  The story is about an older man whose wife has recently dies.  He goes to the cemetery daily to eat lunch with her.  An almost 18 year old high school girl also goes to the cemetery almost daily because it’s near her school and she doesn’t fit in with her classmates.  They of course meet and their lives become connected.  It is this connection along with that of another woman that reveals to us the many forms of love, friendship, fear, growth, compassion.  So. . . No, it isn’t full of action in the traditional sense but it is full of life!

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley for my unbiased opinion of the book. I enjoyed the book, it was slow moving in spots until you reached the middle. Once all the main characters connected the book really flew. Arthur had an interesting outlook on things and how he lived his life and loved those around him. It was enjoyable how his newly formed family did things and moved forward with the life they created. I am adding this to my book club reading list!

The Story of Arthur Truluv, by Elizabeth Berg
🌭🌭🌭(out of 5)
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This is a short, sweet, feelgood story of three lost people finding each other and making their own family.
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I could feel my emotions being manipulated as I read it, but I didn't mind. Sometimes you need something that takes you out of all the trash the world loves to pile on.
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I thought some of the backstory could have been better explored, and one particular plot line seems improbable at best, but I guess suspension of disbelief can account for a lot.
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Overall, a pretty good temporary escape from negativity, but not especially groundbreaking or memorable.
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Three remarkably different individuals find their way through love and loss in this absolutely delightful story from Elizabeth Berg. Berg will make you think about family and what defines a family, and how the right people often appear when we need them the most.

So, so good. Put me in mind of A Man Called Ove, which I also loved. I highly recommend this book & will start reading more of hers right away.

Not  what I was expecting... could not quite get into this book but other people might. Thanks for the galley!

I received an arc copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review of it. I really enjoyed this book. The relationship between 18 year old Maddy and 85 year old Arthur is so sweet. They meet at a cemetery of all places and they become a family. The only thing that was a little different was that the whole book was one chapter. I would have liked it more told from each person's view as different chapters.

I love Elizabeth Berg’s books. The way we meet Arthur, Maddy and Lucille is wonderful. This  touching story is how these 3 people wanting to love and be loved, find each other, and become family.