Early Morning Riser
Well I loved this book — it reminded me of Schitt’s Creek. But not in a ‘Ew David’ meme kind of way. Instead, Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny is a deceptively simple story about a — wait for it — small town full of quirky characters where everyone knows each other’s business. Unlike another book I read in November that made me roll my eyes with its attempts at “quirkiness,” Early Morning Riser completely endeared itself to me. Maybe because it’s set in Michigan and not a try-hard town trying to replicate the tv show Parenthood.
For whatever reason, I was under the impression that this book — Heiny’s third — was sort of Maria Semple-esque…you know, that perfect combo of charming, LOL funny, poignant. That’s not quite it, although it does have some super subtle funny parts like the introduction of protagonist Jane to her eventual friend Freida, who makes her debut in the novel as she belts out ‘A Man of Constant Sorrow’ while playing the mandolin. (I think this is a very specific type of funny and maybe that wasn’t the intent, but nonetheless I inwardly chuckled.) Early Morning Riser creeps up on you and before you know it, you’re completely invested in these characters who comprise the small town of Boyne City, Michigan and how they navigate life with each other. (PS: Jane is a 2nd grade teacher, and well, there is a lot we can learn about intentional togetherness from someone who handles young children all day.)
This the perfect interlude to some otherwise taxing reading I’m doing; maybe it will be for you too. This novel first caught my eye because I just happen to follow the book cover artist (@pollyshindler) and she posted about it in April. And then I saw it in Silver Unicorn (wonderful bookseller that, btw, is selling books for @metrowestreadersfest). And then someone posted about it in @samigreenfield’s #JoyBurst Facebook group and this person I’d never met offered her copy to me. (Thanks, Leslie!) Soon after, I met Leslie of book-lending fame at a July event for MWRF. And if this isn’t the serendipitous kind of interconnectedness that Heiny features in Early Morning Riser, then I don’t know what is.
originally published on instagram