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Book Reviewed by:In this poignant and sparkling debut, a lovable widower embarks on a life-changing adventure
Sixty-nine-year-old Arthur Pepper lives a simple life. He gets out of bed at precisely 7:30 a.m., just as he did when his wife, Miriam, was alive. He dresses in the same gray slacks and mustard sweater-vest, waters his fern, Frederica, and heads out to his garden.
But on the one-year anniversary of Miriam's death, something changes. Sorting through Miriam's possessions, Arthur finds an exquisite gold charm bracelet he's never seen before. What follows is a surprising and unforgettable odyssey that takes Arthur from London to Paris and as far as India in an epic quest to find out the truth about his wife's secret life before they met—a journey that leads him to find hope, healing and self-discovery in the most unexpected places.
Featuring an unforgettable cast of characters with big hearts and irresistible flaws, The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper is a curiously charming debut and a joyous celebration of life's infinite possibilities.
Phaedra Patrick has written a charming and interesting book about discovery and change that opened new horizons for a man who resisted, and then accepted change...continued
Full Review
(493 words)
(Reviewed by First Impressions Reviewers).
Today's charm bracelet can trace its origins back to Neolithic times when small rocks and other items considered to have special powers to ward off evil were carried around. Charms worn by Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians and Hittites were created from lapis lazuli, rock crystal and other gems and inscribed with symbolic designs, like figures of gods, humans and animals. They were closely associated with magical spiritual powers and served as protective talismans. Early Egyptians gathered such charms on necklaces and bracelets and the practice of using amulets to ward off evil continued through the Middle Ages.
The move away from a charm's use as keeping evil spirits at bay can probably be attributed to the British monarch,...
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Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author of The Other Daughter
A touching tale of rediscovering someone you love. Arthur Pepper is utterly charming and endearing.
