In a small Missouri town, a widower finds solace by reaching out to other troubled souls.Arthur Moses, 85, goes every day to the cemetery to eat his lunch at his late wife Nola's grave. At night, he dines on whatever canned goods he can cobble together, tries to prevent his cat, Gordon, from running away, and dodges the busybody next door, Lucille, who keeps trying to entice him onto her front porch with her delicious baked goods. (This book depicts so many luscious-sounding confections it should come with its own FDA label.) One day at the cemetery, Arthur meets Maddy, a teenager with a nose ring, who hangs out there. They strike up a friendship born of mutual isolation, and she dubs him "Truluv" for his enduring devotion to Nola. As the point of view shifts among these three characters, we learn that Maddy, now a senior in high school, has been ostracized by her classmates. Her problems stem in part from the fact that her father, who raised her alone, irrationally blames her for her mother's death in a car crash soon after her birth. A retired schoolteacher, Lucille, also in her 80s, never married because Frank, her high school true love, wed someone else. However, Frank has recently resurfaced and is trying to rekindle romance in their twilight years. Maddy's social life consists of hookups with an older man she met at Wal-Mart, and one of these trysts leaves her pregnant. When her father urges her to terminate the pregnancy, she takes refuge at Arthur's house. He and Lucille become Maddy's surrogate parents, and, by taking over housekeeping chores, Maddy helps them age in place. Both are childless and look forward eagerly to the birth of the baby, giving Maddy the unconditional moral and financial support she has always craved. The life-affirming messages are far from subtle, and the fine line between sensitivity and sentimentality is often breached. Aims for profound but settles for pleasant. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Arthur, the title character of the latest from Berg (Talk Before Sleep), does not enjoy living alone. Since his wife's death, the best part of his daily routine is visiting the cemetery to eat lunch at her grave. The only other constants in his life are taking care of his cat and keeping his distance from his nosy neighbor, Lucille. Then he meets Maddy, a troubled teen who is bullied at school and misunderstood by her father at home, and who has taken to hanging out at the cemetery to be by herself. The two form a bond, and when Maddy gets pregnant with her ex-boyfriend's baby, she seeks Arthur's help. Together with Lucille, who has recently faced her own tragic loss, the three form something like a family. Berg's novel is as comforting as Lucille's fresh-baked cookies, with plenty of charm and memorable characters. Readers will be taken by this story about how friendship can defy any generation gap and how it's never too late to find a new purpose in life. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Berg's (The Dream Lover; Durable Goods) latest is the sweet, sentimental tale of an elderly man and a teenager coming into each other's lives at just the right moment. Arthur is mourning the passing of his beloved wife, Nola. Despite the weather, every single day he packs his lunch and takes the bus to the cemetery to chat with Nola while he eats. Maddy is a 16-year-old with a nose ring who gets harshly bullied in school. Her single father isn't capable of parenting her, so she acts out by skipping class and spending time in the cemetery, which she finds calming. After eyeing each other for days, the duo finally start talking. Once she gets to know him, Maddy anoints Arthur with the surname "Truluv." After a particularly difficult turn of events in Maddy's life, she moves in with Arthur, as does his nosy neighbor Lucille, a master baker who spreads her love with cookies and caramel bars. VERDICT In the vein of Fannie Flagg, this life-affirming story is a definite choice for Berg's many fans and anyone looking for a little break from the darker novels that have been so popular lately. [See Prepub Alert, 1/18/17.]-Beth Gibbs, Davidson, NC © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A cemetery might be an odd place for two people to strike up a friendship especially an elderly man and a teenage girl but Arthur Moses and Maddy Harris are fairly odd people. Arthur visits the cemetery to talk to his late wife, Nora, though he has a gift for divining the backstories of the graveyard's other permanent residents. Maddy doesn't have a personal connection to this particular cemetery, but she finds the quiet grounds peaceful after the chaos of school and the tension at home. They strike up conversations over picnic lunches and find they have more in common than they ever would have imagined. Maddy's mother passed away when she was young, and Arthur is surprised to find that the teenager is wise beyond her years. This unlikely duo shares secrets, memories, and plans for the future in Elizabeth Berg's inspiring and poignant novel. Fans of Meg Wolitzer, Emma Straub, or Berg's previous novels will appreciate the richly complex characters and clear prose. Redemptive without being maudlin, this story of two misfits lucky to have found one another will tug at readers' heartstrings.--Turza, Stephanie Copyright 2017 Booklist