Rating: 
Summary: Gaffney gives us something to savor . . .
Review: Patricia Gaffney's THE SAVING GRACES is one of my favorite reads. She takes ordinary lives and shines a light on them like very few writers can. Fast paced? Action packed? Not one whit. But, if you'll take time to savor her stories, Gaffney can teach you a lot about human nature. I liked Caddie Winger, her off-beat grandmother and all the folks at Wake House. I even liked Christopher the Cad. All of Gaffney's characters in THE GOODBYE SUMMER have specific shoes to fill. Without even one of them, the story would be incomplete. I agree with another reader . . . I want to be THEA when I grow old. I have a list of things to do before I die, too, although dyeing my hair red isn't on it. *Grin* Treat yourself to a slow, calm, studied look at real people facing life's challenges. Growing old is not for sissies. Neither is growing up. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: A book to savor
Review: Caddie is a young woman who has led a very odd life. It's a wonder she is as dependable and compassionate as she is.We should all be so lucky to have someone so "boring" in our lives. Nana is not your usual milk and cookies grandma. She is a strange, sometmes bitter old lady, on a painful slide into the world of alzheimers disease. But as eccentric as she is, her love for Caddie is always obvious. We have all known guys like Chris. He's not a horrible person, but self centered and undependable. A believable heel. Henry McGill is a wonderful hero. He is a slow moving guy. You would be too, if you were recovering from a tragic, life altering accident. Thea is the "old" lady I want to be when it's my time. Full of zest for life, and a warm loving heart, she is a magical character. Cornel is a lonely old man who has almost succeeded in convincing himself he doesn't need to care about the rest of his life.Almost All of these lives are intertwined in a rich story infused with Pat Gaffney's usual warmth, humor, and compassion. Nobody wants to get old, everybody will. I loved reading about how the characters in this book are handling the stages of their lives. Old people, wounded people, lead slow lives. You don't heal quickly from a terrible hurt, and you don't get old quickly. Patricia Gaffney has written a beautiful book to remind us of this.I'm a little sorry for readers who found this book to be "slow". How fast and busy their lives must be. I can't imagine not wanting to find out what happens to all of these extraordinary characters, or missing Caddie's "interviews". THE GOODBY SUMMER is a book to be savored, not gobbled.It is most deserving of whatever time it takes to be read.
Rating:
Summary: sentimental read
Review: Caddie is thirty-two years old. She teaches piano and seems to have an innocent view of life. Caddie lives with her grandmother (Nana) and takes care of her. It's the start of summer. Nana breaks her leg and goes to a convalescent home to recover. Caddie gets to know the other elderly patients. She's generous with her time and affections, whereas Nana dislikes everyone and behaves selfishly. With her new-found freedom, Caddie looks to date and get out more. And she does.... Through two patients, Caddie discovers how to take risks and follow her passions. Caddie also discovers how to deal with mistakes, surprising revelations, loss, and moving on. But maybe the hardest part for Caddie and Nana will be saying goodbye to summer and their memorable experiences. _The Goodbye Summer_ has some inspirational moments from the viewpoints of the elderly characters and Caddie. Caddie may be an adult, but most of the seniors treat her like their child. They teach and guide her. They even come close to getting them all in trouble. They share their stories and their desires to continue on, not to lie about complaining. They also counsel Caddie through some serious moments in the storyline. _The Goodbye Summer_ is an endearing story that will easily touch those who enjoy fiction novels aimed at the heart their emotions.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the greatest
Review: I have read a few of Patricia Gaffney's books, so I was really looking forward to this one for my first book of the summer.
I'm sorry to say I was very disappointed. The main character, Caddie, is wishy-washy and spineless, and absolutely no fun at all. I questioned her desire to "hang out" at the old folks/recovery home. The other residents of Wake House were even more boring than Caddie, and their biographies throughout the book didn't help change my impressions!
I'll wait for a library copy of her next book.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully wise
Review: I have to begin by admitting I'm an unabashed Patricia Gaffney fan, and have been since devouring The Saving Graces. I love the way she illuminates ordinary life, finding the extraordinariness in everyday experiences. Her characters exist in my imagination as if they were real people, people I've known and loved. In addition to the warmth and wisdom she brings to her stories, I also completely adore the deceptively easy, relaxed quality of her prose. She writes in a conversational style that seems as if it might be the easiest thing on earth to do...but it isn't. Anything by Patricia Gaffney is an auto-buy for me--if you're looking for a warm, true, satisfying read, check this one out.
Rating:
Summary: Very slow moving...........
Review: In a quirky story full of highly unusual people a la Anne Tyler, Patricia Gaffney has created a moving and simple tale of people who bond together because they have risen above the need to judge. And so they find glorious treasure in the most unlikely of fellow human beings.
That may sound corny, it may sound pat--but the message here is if you look beyond the surface, you just might find gold. And, like Anne Tyler before her, Gaffney takes the most seemingly ordinary people and graces their lives with beauty, showing us that every human being is an angel--no matter how deep you have to dig!
This is the story of Caddie Winger, a music teacher in her early 30s who has no notion of herself at all. She considers herself blah and invisible when she is quite the opposite. She lives an invisible existence, though, in an old house with the woman who raised her, her grandmother Nana.
As the book opens, Nana, an eclectic, very "out there" "performance artist" given to creating obscene sculptures out of mud and plants in the front yard, suddenly and without warning asks Caddie to take her to a local residence for the elderly. It is not a nursing home, but one step from it. Caddie is appalled and upset--this is totally unlike Nana. But she complies, and at the home itself, Caddie, a young and attractive woman, gets drawn in to the various lives, large and small, of Nana's residential neighbors.
In the process of listening to, and at times recording, the interesting life histories of the residents, Caddie begins to come out of her shell and put together the clues of her own self as well. It's a slow and painful process, and there is no "eureka!" suddenly on page 300. More, it is like real life is, a surprise, good or bad, around every corner.
This is simply a wonderful book. I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Special, Moving Novel That Touches Your Heart
Review: Okay. Here's the deal. I confess. Gaffney could write about a trip to the grocery store, and I'd pay good green money to read it. I like her voice, I love her characters, I love her wry, understated humor. Her Flight Lessons was one of the best books I've read. The Goodbye Summer is a lovely, muted story of a woman who, as her name suggests (Caddie Winger), finally takes wing and discovers herself. Gaffney is an extraordinarily gifted writer who always gives a reader a textured story with people who touch your emotions--here it's a grandmother who doesn't want to be a burden, who's aware of the shadows coming down on her creative, energetic, brain; Caddie, her granddaughter who engages with the elderly in a realistic, moving way while trying to sort out her own confused emotions; and a damaged hero who somehow makes you--and Caddie--fall in love with him. I love thrillers, fast-paced romantic comedies, spy stories, sentimental romances. And I love Gaffney's books, too. I come to each book, however, with different expectations. What I know Gaffney's writing will always give me is a story that reaches into my heart, a story that shows me the world from a different angle. The Goodbye Summer is not a book you can put down and say, "Same old, same old." The Goodbye Summer is not a book you've read before with the same old relationships and plot and only the names changed. The Goodbye Summer is fresh, rich, and emotionally engaging. The characters and their choices--and their dilemmas--are real. While it takes Caddie a while to change, to see her own possibilities, she does, and the reader is richer for having joined her on her quixotic, touching journey. This is a wonderful book, a book that defines certain kinds of relationships. And I have to say that the scene in which she attacks the, uh, risque "sculptures" outside her grandmother's house is a classic! As are the sculptures! As I said, even as cheap as I am, I figure it's money well spent when I buy a Gaffney book. And I don't wait for the paperback version!
Rating:
Summary: A CHOICE VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Review: Seasoned actress and voice performer Maxwell has proven herself adept at both comedy and drama in her stage performances. She exercises that talent to the joy of listeners as we hear conversations between some of the slightly flighty residents of Wake House, a convalescent home. Her reading of Caddie's story is heartfelt and endearing as we share the sadness of losing someone dear and the joy of discovering love. Thirty-two year old Caddie Winger is a piano teacher, content for all of her life to live with her grandmother, Frances. But Caddie's life takes a sharp turn when Frances breaks a leg and insists upon moving to Wake House. Of course, she visits her grandmother regularly and becomes close to many of the other elderly residents. Her new friends are over twice as old as she is, save for one - a young man who was injured in a sky diving accident. For the first time that she can remember Caddie is living alone, making decisions on her own, and perhaps finding a new and unexpected life. - Gail Cooke
Rating:
Summary: A CHOICE VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Review: Seasoned actress and voice performer Maxwell has proven herself adept at both comedy and drama in her stage performances. She exercises that talent to the joy of listeners as we hear conversations between some of the slightly flighty residents of Wake House, a convalescent home. Her reading of Caddie's story is heartfelt and endearing as we share the sadness of losing someone dear and the joy of discovering love. Thirty-two year old Caddie Winger is a piano teacher, content for all of her life to live with her grandmother, Frances. But Caddie's life takes a sharp turn when Frances breaks a leg and insists upon moving to Wake House. Of course, she visits her grandmother regularly and becomes close to many of the other elderly residents. Her new friends are over twice as old as she is, save for one - a young man who was injured in a sky diving accident. For the first time that she can remember Caddie is living alone, making decisions on her own, and perhaps finding a new and unexpected life. - Gail Cooke
Rating:
Summary: Charming!
Review: THE GOODBYE SUMMER by Patricia Gaffney I read THE SAVING GRACES a few years ago, but THE GOODBYE SUMMER, Patricia Gaffney's fourth book, is so much better. I did not love THE SAVING GRACES; it was not the perfect book. Something about the way the author put that book together did not make it flow at all. She had four central characters, and although some authors are very good at writing books like this (Maeve Binchy comes to mind), Gaffney is not. However, THE GOODBYE SUMMER was such a good book, that I am going to rate this one five stars. THE GOODBYE SUMMER is the story of Caddie Winger, thirty-five years old and is living with her grandmother, "Nana", who raised her because her mother was never home due to a singing career. Caddie never knew her father. In this book, Caddie is struggling to become someone, and when she meets the man of her dreams, she finds that she is coming out of her shell and is no longer the timid, shy, music teacher she has been all her adult life. Caddie's other inspiration are the friends she makes at "The Wake House", where her grandmother insists on living at while she recuperates from an injury. It is here that Caddie starts to come alive, especially after she meets a new member of the House, Thea, who becomes the mother and best friend Caddie has always yearned for. The words to describe this book are "charming" and "wonderful". THE GOODBYE SUMMER is filled with so many interesting characters, yet they do not overwhelm the main point of the book, which is to tell Caddie's story. I did not want this book to end. If Gaffney's future novels are as good as this, she has won a new fan in me.
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