If you’re missing gathering together with your community, try out this book. It’s about a group of women in the small town of Mason, Missouri, who span in age from their 20s to their 80s who gather together to confess something that they’ve done or thought that they haven’t told anyone else to the group. The group gets two new members and their stories are closely examined throughout the story. Iris begins a relationship with a man experiencing homelessness and temporarily living in an abandoned farmhouse in the town. Maddy grew up in Mason, but moved to New York City to pursue her photography career with her husband and young daughter from a previous relationship. She yearns to move back to the small town life, but can’t bring herself to say this to her husband. Relationships between friends, family, community members, and lovers are the central points of this novel. I loved this simple read about the many characters in this fictional small town and would gladly escape here again if there was a sequel. — Julie Travers
