Review of Dear Henry, Love Edith
Review of Dear Henry, Love Edith
I grew up in a time when rom-com’s were about more than just sexual angst and inappropriate humor because of it. They were funny, without always relying on the easy though often over-the-line joke. I’m not saying they didn’t have some of that too. Some of them did. But While You Were Sleeping and You’ve Got Mail are some of my favorites, and neither of them rely on such things. It’s not needed for a laugh, as these movies show. And the story can remain sweet and inviting.
Dear Henry, Love Edith feels like a call-back to this time period, maybe even further back. The humor isn’t off-color. It’s innocent and fun. The misunderstanding driving the plot at the beginning is easily understood and doesn’t feel forced. It’s totally believable. The story is sweet and invites you in and decides to entertain you with fun and wit. It’s meant to be light-hearted and it is. It doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Honestly, it reminds me of old sitcoms like I Love Lucy and the like. They aren’t meant to change the world. They’re meant to entertain. And that’s what this book does.
The characters are quirky and fun. They’re likable and people of faith. But don’t mistake that to mean they don’t ever mess up. In fact, that’s one of the issues I’ve seen other reviewers address, and I want to take a look at it too. I will try to do so without spoilers.
The story starts off innocently enough. There is a misunderstanding, but eventually one character comes to realize that’s what it is. Do they handle this newfound knowledge with honesty? No, they do not. Do they understand they’re doing something they shouldn’t? Yes they do. Do they feel repentant about it? Probably not as much as they should, at least at first.
I could knock the story because of that. Some have. But I see the realness of it. How many of us have been led astray by our emotions? I know I’ve made some less-than-godly decisions for that very reason. I don’t think I’m the only one. The book, while it maybe doesn’t treat it as seriously as it could, also doesn’t treat it like it’s a good thing or something we should aspire to. For that reason, I’m not lowering the rating for my review of Dear Henry, Love Edith.
It’s a funny, quirky, laugh-out-loud rom-com, and it does it well. I give this story five stars.
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