A Simple Thing    by Kathleen McCleary Order:  USA  Can William Morrow, 2012 (2012) Softcover, e-Book Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth It was a very simple thing Susannah Delaney wanted years ago when she was a child. To live on a small island where days were all the same and there was peace and quiet. Now, with her small son being bullied at school and her teenage daughter acting inappropriately, maybe her young dream is their solution. She decides to change their lives until they change. In so doing, she'll also change her own life. Instead of being all things to the family, she could be something to herself in the process. Susannah and the two children move to Sounder Island off the coast of Oregon for a year, leaving her husband behind. Betty Pavalak has lived on the island for fifty years. Although, she hated island living at first - with no electricity, running water, phone, or flush toilets - she grew to love the place. Even after her husband died, she stayed on to meld with the few residents of Sounder. Susannah and Betty become close friends as they continue to find day-to-day life good, although Susannah has a deep secret that governs her life and that of her family. Of course, nothing is as good as it seems as some glitches just don't reach the surface. The interaction between Susannah and the older woman is what most women find when they bond with another woman. But life intervenes and maybe the initial reasoning wasn't the real solution. Written with insight and compassion, A Simple Thing by Kathleen McCleary is a good read, great for summer beach reading. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Contemporary books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews