Every so often I browse a church bookstall, or shelves in a charity shop, and pick up books that look interesting based on the cover and blurb on the back. I know one isn’t supposed to judge a book by the cover, but it’s a good starting point when trying something new. I had read one book by the author, Fannie Flagg, when I spotted this two and a half years ago, and knew that another of her books was scheduled for the local reading group, a month or two later.
(Amazon UK link)
‘Can’t wait to get to heaven’ has sat on my to-be-read shelf for long enough, so I finally decided to read it. It’s a quirky kind of book - as is the case for the author’s other books that I read - based in small town America, in a community where everyone knows everyone else.
The main character is an elderly lady who’s a bit deaf but very independent and quite sprightly. She’s up a ladder at the start of the book, picking figs from her tree, when she uncovers a wasps’ nest. She is aware of them buzzing around and stinging her, then she knows nothing more until she wakes up in darkness, in a hospital.
The action then switches to her niece Norma, a likeable but very nervous woman who is fond of her aunt. She worries about her all the time and would like her to move to sheltered accommodation. But she respects her aunt’s wishes - and is unaware just how many things Elner does, which Norma would not approve of. Norma is married to Macky, who is also a likeable person, although their relationship is not very close. Norma gets a phone call and rushes to Elner’s house…
And then we meet some of Elner’s neighbours who went to her aid, and called an ambulance. It’s clear from the start that Elner is generous, kind, and very outgoing. She’s popular with just about everyone and they’re all very concerned for her when she’s found unconscious on the ground.
As for Elner…her experience becomes a bit surreal as she embarks on what the blurb on the back calls ‘an adventure she never dreamed of’. It’s well done, thought-provoking and quite moving, as is her friends’ and relatives’ reactions to her condition.
Half way through the book there’s a new development I wasn’t expecting at all, leading to a lot of very confused people, and some concerning attitudes amongst some of the hospital staff and (even more so) those involved in insurance claims. I don’t know how true to life these folk are, but the descriptions are shocking.
Indeed, I didn’t like the second half of the book as much as I did the first. It dragged a bit, and there’s another revelation later in the book, connected to something that one of the neighbours found at the bottom of Elner’s laundry basket. While the event in question certainly answers a puzzling question for the reader, the reason for what happened is extremely disturbing, and the anecdote - if one can call it that - felt unnecessary in what’s mostly quite a gentle book, that shows the positive side of such a close community.
I’m surprised that the blurb on the back mentions ‘side-splitting hilarity’, as I didn’t find anything like that in the novel. There were a few places where I smiled, but nothing that raised even a chuckle from me, and I thought most of the story poignant rather than amusing; it’s a long way from hilarity.
It’s not a novel for those who like fast action or clever plotting; it’s a character-based story, although I didn’t find any of the characters particularly memorable other than Elner. But I kept reading, and am glad I did. I don’t suppose I’ll read it again, but it’s worth reading once. Recommended if you like this kind of women’s fiction - it reminds me of Anne Tyler’s novels more than anything else.
