Parnassus on Wheels

The charm of Christopher Morley's first novel, Parnassus on Wheels, lies in its improbability: a romance between middle-aged lovers who have had no expectation or even hope of romance until now. Also, like much of Morley's work, it's a love song to the redemptive power of books and reading. It's a story with the easy rhythms of rural life; the slow, autumnal rhythm of the book-filled wagon, Parnassus itself, pulled along by the horse, Peg. The same rhythms as Helen and Roger's unexpected courtship, as two middle-aged characters-a plump spinster and a gingery, opinionated, itinerant bookseller, fall in love while talking about books.