"An inventive, bighearted meditation" - Kirkus Reviews "A breath of fresh air" - Midwest Book Review A tale of survival. A tale of redemption. The year is 1985. Chare is flung across a basketball court by an angry coach. The crowd cheers as she lies battered and forsaken. A stranger carries her away. So begins Chare's astonishing, soul stirring journey across multiple states and decades as she tries to find her way home. ***Large print book*** Chare is a novella that packs a big read into a succinct format. This lends to its attraction to audiences that appreciate quick but thoroughly thought-provoking reads as it follows the life of one who is "one of one hundred identical siblings. A "pack animal" through and through." This sets the stage for the quick realization that Chare is no ordinary character, but something truly unique in the world of strange sentient reactors to life. Her original perspective offers twists in all kinds of situations, from the night a basketball coach throws a chair across the court in protest of a referee's perhaps-unfair call to how Chare finds herself alone for the first time, at the tender age of fourteen. A host of characters come to light during this process, including father Ron and his preteen daughter Gwen. Penn Anderson describes how their relationship has suffered from a blend of divorce and his self-centered reaction (which he also deems 'bad luck') when a situation then separates them for half of her adult life. Anderson's contrasts between very different observers builds a foundation of the unexpected, keeping readers on their toes as the story evolves. Chare inadvertently earns a front-seat observational status as these events unfold, which proves refreshingly delightful as confrontations and family conflicts clash with grifters, other families, and evolving intrigue. Libraries seeking a novella that embraces elements of family dynamics, psychological change, a unique observer's participation in life, and many unexpected twists will find it delightfully easy to recommend Chare to a wide audience-especially readers looking for easy access, thoroughly engrossing surprises, and situations that are anything but predictable. In the book world of staid characters and formula plots, Chare is a breath of fresh air. --Midwest Book Review (D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer) ********************************************