Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

Helene is forty-one; she enjoys sex with Harry, owner of Better Days, the local bar. But she will leave him if he cannot, just once, rise above the mundane and use his imagination so she can love him. Stella knows she loves Darryl, her high-school classmate, but her depressed, impoverished, weight-obsessed mother has to be her priority. And William Swick loves Uta, Helene's mother, loves her still although she died in a car accident two years earlier. On the anniversary of this death, each of them learns a lesson about the grace bestowed by love.

Average Customer Rating:

A dwarf and a lesbian walk in to a small town....

Customer Rating:

Although it is a thin book it is very thick in meaning. It starts out as two stories that eventually intertwine. Instead of revealing the plot or key themes, I would like to comment on the characters. One of them is called a dwarf (little person). Now, dwarves/little people usually end up in Fantasy type books, not "everyday" fiction. Dwarves/little people are part of our society so why not be in a book about...life. It's noteworthy even though it shouldn't be.... The author does a wonderful job of examining his humanity as well as his challenges. There is also a lesbian character. And instead of outlining what it must be like to be a lesbian in a small town, the author talks about the more "everyday" aspects of her life and her love life. At one point the character mentions her sexuality in passing and in a way the author has done the same. If someone handed you this book and said "It has a dwarf and a lesbian in it" what would you think? You might not think that it would be the book of depth that it is. One last thing - there is a great scene of dinner party dialogue that is so typical in a conversation's rambling, its missed cues, and the self-focus people can have when in groups. Ok, really the last thing - good "book group" book because there is a lot to discuss and no excuse not to get it read on time!

Wow	Customer Rating:
Working on a nationally recognized literary magazine gives me the opportunity to read some of today's best fiction. This book lierally blew me away. With this book, Ms. Staffel hits her stride. I can't wait to see her next work.

an outstanding story

Customer Rating:

My husband studied with Staffel, and he's always praised her as a teacher. Now it's my turn to praise her as a writer (from a fellow author). I read "She Wanted Something Else" a few years ago and thought that it was good, but I didn't connect with those characters. In "Notebook" I felt so drawn to the characters--William, Ute, the teenagers, the fat mother--that I read the entire book in one sitting. My husband's grandmother, mother and uncle all survived the bombing of Dresden, so that particular topic resonated for me as well. I wish I could get my hands on Staffel's short story collection, and I hope she writes more novels!

A Delightful Read

Customer Rating:

The "Notebook Of Lost Things" is exactly that -- a book that takes note of lost things, people and places lost in obscurity and in history. There is no person or place in this sweetly subtle novel that is glamorous or powerful, and that is the basis for the power of the story. The author takes the mundane and weaves a memorable tale of lost souls who find each other, and in that finding manage to create meaningful lives for themselves. I very much recommend reading this novel; it is unusual in its simplicity and leaves you a better person for having read it.

Excellent Book	Customer Rating:
Thias book was so wonderful--it was so true to life and descriptive. I wish I could get other books by this author but I see that they are out of print. The characters were so real. They keep your attention. This story reminds us that although life is not always roses, there is still joy to be found if you look for it!