Auld Lang Syne [Paperback]

Barbara D. Bannister (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 31, 2006

When New Year's Eve rolls around, many of us look back on the past year and rejoice in our good fortune while trying to learn from our mistakes, and at the same time look forward to a fresh start with new resolve. Such as the case for John, who has the misfortune to still be married after forty years to demanding harridan, Grace, on this particular New Year's Eve. As he makes one last desperate attempt to crack her self-centered shell and turn the clock back to a time when they were young and deeply in love, he despairs of ever reaching her and changing her outlook. He finally comes to the realization that he will have to break free from Grace if he ever to regain his own self and happiness. Enter Mike, Danielle, and Amanda, who inject John with new spirit and help him recapture his youthful resolve as he struggles to break free from the melancholy of Auld Lang Syne. Can John find happiness again? What will happen to Grace if he succeeds? Who will be looking back on this New Year's Eve with regret while the other is looking forward with celebration?

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Barbara D. Bannister presently holds a bachelor of science in Literature and Finance from Concordia College and a bachelor of arts in Economics from Hunter University, and she has also begun working toward her master's degree in English from the University of Southern California. Born in New York City, Barbara resides in Hartsdale, New York, where she is a member of the International Order of the Dickens Fellowship as well as a league and tournament bowler. She serves as publicity manager for children's theatre in New Rochelle and is also employed as a researcher and receptionist for an engineer/surveyor firm.

Product Details

• Paperback: 67 pages
• Publisher: Airleaf Publishing (August 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1600020062
• ISBN-13: 978-1600020063
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,021,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A New Year's Eve I'm Glad I Missed, June 25, 2001

By 

Clare C. Newbury (Edgecomb, ME USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Auld Lang Syne (Paperback)

If you have ever thought you had been through the New Year's Eve from Hell, read this little gem and feel better. The four thoroughly dysfunctional characters, John, Grace, Mike, and Amanda, are disturbingly real. I am exceedingly glad I don't know them, especially Grace, but I certainly enjoyed reading about them. The characters' roles are quickly established, and then richly developed through intense dialogue that draws the reader into the gruesome scene as it unfolds. My buttons were pushed: I felt pity, annoyance, rage, hopelessness, and disgust with the outrageous, self-defeating, enabling, and downright insane behavior of the individuals in this book. The ending leaves the reader to speculate as to what will become of John and Grace, in particular. It reminds me of waking up from a nightmare that isn't quite over, and then lying in bed thinking up the most (or perhaps least) satisfying possible outcome.