Life:A Love Story by Elizabeth Berg isn’t out yet. But I highly recommend you put a note in your calendar for right around St. Patrick’s Day.

This is a most unusual novel.  Its subject is death, but not in the sense of murder, or a mystery to solve. My first instinct was to call Life: A Love Story endearing, because the main character, Flo, is telling her life story in a letter. But I think a better word would be reflective. Besides the letter telling her life story, Flo is interacting with a neighbor who is a death doula. This is actually the second novel I’ve encountered with a death doula as one of the main characters.

The structure of the novel alternates between the first person voice of Flo’s letter, and the third person voice telling you what Flo’s life is  like and how she intersects with people. It’s actually quite effective.  Flo is ninety-two and has cancer, and short prognosis. But between the letter and the narrator you get a deep look at her life, her questions, and her reflections. They are not similar to my own, but I recognize them and find some comfort in them. Flo knows she is old-fashioned, but she sees value in that.

If I could sit down with Elizabeth Berg, I would want to ask her how she got so wise, or maybe how she gathered the wisdom and insight that allowed her to write this book. It’s not a long book, but be prepared to spend time with it and to reflect on your own life. I think I’m going to want to reread this book. Who knows? Maybe more than once.