Editor’s Note: Roxanne J. Coady founded R.J. Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT, in 1989 after leaving her job as national tax director at a New York-based international accounting firm. Roxanne is the co-editor, with Joy Johannessen, of The Book That Changed My Life. Visit R.J. Julia at www.rjjulia.com.

In Lorrie Moore’s 1994 touching and entertaining novel Who Will Run the Frog Hospital, she writes:

"There is a joke about a middle-aged woman who happens upon a frog in the woods. ‘Kiss me! Kiss me!’ says the frog, ‘and I’ll turn into a handsome prince!’

The woman stares, entranced, but doesn’t move.

‘What’s the matter?’ asks the frog, growing impatient. ‘Don’t you want a handsome prince?’

‘I’m sorry,’ says the woman, ‘but at this point in my life I’m actually more interested in a talking frog.’"

This little refrain has many of the hallmarks of Lorrie’s writing: wit, maturity, irreverence and a dazzling ability to provide material that, in a few short words, gives the reader a mountain of emotions and behavior to explore, savor and store for future analysis. This gift also extends to her short stories, an art at which she also excels (her 1994 collection, Birds of America, is one of my top 20 favorite books of all time!)

Now comes Lorrie’s long-awaited novel and wOw’s fall book club pick: A Gate at the Stairs. As you’ll see, she still has the ability to deliver the quiet punch. Her narrator, Tassie Keltjin, is a Midwestern 20-year-old who takes a part-time job as a nanny while in college. Tassie becomes the perfect set of eyes — trusting, funny, smart and innocent — to observe post-9/11 life. We watch as people fail her, and as she fails her family. But none of it is deliberate; it is accidental, a casualty of grappling with the fallout of life and loss. You are inevitably drawn in, sad about losses mounting up — yet, Lorrie doesn’t leave you in a ditch. You are still left with the possibility of dreams.

We hope you’ll read this engaging novel, and for a special treat join our online conversation over the next few weeks. Lorrie will be answering questions submitted from the community, which will be posted mid-November. Happy reading!

Click here to read an excerpt from A Gate at the Stairs — and get this book party started …

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