Illinois Valley Woman Book Club

In My BookWhat we thought of The Guncle by Steven Row ley

Our latest book club pick, The Guncle by Steven Rowley, follows the life and adventures of Patrick O’Hara, a television star who left his career behind to move away from Hollywood and live a quiet life. When tragedy strikes, he’s left with a new role to play – temporary caretaker to his young niece and nephew. With a big personality and his own emotional baggage, Patrick isn’t sure he’s up to the challenge.

As always, we’ll let you know what we thought of this book without discussing any spoilers in case you haven’t read it yet.

JEANETTE SMITH, REGIONAL ADVERTISING DIRECTOR

I enjoyed this novel. It was witty and entertaining. It’s a heartfelt story about family dynamics and grief. The main character, “The Guncle,” is a

single, gay, washed-up sitcom actor who agrees to be the guardian of his young niece and nephew for the summer. The unlikely trio spend the summer getting to know each other and helping each other heal. It is touching but not a tear-jerker. It deals with loss and grief but is done in a way that is enjoyable and not depressing. I would recommend this book as a quick, entertaining read.

SHANNON SERPETTE, NICHE EDITOR

I’m a big fan of light-hearted books that make me laugh. While this one did have sad undertones at times, overall, it had an uplifting message and several laugh-out-loud moments. Some of my favorite paragraphs were when Patrick would introduce his highly specific and sometimes inappropriate Guncle rules to his niece and nephew.

I was sorry to see this one end and found myself wishing I had a Guncle Patrick, too.

The book we’ll discuss in the next issue of Illinois Valley Woman is In Hot Water: A Misty Bay Tea Room Mystery.

To have your thoughts and observations on this book published in our next Illinois Valley Woman magazine, email

sserpette@shawmedia.com

by April 20. Please include your name and city of residence along with your comments, and make sure to let us know why you liked or disliked this book. And if you have any future book suggestions, we’d love to hear them.

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