Wish I Were Here | Melissa Wiesner
"maybe something seems like a disaster. but if you look deeper, maybe it's an opportunity. it's all about how you look at it."
“Sometimes I wish I could just… I don’t know. Be someone
else.” These are the words Catherine Moonstone Lipton says off-handedly to an
old man in a moment of weakness, and she lives to regret them.
Catherine Lipton feels comforted by order and strict
planning. This is a result of being raised in a way that could be seen as
chaotic at best. Her single dad is a literal clown who seems more interested in
his performing than in paying bills or providing stability for his daughter. He
has tried getting a job before, but it never worked out, and Cath had to be the
responsible one in the household. She has recently moved out and found an
affordable apartment in a building full of elderly residents. The only person
her age seems to be the doorman, Luca.
She had a PhD in Mathematics and has just earned her dream
job as a Mathematics professor, a tenure-track position, when she discovers
that issues with her paperwork may mean that she has to give up the position. When
she attempts to attend the HR orientation at her new university, she find out
that her government documents aren't valid and she does not in fact exist at
all.
Her life takes a wild turn when she
figures out that she had mysteriously disappeared from all government databases
and the issue stems from her birth certificate being a forgery. Desperate to retrieve her original birth certificate from
the mother she’s never met, Catherine steps into a whimsical adventure filled
with silly detours that challenge her rule-following nature in the best
possible way.
Joining her is Luca Morelli, her
infuriatingly handsome and charismatic doorman. He is the embodiment of a ray
of sunshine. He is always helping out the elderly residents at the building and
taking them shopping, dancing with them – even sleeping on the floor of the
lobby in case they need help with the ever breaking elevator. There’s a sweet
and heartwarming mystery behind his quirky tendencies, and I loved how he
disrupts Catherine’s carefully controlled world.
With Luca’s help, she tracks down the parts of her past that
will set everything right again. Through Luca, she also meets her neighbors and
becomes more aware of the community around her – some new, but also the people she
has had in her life all along. Additionally, Luca’s boisterous Italian family
adds warmth and humor, giving the story a grounded, cozy feeling even amid the
suspense of Catherine’s lost identity. The elderly residence of DeGreco also
showed her a different side of life, by choosing to live out their golden years
living and enjoying themselves. There is also a thread of destiny here as well, as the identity of the old man who seems to have started this whole thing is revealed in a realy touching moment at the end.
Catherine's problems and anxieties struck a deep chord
with me since they were described so vividly that they were nearly tangible. It
was wonderful to see her quest for self-discovery highlighted in this story,
and it was uplifting to see her new family's support along the road. But, I
have to note, that she also frustrated me for a good chunk of the book. It completely
makes sense that she's so intent on being organized and responsible given her
father and the instability of her childhood. But, she makes so many completely
unexamined assumptions about people: if someone is charming then they must also
be totally irresponsible and unreliable – so she should steer clear of them; but
if someone appears responsible, then they must be trustworthy and reliable. She
holds onto these assumptions even after ample evidence suggests she should
reconsider. Yes, I am mostly talking about her mother. I found her naivety
regarding this cold woman who left her to be grating, considering she is otherwise
so smart. The way she pushed people away for basically no reason, but gave her chance
after chance to disappoint her – just because she has a pristine white home and
is an ER doctor was infuriating.
Despite my last point, ‘Wish I Were Here’ is overall a delightful
blend of whimsy, mystery, and romance, with just the right dash of magic to
keep readers hooked. There was something so light and refreshing about Cath and
Luca’s relationship. Catherine and Luca’s chemistry is so good, with a charming
opposites-attract dynamic that keeps you rooting for them as they navigate
everything from smoky bars to underground hospital records.
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