Thursday, March 31, 2022

 

While Iona Iverson's second rule of commuting is "Never talk to strangers on the train," due to her flamboyant persona, she attracts a lot of attention during her daily train journey to her job as a magazine advice columnist.  She has a seat that she always sits in, and her French bulldog Lulu is usually in the seat beside her.  The layout of the seats includes a table for four people.  Iona notices the regulars and gives them all nicknames such as "Smart-But-Sexist-Manspreader." Iona is in her 50s and dresses to attract attention -- bright colors and patterns in a train carriage of browns and blacks.  Her fellow commuters also have nicknames for her, such as "Rainbow Lady" or "Magic Handbag Lady."

Some of her fellow commuters include: Sanjay, an oncology nurse with panic attacks; Martha, a teenage school girl dealing with a sexting scandal that's made her an outcast; Piers, the "manspreader" whose high-flying career isn't all it's cracked up to be; and Emmie, who is dealing with a possessive boyfriend.  As we get to learn more about the various characters and their problems, it seems that everyone must ignore the rules of commuting in order to make connections that will benefit everyone.

The story was very comforting and I enjoyed reading how all the characters came together to help one another with their issues.  The story dealt compassionately with subjects such as bullying, LGBTQ discrimination, age discrimination, etc.  An enjoyable story and tying up of all the storylines!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

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I'm a librarian who is interested in all things British. I try to visit London as often as possible, and am always planning my next trip. I lived in Sweden for a few years with my Swedish husband, so the occasional Swedish reference may occur . . .

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