When We Were Young
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4.2 • 13 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
From the author of Something to Live For, a nostalgic, heart-warming story of two long-lost friends who embark on a 184-mile walk of the Thames Path in order to find their way back to the truth, and to their friendship.
How do you move forward…when all you want to do is go back?
Joel and Theo haven’t spoken since the summer they turned sixteen, but that’s about to change.
From the outside Joel looks like the picture of success: a TV scriptwriter with a smash hit who’s still together and in love with his teenage sweetheart, Amber. But he's falling apart at the seams. He's headed home to reconnect with best friend Theo--to get back to the start of it all.
Theo has been living in his parents' shed, nursing a broken heart and a wounded ego, convinced life can't get any worse. Then he gets evicted on his 30th birthday. He thinks he's done with the real world - until it shows up on his doorstep...
One of them is keeping a secret, and the other is living a lie. But can the promise they once made to walk all 184 miles of the Thames Path help them find their way back to the truth--and to their friendship?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Primarily set along the miles-long Thames Path in London, Roper's delightful sophomore effort (after Something to Live For) charts the reunion of two estranged childhood friends. On the eve of his 30th birthday, Theo is evicted from his parents' backyard shed, where he's been living for several years since losing his job. Meanwhile, his estranged childhood friend Joel, a successful television writer, harbors a hidden dissatisfaction with life. Before a betrayal over a girl when they were 16, both boys had formed a pact that when they turned 30 they would trek all 184 miles of the Thames Path. With that in mind, Joel sets out to mend fences with Theo, who eventually acquiesces. Joel, a recovering alcoholic, is hesitant to expose a secret to Theo concerning his health. The long walk unearths old resentments and childhood traumas, but also reinvigorates the men's friendship, culminating in a tear-jerking sacrifice. Their walk is interspersed with flashbacks that smoothly unfurl Theo's and Joel's inner fears, failures, and secrets. This endearing outing becomes a heartfelt meditation on male companionship, forgiveness, and navigating life's ups and downs. Roper's story shimmers.
Customer Reviews
So so good!
The comedy and wit from all characters made this book a favorite.
When we were young
Predictable ending, easy gentle read…not earth shattering but also not a waste of time. It was a good book.