Review: Interesting short story
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 22, 2011
All is Bright centers around main character Elise who had fallen in and out of love and upon her 30th birthday, realized that she was quite in love enough to marry her high school sweetheart Grif.  And with that scenario in place, the two separate, and after over eight months, memories are revisited upon Elise's accidental encounter with Grif's mother Janice at the grocery store and reasons for her coming back home to San Francisco to spend time with her Nana during the Christmas holidays.  While the two are reacquainted, Elise finds out within their conversation that Grif has moved on with the mere mention of Ilsa and that the two were spending Christmas day meeting her family in Minnesota; this begins her minor conundrums of a less than lackluster love life and her deep contemplation of the what if's.Indeed, the story reads like a novel despite its short story format but what is the highlight of the story is strength of the characters that entice the reader to want to learn more about each person as well as what will happen to Elise.  In addition to Elise's personal dilemma, she learns about herself when she pays a visit to see her Nana and her gal pals that she refers to as the "Crups" or "Crips"; while socializing with her Nana's friends, who have had more than enough experience in the department of love and marriage, Elise learns a bit of life's lessons from these women, especially the extremely heartfelt moment with Nana's words of advice.There is no denying that author Sarah Pekkanen establishes intimate interconnected relationships between Elise, Janice, and her Nana that are of great relevance to the storyline.  She emphasizes that friendships and the memories that are developed through time may leave a lasting imprint with the lives they have touched.