Contrary People: A Novel
A retired professor finds himself falling in love again with a former student in Osborn’s latest novel (after Uncertain Ground, 2010). It’s the late 1960s, and Theo, recently widowed, is trying to avoid a life of boredom by working part-time at a sculpture museum. Back in the ’50s, Rose embarked on a European tour after college but never managed to leave Paris. Now she’s returned to Texas after nearly 20 years away, and Theo is eager to rekindle their old flame. Rose is unsure—she’s grown accustomed to a certain kind of bohemian lifestyle in France—but as luck would have it, they happen to both have homes too big for only one person to rattle around in, so they decide move in together. They fall into a fairly easy rhythm and anticipate growing old together. Osborn creates mature characters with depth in what is, finally, a literary romance that will appeal to readers who profess not to read romances. --Rebecca Vnuk