SUMMER OF LIGHT by W Dale Cramer
W Dale Cramer is the author of such respected and enjoyable novels as BAD GROUND and LEVI'S WILL. His latest accomplishment is SUMMER OF LIGHT, a book with no dark corners. It is a story full of joy and love and meaning. In particular it concerns an evolutionary war as one man leaves his day job to become a stay at home Dad.
Mick Brannigan is happy with his life. He is a high rise construction worker and he is good at what he does. His wife Layne works for an attorney and between them they are doing alright. They have three children who appear to be happy and well adjusted. Well two out of three of them are. The youngest, Dylan, does appear to have some problems which are concerning Layne.
When they have him checked they learn he is having some developmental problems and would probably do better with someone working with him one on one. In short one of his two parents needs to stay at home with him. Through a strange set of circumstances this ends up being Mick.
In telling the story of Mick's year as a stay at home Dad, Cramer also brings in some fascinating side characters. These include Mick's snooty neighbors Aubrey and Celly. They consider themselves to be on a higher social level than the Brannigans. Still they eventually find a commonality in Mick's second career as a photographer, or maybe that should be third career after stay at home Dad.
There is also the "man with no hands," a homeless person who appears in Mick's life from time to time. He brings the religious center to the story and is also is the catalyst for some of the book's "aaaaah" moments. You know those stories or events that are so touching you just have to go "aaaah."
It is true that SUMMER OF LIGHT does not have the complex relationships of LEVI'S WILL or the dramatic occurrences of BAD GROUND. But neither of those books had the heart and humor of this one. As you turn the pages of this story you find yourself becoming more and more immersed in the actions of Mick and his family - and that's a good thing.
Men will find themselves relating to Mick's feelings about being the breadwinner, while women will cheer each and every triumph he makes in dealing with his kids and/or the housework. Both will celebrate his humanness evidenced by his strengths and his weaknesses.
SUMMER OF LIGHT could easily have been subtitled "A Year of Enlightenment" because Mick does learn a lot of things. And as he learns them so does the reader. It is a passage of time and a passage of maturity.
Mick finds that when he gives up his "day job" he takes on a new career that keeps him hopping. Here's hoping you can find time in your busy schedule to read this book. It is well worth the effort.
SUMMER OF LIGHT is published by Bethany House. It contains 395 pages and sells for $13.99.