Way back when I was a wee lass, I had a language arts teacher who said there are three basic conflict types in literature: man V man, man V nature/machine, and man V himself. Since then, I analyze every conflict in every book I read and try to prove her wrong (why I’m so determined to prove her wrong baffles me, but I keep doing it). I have yet to prove her wrong. Turns out she might have been one of the most influential teachers I ever had, not necessarily my favorite (that woman was just plain mean), but she insisted that we explore literature from our point of view and not let other people persuade us one way or another. Students usually get books stuffed down our throats, and we’re told what the author’s “meaning” or “message” was, and we’re told how we’re supposed to respond to a book…but that’s not the best way to create a lifelong reader. This particular teacher really just wanted us to enjoy reading, and I sincerely appreciate her for that. Anyhoo, this book is a very good example of man versus himself. He comes across as somebody who might be on the autism spectrum with his rigid routines and his interactions with others, including his woman friend. This man resists change. I can respect that. I also dislike change (especially surprise changes, that just chaps my hide). If I were still teaching, I would probably consider using this in my classroom. It’s not a particularly stellar piece of literature, but the conflict itself is well-developed. I did feel like I was treading water quite a bit throughout this book, and I also didn’t feel like there was too much of a solid resolution. However, the man-versus-himself conflict type is one I don’t really run across too often, and when I do it’s not always a solid example, but this one definitely is. I give it 3.75 stars because of that. Since I can’t do that, I’ll round up to four stars. Also, I polished this one off in a few hpurs, it’s been a REALLY long time since I’ve done that!

What was this about, again? It was so short, and felt like it just lacked so much. It's more of a character portrait than a real story. What you think might be setting up some major drama, just fizzled into nothing. And nothing that seemed even remotely memorable. I guess he finally realized life can't be perfect and that's what was holding him back this whole time? I don't know, even Clock Dance was better than this one.

Dude runs in JEANS. OK, then! A little tired of the "clueless man" trope, but I'm glad he finally figured out his shit and got back together with Cass. I do agree that women should run the world. :)