And the moral of this story is?

Take your pick. There are several morals in this metaphorical romp down life’s highway. Sometimes we don’t get to chose our traveling companions, and sometimes they turn out to be much more than we ever imagined. Other times, not so much. But in either event, we can never separate the silk purses from among the sow’s ears until we get to know both the both the silk purses and the sow’s ears.

So it is that several unlikely travelers find themselves on Doug’s Greyhound bus each bound for a destination determined by his or her own story. Each has an agenda, and none of the agendas are the same until Devon imposes his agenda on the group and becomes the de facto leader. Doug, who has long ago been mentally and emotionally whipped into a passive role by an abusive wife and professional boredom, surrenders control immediately in favor of escape by taking a nap.

One by one, the stories of each of the passengers are revealed. One by one the others, sometimes individually, sometimes collectively, subtly influence each other by encouraging each other to divert their life paths into positive directions. As that happens, good things begin happening to all of them and all of them end the trip connected in ways they never imagined.

As a reader, I had no idea what to expect from this novella. I expected a dark comedy but never expected one with the depth The Bus Ride possesses. On the surface, it is entertaining in a dazed, crazy sort of way, but as you read the character’s stories and realize that all have wacky histories, are desperate in different ways, and have, through circumstance, been thrown together on life’s highway, the life messages hidden in The Bus Ride begin to emerge.

The Bus Ride is recommended for readers of any genre interested in a far-fetched, fun read, with deep roots. ( )