This is really one of my favorite books ever. The language is so gorgeous, every descriptive detail makes you fall in love with the experience. A book I'd like to read again and again. ( )

The book Venus Of Chalk, by Northampton native Susan Stinson, brings you along on a psychological journey from Massachusetts to Texas. Carline, the novel's heroine, struggles with her self-image, anxiety, and an overwhelming malaise that threatens to break her. Looking for escape, she hops a bus (befriending the helpful auction-bound driver along the way) to visit her grieving aunt in Texas. The tale, in a Stephenie Meyer-like way, could do with a slight tone-down of the character's whiny self-loathing. Otherwise, Stinson has a talent for description, making simplicity into a grand gesture of beauty. Reviewed by Jenny. ( )