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The Shop on Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber

The next book in the series
Publication Date: April 27th 2003
Genre: Realistic Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5
Source: Own Copy

I initially stumbled upon this book while surfing through my Goodreads Recommendations. I'm quite glad that I decided to pick it up, because while it's not one of my favorites, it's an arguably light read and an interesting perspective on friendship.
 Lydia Hoffman, a cancer survivor and ardent knitter, decides to "affirm her life" by opening a knitting shop. Knitting and her father were the two main things that helped her get through her bout of cancer, and now that her father was gone, she had decided to set up her life as a knitter. A Good Yarn would be home to knitting classes and exquisite yarns that she'd love to use herself. To her sister though, this idea seemed incomprehensible.



 Margaret, it seemed, had always blamed Lydia for stealing her parent's attention as a teen, and even for having cancer in the first place. She was purposefully stoic and regarded Lydia with the utmost contempt. Through the novel however, Macomber emphasizes on the bond between the two sisters, and seems to will their their reunion.
  Alix Townsend is a young girl with a rebellious streak who's been wronged by the justice system. She stumbles upon the knitting class, and decides to use it to fulfill her court mandated community service hours by donating her work to the Linus Project. She multitasks heavily to afford her knitting yarn and needles.
 Jacqueline Donovan, a high-class country club member, is absolutely appalled at her son's choice of bride. Her downhill marriage doesn't seem to be helping with her social status either. When informed of her daughter-in-laws pregnancy, she attempts to find a way to embrace the new family member. So she too, stumbles upon the knitting class.
 The last member of the initial knitting class is Caroline Girard. Carol is an extremely successful woman in all areas of life but one. She has not managed to bear her mother a grandchild yet. She gives up her job in an attempt to create the perfect conditions for her last IVF attempt, and in doing so, nearly bores herself to death. To keep a positive mindset, she tries to knit a baby blanket and goes to Lydia for help.
 The characters have all been woven together quite intricately, and there are chapters told from each character's point of view. Although all characters have a simplistic style, it is easy to differentiate between the characters, even if one hasn't read the heading a top the text.
Although some parts of the plot were fairly cliched, the rest of the book was really great. This is the perfect blend of light and heavy, and of friendship and family. 
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