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We Are the Light by Matthew Quick

The  author of The  Silver Linings Playbook (2008) tells a story of unexpected twists and turns on the  road to recovery after a shattering tragedy.Lucas Goodgame is dealing with a lot. He's a high school counselor in Majestic, Pennsylvania, who survived a mass shooting in the  town’s historic theater. His wife, Darcy, was killed and has been transformed into an angel; his analyst, whose own wife was killed in the  shooting, won’t answer his desperate letters; and there’s a kid camped in his yard who might hold the  key to helping the  town heal. Quick became a household name thanks to his debut novel and the  2012 Oscar-winning movie adaptation, and he's conjured a similar feeling of community and tender family affection here, with plenty of people helping Lucas cope with the  unimaginable. That includes Jill, owner of the  local coffee shop and his late wife’s best friend. Jill feeds and cares for Lucas, and it’s clear she wants more from him, but he’s not ready—not when the  angelic Darcy is visiting him at night, wrapping her wings around him and leaving feathers on his bed in the  morning. But it’s Eli, the  shooter's younger brother, who has the  greatest impact on Lucas' recovery. Eli is struggling with guilt—he saw his brother's behavior take a sinister turn and didn’t warn anyone—and he pitches a tent behind his former counselor’s house. Soon, inspired by Darcy’s enigmatic words—"the  boy is the  way forward”—Lucas realizes that helping Eli make a monster movie for his senior class project just might help the  teen, the  traumatized survivors, and the  town find meaning in the  senseless deaths of 17 of its citizens. The  novel is timely in light  of what’s taking place in the  U.S. now, and some characters turn their grief into political activism, but that’s not Quick’s focus. He doesn't delve into issues like gun control or the  shooter’s motivations, which makes the  story feel superficial at times. Instead, his focus is on Lucas' healing journey, the  people who love him (we  should all be so lucky), and how the  mind makes “valiant attempts to protect us” until we ’re ready to deal with our losses.When it comes to facing tragedy and trauma, Quick's novel shows us that it definitely takes a village to heal and move on. (Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2022)

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