The Fine Color of Rust

Loretta Boskovic never dreamed she would end up a single mother with two kids in a dusty Australian country town. She never imagined she’d have to campaign to save the local primary school. She certainly had no idea her best friend would turn out to be the crusty old junk man. All in all, she’s starting to wonder if she took a wrong turn somewhere. If only she could drop the kids at the orphanage and start over...

But now, thanks to her protest letters, the Education Minister is coming to Gunapan, and she has to convince him to change his mind about the school closure. And as if facing down the government isn’t enough, it soon becomes clear that the school isn’t the only local spot in trouble. In the drought stricken bushland on the outskirts of town, a luxury resort development is about to siphon off a newly discovered springwater supply. No one seems to know anything, no one seems to care.

With a dream lover on a Harley unlikely to appear out of nowhere to save the day, Loretta needs to stir the citizens of Gunapan to action. She may be short of money, influence, and a fully functioning car, but she has good friends. Together they can organize chocolate drives, supermarket sausage sizzles, a tour of the abattoir—whatever it takes to hold on to the scrap of world that is home.

A delightful novel for fans of Jennifer Weiner, Fannie Flagg, and Maeve Binchy, The Fine Color of Rust is a wonderful reminder that sometimes it really does take a village—and a healthy dose of humor—to change the world.

My thoughts...

Loretta's story begins with her thinking about dumping her kids in an orphanage and riding off on a harley with the perfect lover. The reality is she's dealing with a car that's a lemon, goats (I'll let you read about them) and always wanting to do what's right. Her best friend is an old junk man.

The citizens of dry, dusty, struggling town of Gunapan are unique, Loretta wants to keep their local school from closing and she sets off on a campaign to save it! Lots of chuckles throughout the book, some tears, good characters, interesting plot. The perfect summer read. I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

I received an ecopy of this book free from Simon and Schuster in exchange for an honest review.