“I’ve said that I emerged from the womb with a saltshaker in one hand and a ripe tomato in the other. I also was born with a thirst for authenticity. I’ve truly always wanted the truth, even if it was painful. Lies seem pointless to me, a waste of everyone’s time.”
–Pamela Capone, The Little Love That Could: Stories of Tenacious Love, Underdogs, and Ragamuffins
As a writer, one of the most fulfilling things for me is having someone read my stuff and see that they “get it.” The following is one of several pro reviews that have come in recently that truly seem to get my point, and I am deeply grateful.
THE LITTLE LOVE THAT COULD REVIEW FROM INDIE READER:
…Life hasn’t always been easy for Capone, though even her few sad stories glow with affection. She is open about both foibles and her pain. In “On Loan,” she discusses her penchant for worry. In many stories she touches on the public stigma she felt as a ‘ragamuffin’ foster child. Her descriptions of losing a dear friend to cancer in stories like “Confliction,” and “I Know She Happened” are powerful and wrenching. Capone has looked into darkness. As she makes clear in “TooBlessedtobeStressed” her religious belief doesn’t manifest in a denial of hardship, but from a Christian faith that offers comfort and understanding.
On the whole, this collection of essays is filled with warmth. Life delights the playful, observant Capone. Her joy radiates in “Table Talk,” and “The One Who Got Away,” and other stories about her ninety-three-year-old friend Inez. Her love for her husband John and amusing recollections of her father shine in “Don’t Throw Away the Oar,” and “Spaghetti Western.” And some of her brightest stories, like “Black Friday,” and “Can I Help You,” involve chance encounters that gather themselves up into moments of grace.
…Pamela Capone’s THE LITTLE LOVE THAT COULD is a refreshing reminder that faith and joy exist within an honest accounting of our imperfect days. This series of personal and faith-based essays compassionately guides readers through the doubts and struggles to a place of greater peace, appreciation, and understanding.
IR VERDICT: In THE LITTLE LOVE THAT COULD, author Pamela Capone is passionately committed to using her own life experience– written in accessible, compassionate prose–to help, advise, and heal.
—indie Reader