Pleasant Fiction

Ned, having newly earned a Ph.D., and Diane, a young schoolteacher, have an idyllic courtship and marriage. Their child Andy (Alexandra) is a delight. Ned advances in college teaching to become a department chairman. In Andy's fifteenth year, Diane is diagnosed with cancer. Ned believes that no just God would afflict such a good woman in this way. He decides that the religious stories just aren't true. After Diane's death, Ned and Andy go to their summer camp on a small lake in the Adirondack foothills, to grieve and recover. Ned feels remorse that he had allowed Diane to die believing she had sinned and was being punished. He resolves to save Andy from any such tormenting belief. A thug threatens to rape Andy; she cleverly eludes him. The two return to their home, ready again to face life strongly.Goldthwait, John T. is the author of 'Pleasant Fiction', published 2003 under ISBN 9781413700572 and ISBN 1413700578.