I got this hardcover from an online seller. Couldn't resist "reflections from a Grim Reaper's yearlong sabbatical"! (I'd expected it to be funny, but while there are amusing bits, it's also in the philosophical line - the author's introduction talks about work-life balance.) Death is one of many, working in a cubicle-farm harvesting souls, as one does, when he gets a notice that he has long-overdue vacation and is ordered to take the full year off. And so he does, struggling a bit at first; one scene shows him on a ski lift with a mortal, with his journal-entry noting "Socializing has been tricky. So I'm trying to develop my conversational voice... 'How far a drop do you think it is?'" And the scene where he's in bed with his laptop "Netflixing animal docs (again)" certainly resonates in these pandemic days {rueful grin}.

He does indeed win a goldfish during a day at a carnival, which he enjoys a lot. The goldfish often accompanies him on his subsequent trips as well. (Eventually he takes it back to work with him, along with some souvenir snowglobes!)

Favorite bits include his meeting with some Amish farmers, where "we exchanged some tips on tools and our respective techniques" - the tools being scythes, of course. And then there's the subtle bit at a coffee shop, where Death places his order and gets a cup with the name "Beth" on it... guess the barista wasn't paying attention!

Guidelines for safely visiting and stocking Little Free Libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic, from the LFL site here.

I left this book in the Little Free Library outside the Adult Learning Center on this drizzly day; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

*** Released for the 2020 Spooktacular October challenge. ***

*** Released for the 2020 Tick Tock challenge. ***