Fear of Driving
Daniella Brodsky
Berkeley, Apr 2007, $14.00
ISBN: 0425210804

Sitting in a car that is not a taxi, let alone driving one, brings back nightmares of her youth when her mom drove her all over the country, but never settling in one place. That is a prime reason Ruby Reynolds moved to Manhattan so she would never need to drive again; as everyone knows, New Yorkers rarely own cars, let alone drive them, unless they are going to Connecticut, Long Island or Jersey, which she never does.

However, everything changes when Ruby attends a country wedding in Middleville, Connecticut, where she meets Ed Robbins. They are attracted to one another, but he lives in this suburban community where a car is a necessity. She knows she loves Ed, but relocating to his home means overcoming her biggest phobia from her childhood, driving a car.

Before anyone says no way about Ruby, this reviewer knows firsthand not obtaining a license when living in the Big Apple unless you go outside the city it is not necessary (and even leaving town is relatively easy to do sans car). Ruby is a terrific lead character as she struggles with leaving Manhattan for love, which means inside her dreaded adversary the dragon automobile. Readers will enjoy this fine, insightful, chick-lit look inside the head of a true-blood Manhattanite deciding whether Ed is worth going behind the wheel for love.

Harriet Klausner