Wish I were here

This charming and nuanced tale of opposites attracting from Wiesner (It All Comes Back to You) follows Pittsburgh math professor Catherine Lipton, who likes her life to be precise and ordered--something she never experienced while growing up with a free-spirited father who largely makes his living through juggling. Now Catherine's up for a tenure track job at the local university--only for it to be discovered, much to Catherine's shock, that there are no government records of her existence. Her Social Security number doesn't exist. Her birth certificate is a fake. Catherine enlists help from her building's carefree and charismatic doorman, Luca Morelli, who seems to have a family connection in every local government agency, as well as some in the mob. Luca's seeming carelessness drives Catherine crazy--until he demonstrates that he has hidden depths, true empathy, and a talent for getting to the truth. As they look into Catherine's mysterious origins, Luca also shows Catherine the benefits of enjoying the little things in life. The characters feel fully three dimensional, their connection rings true, and their investigation keeps the pages flying. Wiesner will have readers hooked. (Oct.)

Catherine Lipton's childhood was filled with uncertainty as her loving but flighty father bounced from job to job and apartment to apartment. She learned to love rules and order, keeping track of school schedules and rent due dates amid her father's freewheeling chaos. Now she's an adult, with a new job as a mathematics professor and a quiet apartment she loves, even if the building's doorman, Luca, is prone to misplacing her dry cleaning and leaving the front desk unattended. On her university's orientation day, Catherine is stunned to learn that all her meticulously filled out paperwork has been rejected, and her identity declared fraudulent. Faced with the prospect of joblessness and imminent homelessness, Catherine agrees to accept help from happy-go-lucky Luca and his sprawling Italian family. The more she's forced to bend her rules, the more Catherine begins to wonder if her strictly regimented, calm, and quiet life is what she wants after all. VERDICT In Wiesner's (The Second Chance Year) latest, the combination of methodical workaholic Catherine and easygoing Luca makes for a compelling opposites-attract love story with a central message about finding meaning and happiness in life.--Meagan Day