What would it be like to pick up roots, and move someplace new? This story is about just that. The author does a great job describing island living, and it is a very entertaining story.

I took my time reading The Accidental Hermit, because it is a book to savor rather than devour. The lovingly crafted humor springs from real life experience. Wonderfully, the author is not afraid to show her seamy side as well as her pretty one. The honesty expressed in this book makes it poignant as well as funny. I particularly enjoyed her characters and their delineations, and I found myself hoping to hear more of what happened to them once the spotlight was no longer on them. Many times my husband came into the bedroom because he heard me cackling wildly to myself. He'd want to know what was funny and I'd wind up reading it to him too. Her flair for descripton helps create unforgettable images that reflect her artistry with words. Good humor is a rare commodity; Noel Murchie has gifted us with a prize winning example.

The Accidental Hermit is the engaging, true story of how Noel Murchie, while in her middle fifties and with little advanced planning, moved herself to an island off the coast of Washington State. There she found a host of problems and circumstances she had never expected, including pesky raccoons, wacky plumbing, foot infections, do-it-yourself medical treatments, capricious weather, the effects of loneliness, and the simple beauties of a quiet life. Written with great good humor and a genuine knack for storytelling, Noel Murchie writes with wit, candor and self-revelation that will engage the reader's interest from first page to last. Before taking off for your own version of some Walden's Pond, give a careful and entertaining reading to Noel Murchie's The Accidental Hermit.