This One Moment is a lovely, believable romance about an injured veteran coming back from Iraq and an intern at his rehab hospital. Didi is a trainee therapist assigned to the hospital for a PhD internship. Walker is a patient, suffering from physical and emotional injuries after loosing almost his entire unit to an ambush in the Helmund Province.
The story is told from first person, but switches the point of views between Mila and Walker and I really dug that. I was sucked in almost immediately. I love books that feel like biographies and this one certainly did.
It’s heavy on the melodrama and the angst, but not in ways that made it over the top for me. Instead, I felt drawn along with their emotions and their mistakes. There are some niggly ethical things about this that bug me as a social worker – he is technically her patient and she should probably get fired for being interested in him – but I’m choosing to shove that aside since it was fully consensual and there was no abuse of power or privilege.
One of the themes of the book is that Didi is trying to figure herself out – she’s in her 20s and things are confusing. She talks to her best friend about ideas of home and belonging and her best friend replies with this gem:
I don’t think home is a place, I think it’s a person. And when you find home, the place you feel the safest, the place you go to for shelter and where you can fully be yourself, then you know you’re in love, really in love, not just infatuated or head over heels with lust.
Throughout the book, Didi has to choose between two men; Walker and Holywood Heartthrob Zac something or another (you can tell how much I enjoyed him, eh?). It’s this idea of home and grounding that helps her navigate that choice and I think it serves as a good plumb line through the story.
This one is an emotional and slow read, so the drink has to be fortifying and sipped. I’d say a nice cup of hot tea for the first bit and then switch to a cabernet sauvignon for the final chapters.
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Further Reading:
- Wounded Warrior Project: There are so many men and women coming back from the current conflict in need of assistance to readjust. If you have a few extra dollars or some time on your hands, consider getting involved with Wounded Warriors.
- TriSoldier Project: Another excellent organization helping injured service people compete in triathlons.
- Benefits of Art Therapy: Art therapy is a well respected addition to physical rehabilitation after trauma. Read through this blog to find out more.
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I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.