Life in Bits is a book full of Christmas cheer. Co-authored by Harper Bliss and T. B. Markinson, this festive romance was written by two giants in the world of lesfic. And if you don’t have an open fire for roasting chestnuts, Life in Bits will keep you warm on those cold winter nights.
For Naomi, a social worker and hospital volunteer, the town of Derby has always been enough. And not even being cheated on by Jane, her ex, is enough to dampen Naomi’s Christmas spirit. She loves her community and plays a vital part in it. But Derby always felt too small for Eileen Makenna, who left thirty years ago and never looked back. A Pulitzer Prize winning photographer, she travels from country to country, always in search of the next story. Until a health crisis brings her home.
A light-hearted love story, Life in Bits is the perfect antidote to the stress of wrapping gifts and cooking Christmas dinner.Eileen grudges having to stop working. She grudges the loss of mobility caused by her stroke. And she especially grudges being drawn back into the tangled web of resentments and snobberies that is her wealthy New England family. But life in Derby isn’t without perks. In the hospital for physiotherapy, Eileen bumps into Naomi. From this chance encounter springs romance.
From the moment Naomi sets eyes on Eileen, a foxy older woman, she’s intrigued. Eileen — initially cynical — takes a bit more convincing. But, after some Australian soap worthy drama, they begin a passionate relationship. A light-hearted love story, Life in Bits is the perfect antidote to the stress of wrapping gifts and cooking Christmas dinner. And Naomi’s Christmas cheer, as Eileen finds out, is infectious.
As well as being an enjoyable read, this book is significant in terms of how it represents female sexuality. In a culture driven by youth, it’s refreshing to read a story in which a 49-year-old woman desires and is desirable.As well as being an enjoyable read, this book is significant in terms of how it represents female sexuality. In a culture driven by youth, it’s refreshing to read a story in which a 49-year-old woman desires and is desirable.
Despite the gains we’ve made in lesbian representation, it’s hard to imagine a story like Eileen and Naomi’s being told via Hollywood, where disabled characters are still made to serve as inspiration porn for an abled audience. What makes Life in Bits stand out is that Eileen’s symptoms are neither downplayed nor romanticized — they’re simply part and parcel of the woman Naomi falls in love with.
