6
DECEMBER 15�22, 2021
FROM THE SHELF
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WORLD OF BOOKS
‘How It Happened’ — a sweet
vintage Christmas romance
By Cheryl Hoefl er
GO! Magazine
life, she to the “down-town”
side.
That was three years
ot sure “how it hap-
ago and their paths never
pened” that I even
crossed again. We learn,
ended up with this vintage
however, that secretly both
book in my possession, but have regretted their bro-
a sweet charming story it is. ken engagement and have
Written in 1914, “How It
longed for each other ever
Happened” by Kate Langley since.
Bosher is a Christmas-sea-
And then a young, imagi-
son romance — an early-
native girl named Carmen-
day Hallmark Christmas tale cita Bell comes into their
if there ever was one.
lives. Carmencita, from the
The lovers are Stephen
poverty-stricken “down-
Van Landing, a well-to-do,
town,” is already good
friendless, cold business-
friends with her neighbor
man, and Frances Barbour,
“Miss Barbour.” Then by
a lowly, kindhearted woman chance one evening, she
who devotes her time and
meets a gentleman, “Mr.
energy to needy children.
Van.” It’s two days before
Both are alone — and
Christmas and he’s wan-
lonely. But they used to be a dering the streets in a sour
couple, engaged in fact, until mood about the holiday: “It
she called it off when she
was humanity’s home-time
learned his opinion was that and he had no home.”
a wife should be devoted
Carmencita’s waiting for
to her husband and home
her blind, widower father,
— and not much else. They who’s providing music at a
parted, he to an “up-town”
neighborhood wedding — a
N
wedding that, you guessed
it, Van Landing is supposed
to be attending. It really
could be a Hallmark Christ-
mas movie.
Soon into their acquain-
tance, Stephen is stunned
to learn that his new young
friend knows his dear Fran-
ces. But, alas, the reclusive
and elusive Frances is
nowhere to be found. In his
despair, Stephen strikes
out again for the dark and
dreary streets, in a mad
search for his love. He
considers heading back to
Carmencita’s home, but re-
alizes he doesn’t even know
her full name or address.
Nor, unfortunately, does
Carmencita know his.
How in the world are
these two onetime lovebirds
ever going to fi nd each
other again? And can they
rekindle their romance?
Several other characters
fi ll in the story, some with
strange names — Noodles,
Fetch-It and Mr. Dam-
anarkist. It took me a few
pages to fi gure out the latter
meant “Mr. Damn Anarchist.”
A location for “How It
Happened” isn’t given, but
author Bosher’s works were
often set in her home state
of Virginia or the South. Her
novel “Mary Cary, Frequently
Martha” (1910) was adapted
to the silent movie “No-
body’s Kid” (1921).
I enjoyed this pleasant
little story and truly could
not put it down. Van Land-
ing’s character reminded
me of Dickens’ Scrooge, if
Scrooge was younger and
in love — with something
other than money, that is.
Like Scrooge, Van Landing
comes around and begins to
see “what for long had been
unseen.”
I was surprised to learn
that Christmastime frenzy
was alive and well 100 years
ago. Van Landing expresses
his disgust: “It was incom-
Cheryl Hoefl er/Go! Magazine
prehensible, the shopping
craze at this season of the
year … commercializing a
custom whose origin was
very far removed from the
spirit of the day.”
In addition to being a
lighthearted romance,
“How It Happened” off ers
some deep ponderings on
Tom Reed
Friday, December 17th @ 6:30
Zoom and in-person options. In person event will be
at Churchill School, proof of vaccination required.
Zoom invites will be sent via email day of the event.
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Audio & E-Books Available
couples, wealth, poverty and
loneliness. And the ques-
tion of what really drives the
incidents in our lives: faith
or fate?
For her part, young and
insightful Carmencita does
not believe in accidents and
knows just “how it hap-
pened.”
As a student of Japanese arts and aesthetics, and a
student of the study of consciousness,
photographer and hypnotherapist Tom Reed is
interested in the experience of aesthetic arrest
and what he calls “shocking beauty.” (See his TEDx
presentation on that subject) Zen sensibilities pro-
foundly influence his compositions. Other major
influences on his work have been Ansel Adams,
Edgar Payne’s work in the Sierras, and the Hudson
River School of painters. Indeed he was nicknamed
“The Ansel Adams of Patagonia” after his book,
The Granite Avatars of Patagonia. His work can
be seen at
www.tomreed.com.
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