With her usual mix of elegance and down-to-earthness, Rylant offers seven vignettes of life at the Van Gogh Cafe. Situated off I-70 in Flowers, Kansas, the café (formerly an old movie theater) is run by Marc and his 10-year-old daughter, Clara, who appreciate the magic that comes from the cafe's very walls. A possum turns up (upside down, actually) and is responsible for a widower's finding new meaning for his life. An aged film star and the man he loved many years ago are reunited in death at the cafe. Rylant's works can be deceptively simple on the surface, but there are layers to probe here.
