Out to Pasture: But Not over the Hill

Anyone who thinks that retirement is rocking chair and Medicare is in for a surprise when they meet the folks at Fair Acres Home. This charming first novel by eighty-five-year-old Effie Leland Wilder stars Hattie McNair, a journal-keeper and eavesdropper extraordinaire. Hattie overhears a resident planning her own funeral -- complete with caterer so that her daughter-in-law's cooking doesn't make the funeral-goers sorry they came. Hattie begins her journal that night. Through the entries and letters to a friend on the outside, Hattie tells the stories of the high -- and low -- times at Fair Acres that is sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, and always uplifting.