The Luster of Lost Things

1


Somewhere in the Fourteenth Street subway station there is a statue of a little bronze man who waits for a train that never comes. I looked forward to stopping by his bench, so that I could take the seat next to him and inspect my reflection in his shiny bald head. My mom, Lucy Lavender, always said that I was just like my dad, Walter Lavender Sr. the same eyes and patience for listening, and that gentle way of curiosity and kindness. But no matter what surface I looked in and how hard I studied my features, I saw only my own face, bland and uncomplicated, and it was that, along with my silence, that others attributed to the dumbness of a slow, amiable boy.

I did not mind, mostly, because then I was free to observe. Without the distractions of speaking and being noticed, I could listen more closely to what people said to each other and to themselves. I could watch more carefully as the skin of the world glided and stretched, and when I was open and attentive enough, I caught glimmers of the underlying bones and gears and my understanding of the secret workings of life sharpened.

In kindergarten, the teacher read aloud the story of Helen Keller and had us sit in the dark until our ears tingled, our fingers too, and we smelled and heard things we had overlooked. I wondered if that was what happened to me the silence embedding itself into the crevices of my brain, forming a singular sense that reached into the borderland between the real and the imagined to discern the echoes of the imperceptible.

My whole life, my mouth had been shut and my eyes wide open, and the deeper and darker my silence became, the more I began to sense outside of it traces of light, shifts in matter, changing undercurrents. As I grew older and it became clear to me that Lucy didn t perceive what I perceived, it was already just another part of me, and there was nothing so incredible about that.

The things I noticed were small and

Sophie Chen Keller was born in Beijing, China, and was raised in Ohio and California. Her fiction has won several awards and has appeared in publications such as Glimmer Train and Pedestal. After graduating from Harvard, she moved to New York City, where she currently resides with her husband and a not-so-secret cabinet of sweets. 

[E]nchanting....A delightful trek through and under New York streets. Minneapolis Star Tribune

  A book of rare elegance. . . . Keller understands the magic of New York City . . . and how sometimes listening to those most people hurry past make us find something we did not know we were missing. This book is one of those things: Take the time to find it.   Newark Star-Ledger

[R]ewards those willing to savor the linguistic riches and quirky characters, artfully provided by the author. With its strong story line and magic realism, this will appeal to readers of Joanne Harris Chocolat and the works of Alice Hoffman.   Booklist

Insightful....This is a feel-good, message-driven story about the restorative power of human connectedness and how acts of kindness can ultimately change lives. ShelfAwareness

A buoyant, surprising, deeply human novel that underscores how easy it is to become lost in this great big world, and how affecting it is to be found. It's no small bit of irony that I completely lost myself in these pages. The Luster of Lost Things is every bit as delicious as the magical treats from the family bakery at the heart of this charming debut. Steven Rowley, author of Lily and the Octopus

"Keller's style is simple and often beautiful, and she infuses the novel with flashes of subtle humor and mouthwatering descriptions of sugary confections."  Kirkus Reviews

The true magic of New York City shines especially bright thanks to a sprinkle of literary magic in this tender and original debut. Readers will root for the endearing young Walter along every step of his remarkable odyssey. Meg Donohue, USA Today bestselling author of Dog Crazy: A Novel of Love Lost and Found

Sophie Chen Keller s enchanting debut melts kindness and action together into a tale of wonder and magic. I savored each tasty morsel as Walter and his valiant dog, Milton, began their