Sonja’s Pick
July 2026
Theo of Golden
Allen Levi
Atria Books, October 3, 2025
An uplifting book–don’t we ALL need that–showing that one person can make a difference. This elderly Portuguese man arrives in the small town of Golden, GA. He visits the local cafe and sees 91 portraits that some artist has drawn of locals. He makes it HIS duty to return those paintings to each subject. He must of course first pay for them.
He pens a lovely letter stating his desire to those in the portrait and offers to deliver each of the drawings in the local park in the center of town. It brings him and those recipients much JOY. And the artist who gets paid!
He opens up new horizons for these folks. Of course we don’t hear about all 91; he dwells on a few and we encounter them throughout the novel. The cello player, the immigrant whose young daughter is in the hospital after a car accident; the young woman who dearly wants to be a mother.
What a nice read.
WARNING! Do NOT read the end first.
Sonja