The Good Remains — Nani Power

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year, Nani Power's The Good Remains is an enchanting tribute to Dickens's A Christmas Carol that follows a beguiling cast of characters in a small Virginia town heavy with history. Dr. C. R. Ash is a neonatologist and chronic bachelor, the last in line to an old Southern family name. During a snowy prelude to a much-anticipated hospital Christmas party, C.R. crosses paths with a world of local characters, living and dead: from Betty, his fire-fearing secretary; to C.R's lascivious best friend, who mends the hearts of babies; to Kirsten, a candy striper who teeters between the worlds of childhood and child rearing; to a clutch of death-obsessed teenagers; to two amateur caterers striving to create a Dickensian world of magic for the overworked and bedraggled hospital staff. In a town adrift with housing developments, strip malls, and Civil War history, this motley assemblage are all impelled by their search to solve the ancient human riddles of love, loss, and desolation.