Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting / Clare Pooley
Toronto: Viking Canada, c2022
342 p.

Iona Iverson takes the train in to London every day, carrying her little dog, dressed in outrageously colourful and eye-catching outfits. She's a magazine columnist, who is teetering on the edge of losing her job thanks to the young and flashy new editor in charge - he is convinced she's too old and past it to be successful.  

On her car there are other regulars. But as her Rules for Commuting state, you don't talk to other commuters. Still, she has her own nicknames for the regulars, and one morning Smart-But-Sexist-Manspreader chokes on a grape right across from her, bringing Iona into actual communication with Mr.-Too-Good-to-Be-True, a nurse who saves the day. Looking on is Impossibly-Pretty-Bookworm, who has a life crisis after seeing this brush with death. 

These characters, once they've connected, are irrevocably linked. They start doing things together, talking, sharing, going places, and so forth, with varying levels of desire to engage with one another. And there are the inevitable complications that arise from each one's home life; a controlling boyfriend, an over-involved mother, a financial crisis, bullying, job issues, and more. 

Iona is the heart of this group of commuters, but when she suddenly stops taking the train, the group coalesces around their shared purpose to find her and make sure she's alright.

Iona's whole life revolves around her work, especially now that her beloved wife Bea is no longer at home. And when her young upstart editor maneuvers her into resigning, the commuting group discovers what's up and rallies to save her, both financially and creatively. 

This was a charming and funny book, with an original premise. Its strength is in the characters & the many spiralling plotlines. Each person has foibles, and is both likeable and unlikeable, as real people are. Their lives are so different, and yet they fit into one another's lives so well once they start acknowledging one another and building relationships.

Although there are serious issues that each of them face, the book concludes with everyone well, with problems overcome -- most of them, anyway. There are some things that can't change but they're beautifully dealt with, and the final pages with Iona and Bea are beautiful and moving. Bea has always told Iona that "They want us to be small, so we have to stand tall", and that's what each of the characters learn in this book, in differing ways according to their lives. It's an uplifting read with charming characters who will keep you reading. I really enjoyed it.