The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

Recently retired Harold Fry never does the unexpected—until the day he receives a letter from Queenie Hennessy. Queenie, a former colleague whom he hasn’t seen in 20 years, has written to say goodbye because she is dying. Harold sets out to mail a response, but instead he decides to walk more than 600 miles to see Queenie because once she had “saved him” and he had never thanked her. Convinced that she will remain alive till he arrives, Harold soldiers on despite great obstacles and a flood of memories and regrets about his son David and wife, Maureen, that threaten to undo him. In this winsome narrative, which contains some vulgar language, readers meet an endearing character who comes to terms with his past and rediscovers love where it has almost been snuffed out. (Random House)