Black Rose Writing
235 Pages
When looking at books, I find that I prefer longer books to those that are under 300 pages. I sometimes feel that a book under that threshold doesn’t have enough time to develop the plot or the characters. There are always exceptions to this and The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride by Joe Siple is firmly an exception. Although a very short book, it is an exceptional piece of writing. I am very glad to have picked it up from the Lockport Public Library. Easily, this book is going to be one of my favorite books of 2025.
Murray McBride is a curmudgeonly old man trying to reconcile the death of the love of his life. He’s 100 years old and has outlived all his friends and most of his family. A retired Major League baseball player, he keeps his mementos in his attic and in his memories. After a long life, he finds it very difficult to find the good in people. Instead, he ends up thinking the worst about everyone around him. He thinks his nephew is trying to drive him out of his house just so he can reap the windfall of the sale as well as gain control of Murray’s sports memorabilia from his time in the bigs.
While at the hospital, he finds himself begrudgingly playing a game with a ten-year-old boy who needs a heart to survive. When the boy’s father tells him it's time to leave, Murray finds a list that the boy left behind. The list are the wishes of the boy he just met, Jason. They are the things the young man wants to do before his heart gives out. Against all odds, Murray decides that he needs to get the list back to the boy and help him achieve the goals scribbled on the sheet of paper.
Pursuing these endeavors gives Murray a reason to live after he had decided to give up. With this new focus, he seems to be rejuvenated. Belying his age, his new purpose brings back some of his glory days. He even drives again despite not having done it in years and without a license. He is going to do everything he can to bring joy to his new, young friend. Through these efforts, we’re entertained with snippets of Murray’s history, and these snippets are pure gold. It was the perfect way to develop the main character. It was brilliantly done.
Against all odds, Murray makes a connection with the young boy and his friend. The elderly man uses his connections to his old baseball franchise to help Jason live out one of his fantasies and cross an item off the list. This turns to mayhem when Jason collapses and Murray is jailed for taking the boy without permission. The love that the man has for his young friend is evident. In the end, salvation for both Murray and Jason come from the unlikeliest of sources.
In a short amount of space, Joe Siple delivers an emotional force of nature. With exquisite writing, Siple peels away layer after layer of characters that the readers want to love. You will be invested in the outcome for the three main characters in this book. In the end, you’ll be left simultaneously heartbroken and overjoyed. I can admit that the last bit of the book made me a bit emotional.
Great books evoke emotional responses. The Five Wishes of Mr. Murray McBride by Joe Siple absolutely did just that. I was not expecting the ending that we were given. It was wondrous, wonderful and bittersweet. Everything about this book makes me want to grab more books by this author. I cannot wait to read more. I will warn you, though, that this book will provoke your allergies by the end…in a good way.
I love character driven novels, and this one is simply spectacular. Everything about Murray and Jason rings true, like they could step out of the page into our world with ease. They were people we all know and love. It’s that magical element that makes this book one of my favorites of the year. I cannot wait to grab more books by Joe Siple. You should be just as excited. You won’t be disappointed.
Craig Bacon wants to write a homespun tale with characters as rich as Mr. Murray McBride.