Instruct: Classify Amazon reviews into positive or negative sentiment
Query: A lovely and sympathetic novel.

This book unfolds gradually, but packs a quiet punch by its conclusion. Maybe it seems dull to say that the book is about the life choices made by a middle-aged Baltimore eccentric, but Tyler writes with such sympathy and generosity towards her characters that you're willing to follow them wherever they tend to wander. You might not fall in love with these characters, but they're doing the best they can. It's hard to ask anything more of them. The climax of the book, once it takes place, seems both inevitable and surprising, a sure sign of good writing. This is a subtle and impressive book.