A Town with Half the Lights On

A Novel

By: Page Getz

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

Welcome to Goodnight, Kansas. Population: Many Kansans, three New Yorkers, and one chance to save the place they love most.

With more wind chimes than residents, folks don't move to Goodnight when their lives are going well. That's why all eyes are on chef Sid Solvang and his family from the moment they turn down Emporia Road to the dilapidated Victorian they inherited.

While Sid searches for work and a way back to Brooklyn, his daughter searches for answers to the cryptic messages her grandfather left behind to save both her family and the town. But then Sid makes an impulsive purchase: the fledgling May Day Diner, an iconic eatery under the threat of the wrecking ball.

As the Solvangs search for their ticket out, they discover the truth of Goodnight: one of heart and tradition, of exploitation and greed, and neighbors you would do anything to save.

Told through diary entries, emails, school notes, and an anonymous town paper of the Lady Whistledown variety, A Town with Half the Lights On is a tender testament to the notions that home isn't just the place you live, family isn't just your relatives, and it's almost never easy to find the courage to do what's right.

©2025 Page Getz (P)2025 Tantor Media

Great book… BUT THE EMAILS

The book is great but I’m not sure I recommend it on Audiobook. The entire book is made up of written communication between the characters, most of which are emails. The narrator reads each person’s email address EVERY TIME. Couldn’t they make an accommodation for the audio version to not do that? It was so frustrating, especially during quick, one-line email exchanges. Read the hard copy so you can focus on the story and not spend a chunk of your life listening to email addresses.