The book "A Stop in the Park" by Peggy Panagopoulos Strack is the story of Michael and his wife Jamie and their troublesome marriage. They can't seem to find how to keep their marriage together. They have an expensive house, two lovely children, Michael has a job making seven figures but they are both unhappy. One day Michael stops in the park to watch a chess game and realizes how unhappy his life is but has no idea how to change it. This book tells of the story of change and how it develops.

What does it take to heal a broken marriage? Maybe it starts with a conversation over a game of chess. The book "A Stop in the Park" by Peggy Panagoulous Strack is the story of the heartache and trials Miachael and Jamie go through in what should have been a perfect marriage. You will feel the tension that goes with a marriage gone bad and will keep hoping that a solution will be found for the family. You will experience the pain that their own childhoods played in their adult lives that formed the problems that later caused so much sorrow in their marriage. Will they find out in time to turn around the bad life habits and save the marriage or is divorce the only answer? I feel you will hate to put this book down once you start it. I could not put it down!

Michael Stolis, his wife Jamie and their two young daughters aged 5 and 7 live in a million dollar home in Washington, D.C. Michael has followed his Greek immigrant father's explicit wishes and has become a highly successful attorney at a prestigious law firm. But Michael and Jamie are very unhappy in their marriage of ten years and have sought marriage counselling. Michael has anger issues and Jamie is often bitchy and distant as she has given up her career in journalism to be a wife and mother. Michael loves to sneak down into their basement to play his guitar and Jamie eats peanut butter cups to quell her misery. Then Michael talks Jamie and his daughters into walking through a local park called Dupont Circle on their way to a pricey restaurant. During that walk, Michael plays chess with a stranger, Rufus Williams, who beats him at the game but makes Michael feel really good in his presence. After playing chess with Michael again, Rufus counsels Michael to review his life and get rid of the things he doesn't want or need. But can Michael and Jamie really make the major life changes necessary to save their marriage?

"A Stop in the Park" is delightful and is a beautifully written and formatted story of a marriage where husband and wife have their faults and must work hard and long to make their marriage work once again. The main character Michael meets Rufus Williams over a game of chess in a little park and Rufus, a real human being and not an angel, counsels and guides Michael into doing what he really wants to do in life is the major theme in this story that will continue on in readers' hearts and minds long after they've read the book in its entirety. Author Peggy Strack has written a book that should go to the top of reading lists everywhere.