Mixed Marriage by Elizabeth Cadell, written and published in 1963, is one of those "timeless" novels.
So, how does such a novel create a sense of "I can relate to this," or "OMG, that's so true," or set the reader laughing out loud at familiar antics of the characters.
Eseentially, what you are reading with a book like Mixed Marriage is historical fiction. You've been dropped into an unknown era; no cell phones, no laptops, a whole different set of social mores, travel by ocean liners still common....
What Cadell does (in all of her books) with a masterful ease is create characters we can relate too. The reader is constantly taken back to their own family and friends, to the people we love and tolerate indulgently.
It certainly helps that her writing is superb, showing not telling, and that her sense of humor creeps in strongly enough to make one laugh out loud.
Yes, I have read the book more than once and will likely read it a few more times in the years to come.
What are some books you've read that give you the "timeless" feeling?