coming back to the novel as to a lover

I took several days off the novel to do end-of-semester reading and grading (some very good stories), and then today came back to the page (481 to be exact), and to Carl and Jason with a sigh of relief and affection.
They'd been suspended at the moment of pushing off into Rose Lake with a party of disaffected canoers and a high-spirited dog, many questions hanging in the air. Will someone fall in? will the little girl in the party want to play with the doggie, even though he's in another canoe? will they look down into Rose Lake and see the ghosts of settlers who might have lived there before the river was dammed up and the gorge became a lake?
So far, Jason and Carl are just having an argument, and they stop to hear someone shouting over the water about the war and the murder of the American people, with more to come.
In other news, now that the semester is over, I can devote myself to the finalization of my summer reading list (still taking nominations). I've started on The Time Traveler's Wife (by Audrey Niffenegger), lent to me by one friend who recommended it with reservations (another friend recommended it w/o reservations). I like it so far. It switches time a lot, but I'm dealing with this by not paying too much attention to it. The only thing maybe is the relationship between the 2 main characters--am I creeped out because he meets her when she's six? I'm not sure yet.