Book in a nutshell: Braestrup relates the recent, made-for-TV-drama years of her life: Our star is the widowed mother of four thoughtful children who, after the accidental death of her hunky, beloved policeman-husband, gets ordained as a Unitarian-Universalist minister and is appointed to the relatively new role of chaplain to game wardens of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

She's on the job day-to-day with the wardens, serving as ersatz "big sister" as they talk through their troubles and ticket fishermen without the proper license. She's on-call for emergencies as they locate lost hikers and recover accident and suicide victims, lending her support "in a ministry of presence. It is showing up with a loving heart. And it is really, really cool."

Braestrup dons the warden service's standard green, wool uniform, adding the white wedge in the collar of her shirt to identify herself as clergy, looking perhaps "like a cross between an effeminate priest and a gas station attendant." The wardens fondly address her as "Your Holiness" and "Reverend Mother" and give her a badge "to flash at Evildoers: 'Stop, or I'll pray!' "

Best tidbit: Braestrup writes great truths simply and easily. She relates how she drove her crying son, Peter, to the emergency room after a relative started a gasoline fire that accidentally burned them both badly. As the relative berated himself, Peter reached out and patted his shoulder, "It's all right, George. We love you." Braestrup writes, "If you are living in love (for all people), you are in heaven no matter where you are."

Pros: Braestrup's stories of life and death are deeply comforting.

Cons:While it's hard to say which parts of this memoir are the most fun - stories about her engaging co-workers, dramas in the wilderness or her family - there are certainly not enough stories about any of them. Next book, please, Chaplain Braestrup! Readers want more of your spiritual and clever exchanges with your children and to learn what inside jokes you share with second husband Simon.

Final word: Love story, theological reflections, heartwarming family yarns and more all intersect under Braestrup's nurturing hand. This would be an excellent gift for a friend who is fighting a life-threatening illness or who has recently lost a loved one. Cheerful and sure, this chatty, breezy little book is a soothing balm.

Here If You Need Me: A True Story

• Nonfiction.

By Kate Braestrup. Little, Brown, $23.99.

Grade: A

Sarah Peasley