The Art of Mending is such a thought-full title. I like how it rolls off my tongue, offering hope for whatever needs fixing. Mending: An old-fashioned word. Who mends these days? And yet, it’s a comforting word much like the stories that Elizabeth Berg unravels, then pulls together with a satisfactory ending. Elizabeth Berg is skilled with weaving words together thoughtfully and with purpose, causing me to pause and enjoy the scene as it unfolds. I read slowly and savor her exquisite writing. “There are random moments—tossing a salad, coming up the driveway to the house, ironing the seams flat on a quilt square, standing at the kitchen window and looking out at the delphiniums, hearing a burst of laughter from one of my children’s rooms—when I feel a wavelike rush of joy. This is my true religion: arbitrary moments of nearly painful happiness for a life I feel privileged…