Too old to rock and roll

Something was different. Dad's clothes were new and he was wearing jeans. His father was wearing jeans! And he was smiling. His father was Stephen Barber again.He was the bright and happy man who married Mum.(p.11)

 This book has three short stories. There are no similarities among those stories, so you can enjoy many kind of stories.
 The first story is about one family. Main characters are young son named Greg and his father. Several years ago, they lost their mother because of the car traffic accident. His father used to be a bright and happy man, but he changed to be sad and cold. Greg hopes he gets better again. One more character, named Valerie is worry about the parent and child and often come their house and help some houseworks. She was a old friend with Greg's father, and same age to him. They are very close and the father began to change little by little. Greg think they get married in some years, but the last of the story was unexpected for readers.
 I expected more better ending, so I coudn't swallow it and the title of this story. I've not experienced the losing my parents yet. Greg hopes his father's happiness, and interacted with him like a friend. So it's interesting and fresh for me. If you have an interest about this book, please check it.