First published 2010
The snow keeps falling in the winter of 1962, and twelve-year-old George McCray watches it pile higher each day from his grandparents' farm. George has come to live with them after losing his parents, carrying grief that feels heavier than the drifts outside. His grandfather expects him to handle farm chores and shoulder responsibilities that would challenge grown men. His grandmother worries about the quiet boy who barely speaks at dinner. Then there's Tucker, the red Irish setter who follows George everywhere and seems to understand what words cannot reach. George must prove himself capable of the work, the weather, and the weight of his loss. The farm demands everything from him. Tucker offers companionship without questions. His grandparents provide steady love wrapped in daily routines. Together they help George discover what kind of person he will become when the snow melts and he must choose his path forward.
Genres: fiction, family-life, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief
Setting: Farm, Grandparents' Farm
Period: 1962, Winter
180 pages · Paperback · Arrow Books