First published 2023
Arthur Moses watches Nola McCollum from across their Mason, Missouri classroom, hardly believing his luck when friendship blooms between them. Arthur wants much more than friendship, but Nola has eyes only for his older brother Frank. Frank stays busy chasing his own romantic interests while dodging their father, a war veteran whose drinking fuels his taste for violence. Arthur navigates family chaos and unrequited love until tragedy strikes without warning. Grief threatens to overwhelm the shy young man, but the natural world around Mason teaches him lessons about moving forward. Arthur learns to build a life rooted in forgiveness and empathy, growing into the compassionate person readers know from The Story of Arthur Truluv. Nola remains uncertain about her path and blind to Arthur's devotion. Berg weaves together family bonds, personal growth, and the patient work of healing in this story about how love appears in unexpected forms.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary-romance, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Mason, Missouri
Period: 20th-century
320 pages · Paperback · Random House Large Print
Content warnings: violence