by Tim Johnston
First published 2002
Tex Donleavy expects to spend his summer break with Linda Volesky, the lively woman dating his father. Instead he finds himself at his mother's house in Big River, Iowa, where her new husband Farley Dickerson has moved in with his two children. Tex hides his deformed right hand and usually buries himself in books, but this summer proves different. He discovers he actually enjoys Farley's company and decides to join his stepfather's Little League team. Farley's daughter Jack becomes both his closest friend and his biggest puzzle. Tex settles into this unexpected family arrangement, playing baseball and navigating new relationships. But beneath the surface of this surprisingly pleasant summer lies a devastating secret that will shatter every family member's life. As Tex inches toward adulthood, he must confront truths that will transform his understanding of the people he loves.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Big River, Iowa
Period: Summer
240 pages · Hardcover · Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)