LABOR DAY

"Labor Day" by Joyce Maynard
Product Description(Amazon.com)
With the end of summer closing in and a steamy Labor Day weekend looming in the town of Holton Mills, New Hampshire, lonely, friendless thirteen-year-old Henry spends most of his time watching television, reading, and daydreaming with only his emotionally fragile, long-divorced mother for company. But everything changes on the Thursday before the holiday weekend when a mysterious bleeding man named Frank asks Henry for a hand. Over the next five days, Henry will learn some of life's most valuable lessons, about the breathless pain of jealousy, the power of betrayal, and the importance of putting those we care about above ourselves—and that real love is worth waiting for.
From acclaimed author Joyce Maynard comes a beautiful, poignant tale of love, sex, adolescence, and devastating treachery as seen through the eyes of a young teenager—and the man he later becomes.
# Paperback: 272 pages
# Publisher: Harper Perennial; Reprint edition (August 3, 2010)
# Language: English
# ISBN-10: 0061843415
# ISBN-13: 978-0061843419

MY THOUGHTS: This is my book clubs choice for this month. I really liked reading this book. It was an easy book to read. About a boy coming of age. Henry is a lonely boy growing up with his mother, with visits with his dad and his new family. Henry isn't into sports but he is beginning to look at girls in a whole different way. And then Frank, an escaped convict, comes to stay with them for 6 days. His mother falls in love, Henry finds a girlfriend and Henry also learns about betrayal at the hands of a girl. What Henry doesn't realize is that love is a powerful emotion and can change your life. Joyce Maynard wrote a beautiful book about a young man coming of age. I really liked all the characters in the book. They all played an important part in Henry's life. Does Henry find his love for life? Does his mother find love? You'll have to read the book to find out. And the ending of the book is totally unexpected, at least on my part.

MY RATING: 5