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In A Christmas Memory, Richard Paul Evans--author of more than 40 novels--delivers an emotionally moving fictionalized story that pays homage to a man who made a profound impact on the author’s early life.
The story begins in 1967, in Pasadena, Calif., and centers on Rick, a sensitive and bright--yet socially awkward--eight-year-old with Tourette’s syndrome. When Rick’s brother, Mark--ten years older--dies in the Vietnam war, his death drives a wedge between his parents. The loss is compounded by the fact that Mark “didn’t believe in war and didn’t want to go.” As the family struggles to deal with grief and guilt, Rick’s father loses his job. This forces a move to Salt Lake City, Utah, where Rick’s mother was born and raised. Shortly after the family settles into Rick’s deceased grandmother’s house, Rick’s parents separate. While his mother sinks into a severe depression, Rick is bullied by peers and badgered by an ogre teacher. Respite is found when Rick befriends a neighbor’s dog and ultimately the dog’s elderly owner, Mr. Foster. This African American man of integrity--a contemporary of Rick’s grandmother, separated from his own family--opens his house and heart to the young boy. He offers companionship and wisdom that shepherds Rick through sad uncertainty that ultimately coalesces into a touching and most memorable Christmas.
Themes
of friendship and forgiveness infuse Evans’s (Michael
Vey 8; The Road Home)
beautifully tender story that delivers a heartfelt message about remembrance,
love and hope.
A
Christmas Memory: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans
Gallery Books (Simon and
Schuster), $17.99 hardcover, 9781982177447,
192 pages
Publication Date: November 22, 2022
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