About the Book From the New York Times bestselling author of Chalktown comes a story of reconciliation against all odds and a vision of rekindled love as well as a compassionate portrait of small-town life that celebrates the unusual, embraces the unwanted, and opens its arms to all lost souls in search of a home. Book Synopsis Featuring a WSP Reading Group Guide Purvis, Mississippi, 1974: Willem Fremont has just returned to his childhood hometown to come to grips with his past. He has spent his adult life held tight inside the clenched fist of panic disorder -- the stagnation produced by making too many wrong decisions was more paralyzing than a whole case of Jim Beam. Determined that a trip back to the family farm will help him confront his unhappy upbringing, Willem is stunned to find his fathers beloved acreage -- so much land, such a great big house -- in the hands of Eilene Till and her two grown sons. Theres the plump and perennially unemployed Sonny, building a shrimp boat in the Tills landlocked backyard, and Bruno, a disabled Vietnam vet, who escapes into his stash of old National Geographics while his wife, Leah, seeks a small measure of comfort in the day-to-day tending of their farm. How Willem navigates through these unsettled lives to find love and reconciliation in his own is at the heart of this compassionate portrait of small-town America that celebrates the unusual, embraces the unwanted, and opens its arms to all lost souls in search of a home. About the Author Melinda Haynes lives with her husband, Ray, on a barrier island along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. She is the author of two novels: Mother of Pearl and Chalktown.