Orem Library

In 1971, the anonymously published Go ask Alice-- the supposed diary of a middle-class addict-- reinvented the young adult genre with a blistering portray of sex, psychosis, and teenage self-destruction. In 1979 Jay's journal- the posthumous memoir of an alleged teenage Satanist-- poisoned whole communities. In reality the two books were written by Beatrice Sparks, a serial con artist who betrayed a grieving family stole a dead boy's memory, and lied...

This sweeping story, set during the tumultuous final decades of the twentieth century, begins in 1973, when the Ericksons of Grenada, Iowa, gather for the wedding of their eldest daughter, Anita. Even as they celebrate, the fault lines in the family emerge. The bride just wants to raise a family in her hometown while her brother, Ryan, plans his escape. He is joined by their cousin Chip, an unpredictable, war-damaged loner who will show Ryan both...

The war is over, the soldiers are returning, and Nat King Cole is back in his hometown of Montgomery, Alabama, for a rare performance. His childhood friend, Nat Weary, plans to propose to his sweetheart, and the singer will honor their moment with a special song. When a white man attacks Cole with a pipe, Weary leaps from the audience to defend him-- an act that will lead to a ten-year prison sentence. Six months before Weary is released, he receives...