George Whitmore's acclaimed and affecting coming-of-age novel about a boy searching for his identity in the wake of a terrible accident When a car crash took one of his legs at age twelve, it also robbed Craig of his last hope for a steady childhood. Living in a Nebraska town with his abusive, alcoholic father and strong-willed mother, Craig is delighted when, in the middle of his recuperation, his uncle Wayne returns home, discharged from service in the navy. At times Wayne is like a surrogate father to Craig, helping him with his rehabilitation and igniting his imagination with tales of adventure sailing around the world. But with Wayne's nightly calls to a man known as "the Chief," it becomes clear to Craig that his uncle is still very much a mystery. Beautifully written and utterly heartrending, Nebraska is a poignant story about a boy's maturation into manhood, and about the vividly drawn family members that surround him throughout his youth in the doldrums of rural life.
"A very nicely done tale . . . of rebirth and catharsis and the righting of wrong . . . love and ruin, good and evil, prim middle-class values and their frightening underside."
The Kansas City Star
"You will have come to expect brilliance from Whitmore, and you will not be disappointed by Nebraska. This is an astonishing, devastating book. . . . Often extremely funny . . . Nebraska is a real literary treat . . . an absolute joy to read."
Christopher Street
"Nebraska is lean, uncompromising . . . From the first lines, Whitmore holds the story in a muscled, Midwestern grip!"
