Shoot the Moon

Mark Albright shows up in the small town of DeClare, Oklahoma, to find his past. Brought up by wealthy adoptive parents in California, he may actually be Nicky Jack Harjoe, who disappeared from DeClare as an infant after his mother was murdered 30 years earlier. His quest to find answers will stir up buried secrets--and crimes--in this small town. Letts's characters are interesting and complex, but this abridgment lets them and the story down by, apparently, leaping ahead and leaving the listener puzzled. While Phillips narrates with gravity, skillfully vocalizing the colorful characters, the confusing abridgment renders this an unsatisfying production. M.A.M. 2005 Audie Award Finalist (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine


In 1972, in DeClare, Oklahoma, 10-month-old Nicky Jack Harjo disappears when his single mother is murdered. Thirty years later Mark Albright, Californian veterinarian to the stars, having just learned he was adopted, arrives in DeClare, looking for an explanation from the mother who gave him away. His search for answers to the past turns into a mission of justice for his murdered mother and an explanation of his own mysterious adoption in California. Although the murderer's identity is obvious early, Kathe Mazur's easy-on-the-ears voice makes the story an enjoyable companion on a long road trip. She uses nuances in her voice to move between past and present, giving us a sense of the story's characters, culture, and community. N.E.M. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

March 15, 2004
Having sold 3.2 million copies of Where the Heart Was, Letts returns with the tale of Nicky Jack Harjo, who mysteriously disappeared from DeClare, OK, as a baby and then puts in an appearance 30 years later.

Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2004
A man's desperate search for his identity drives this riveting offering from the author of best-sellers " Where the Heart Is " (1995) and " The Honk and Holler Opening Soon " (1998). No one in sleepy DeClare, Oklahoma, has forgotten the 1972 murder of pretty Cherokee Gaylene Harjo and the abduction of her infant son, Nicky Jack. Hard-nosed deputy sheriff Oliver "O Boy" Daniels pinned the blame on local preacher Joe Dawson, but few in town believed the kindly Joe was capable of such an act. Powerful emotions resurface 30 years later, when Nicky Jack, adopted and raised by a rich couple in Beverly Hills, mysteriously reappears, determined to learn about his mother and the circumstances surrounding her death. Veteran short-story writer Letts peppers her prose with a cast of quirky characters, including a quartet of nosy, domino-playing senior citizens and a perky pool-hall owner who bakes peanut-butter pies. Readers of Sue Miller and Wally Lamb are sure to embrace this memorable tale of love, loss, humanity, and hope. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)