My Best Friend's Funeral

November 1, 2014
Though the title tells the ending, the book tells the story, how two young 1980s California boysone fatherless, one with an alcoholic fatherfound their way to becoming friends, surfing and skateboarding, starting a band and later a business, and, the same summer (though in different situations), believing in God. Thompson's writing is heartfelt, and it takes guts to tell what he tellsthe tears he cried, how lost he felt, the anger and confusion over being fatherless and friendless. Meeting Tim Garrety, a congenial and popular guy, and discovering that Tim saw something in him that he didn't see, was life changing. Step by painful step, the boys get through high school and its concomitant miseries, heading into adulthood and a 20-year friendship, always bound by a belief in a God who found them cool, even when no one else did. My Best Friend's Funeral will speak to those who recall shameful high-school moments but made it past them, and to those who have suffered great losses; per Thompson, with God watching over you, and a friend who cares, you can make it through anything.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)