Waiting for Augusta

May 9, 2016
In a story set in 1972 in a South pushing back against integration, Lawson (Nooks & Crannies) delivers a complex and often touching exploration of father-son relationships. Ben Putter's recently deceased father, a passionate golfer who never went pro, seemed perpetually disappointed with his shy son, who lives to draw and paint. When he starts speaking to Ben from the urn that holds his ashes, Benâin an act that goes against everything in his natureâsets out to scatter the ashes on the 18th hole of the Augusta National Golf Club, 400 miles away, accompanied by a runaway named Noni who has her own, unexplained, reasons for needing to get to Augusta. Their journey follows a few predictable linesâtaking on fake identities, hopping freight trains, and truck stealingâand some atypical ones, such as Ben expertly butchering a pig. Throughout, Ben and his father have the conversations they couldn't when his father was alive. Ben and Noni are believable characters whose contrasting personalities play well against each other, but the story's magical elements mix uneasily with its strong foundation of realism. Ages 8â12. Agent: Tina Wexler, ICM.

February 15, 2016
Set in rural Alabama in 1972, this tale follows 11-year-old Benjamin Putter as he struggles to fulfill his father's final wish. Though they clearly loved each other, Ben and his father shared a strained relationship, which is only one of the reasons Ben is shocked to hear a voice coming from his father's urn. He's even more surprised to learn that his father will find peace in the afterlife only if Ben scatters his ashes on the 18th hole of the famed Augusta National golf course. Compelled to help, Ben finds a traveling partner in a spunky, secretive girl named Noni who has reasons of her own for wanting to get to Augusta. Throughout the eventful journey, Ben has some important, often heartbreaking, conversations with his father that help him to better understand both his father and himself. In addition to figuring out who he is as a son, Ben, who is white, also reflects on his role as friend, working out the guilt he feels over not defending his "colored" friend May from the racial harassment she has been suffering at the newly integrated school they attend together. A whimsical, heartwarming, multilayered story about finding grace enough to accept the flaws in those we love and courage enough to act from our most deeply held beliefs. (Historical fiction. 9-12)

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March 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-Eleven-year-old Ben Putter's dad died last month, and his ashes are sitting in the kitchen. Ever since, Ben feels like he's too big for his skin, that if he can just leave town for a little while, he'll figure out how to get the golf ball-size lump out of his throat. The day Ben decides to run away is the same day his dad's ashes start talking to him. Ben's father reminds him that his dying wish was to be spread on the 18th hole at Augusta National, the world's best golf course. Ben sets off for Augusta, GA, determined to follow his dad's final wishes. Along the way, he meets a runaway named Noni, a girl with her own set of secrets. Set in 1972 Alabama and Georgia, this moving and emotional coming-of-age story tackles themes of racism, friendship, and growing up. As the two make their way to Augusta, they encounter racist protesters rallying against school integration. Ben struggles with his guilt about his past failure to stand up for his best friend May, who experienced bullying from her white peers. Through his literal and figurative journey, Ben grows and matures. VERDICT An absorbing work of historical fiction.-Terry Ann Lawler, Burton Barr Library, Phoenix

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