{"product_id":"the-night-of-the-comet-a-novel","title":"The Night of the Comet: A Novel","description":"\u003cp\u003eA KIRKUS REVIEWS \"BEST BOOKS OF 2013\"  NEW YORK POST \"REQUIRED READING\"  PEOPLE MAGAZINE STARRED REVIEW  From the acclaimed author of Letter to My Daughter comes an engrossing coming-of-age tale that deftly conveys the hopes and heartaches of adolescence  and the unfulfilled dreams that divide a family  played out against the backdrop of a small southern town in 1973.  For his fourteenth birthday  Alan Broussard  Jr.  receives a telescope from his father  a science teacher at the local high school whos anxiously awaiting what he promises will be the astronomical event of the century: the coming of Comet Kohoutek. For Alan Broussard  Sr.--frustrated in his job  remote from his family--the comet is a connection to his past and a bridge to his son  with whom hes eager to share his love for the stars. But the only heavenly body Junior has any interest in is his captivating new neighbor and classmate  Gabriella Martello  whose bedroom sits within eyeshot of his telescopes lens. Meanwhile  his mother Lydia sees the comet--and her husbands obsession with it--as one more thing that keeps her from the bigger  brighter life she once imagined for herself far from the swampy environs of Terrebonne  Louisiana. With Kohoutek drawing ever closer  the family begins to crumble under the weight of expectations  and a startling turn of events will leave both father and son much less certain about the laws that govern their universe.  Illuminating and unforgettable  The Night of the Comet is a novel about the perils of growing up  the longing for connection  and the idea that love and redemption can be found among the stars.  Praise for George Bishops Letter to My Daughter  \"A first novel of immense power . . . George Bishop is a novelist to keep your eye on.\"--Pat Conroy  author of South of Broad  \"Gripping . . . Bishop somehow gets into a teenage girls head and roams around there like a native. You believe in Laura; her voice never hits a false note.\"--Star-News (Wilmington  N.C.)  \"George Bishop writes Letter to My Daughter with a keen eye  an open heart  and a lot of love. I am sure I will return to it again as a cautionary tale and a parable of forgiveness.\"--Adriana Trigiani  author of The Shoemakers Wife  \"Before you sit down to read this book  put aside a few hours or else youll miss some appointments. You will be pulled into every paragraph.\"--Clyde Edgerton  author of The Night Train\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44953231589429,"sku":"ByrdShop_0345516001","price":28.85,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780345516008.jpg?v=1770204153","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-night-of-the-comet-a-novel","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}