About the Book
It's the summer of 1973 and 14-year-old Alan Broussard is navigating the chaotic and disillusioning course of adolescence- awakening to the joys of first love, learning the meaning of disappointment, and getting accustomed to the perpetual embarrassment caused by his parents. And this is especially the case when Alan's father-his high school's geekiest science teacher-becomes obsessed over what he predicts will be the astronomical event of the century- the sighting of comet Kohoutek. As the sleepy town of Terrebonne, Louisiana, gets caught up in the comet craze, Alan is preoccupied by his telescope's ability to grant him access into the world of the beautiful girl who moved into the house across the river. But what he comes to see most clearly is a reality that's been hidden from him his entire life-his father's inadequacies, his mother's growing unhappiness, his sister's struggle to find autonomy and his own loss of innocence amidst it all. Bishop pens a delicate story about growing up-both its pains and pleasures-and the idea that hope and love can be found in the stars.
About the Author :
GEORGE BISHOP graduated with an MFA from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, where he won the department's Award of Excellence for a collection of short stories. His stories and essays have appeared in The Oxford American, Third Coast, Press, American Writing, and The Turkish Daily News, among others.
Review :
"A quiet, occasionally bittersweet novel about the differences between desire and disappointment, expectations and reality."--"Booklist"
"Coming-of-age novels examine youthful revelations about the world--filled with cynicism and wonder and rearranged expectations--and the quality hinges on the honesty of the voice, the truth of the observations, the handling of innocence lost; Bishop succeeds on all these fronts."--"Kirkus Reviews"
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"Resonant . . . explores the complexities of a father-son relationship through science, astronomy, and the growing pains of adolescence. . . . Bishop's characterizations of young Alan's mother, father, and sister Megan are endearing and their relentless coddling of their maturing son is wincingly accurate."--"Publishers Weekly"
"Hilarious and heart-wrenching, ethereal and earthy, "The Night of the Comet "points us to the fragile universe of dreams and disappointments, joy and tragedy, saying here it is, all of it: feast your eyes on the magic. It's a heavenly book. Nobody writes about the gravitational pull of parent-child relationships--all that we yearn for and all that we can't have--like George Bishop."--Minrose Gwin, author of "The Queen of Palmyra"
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"Equally sweet and sad, this is a fine novel of love and forgiveness."--Stewart O'Nan, author of "Snow Angels"
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"Bishop's one of our best, and this book's a quiet marvel."--Josh Russell, author of "Yellow Jack"
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"A deft, clear-eyed, and sensitive examination of the mysterious bonds of family, the allure of the unattainable, and love and desire--and their consequences--in all their many forms."--Ellen Baker, author of "I Gave My Heart to Know This"
Advance praise for "The""Night of the Comet"
"A quiet, occasionally bittersweet novel about the differences between desire and disappointment, expectations and reality."--"Booklist"
"Hilarious and heart-wrenching, ethereal and earthy, "The Night of the Comet "points us to the fragile universe of dreams and disappointments, joy and tragedy, saying here it is, all of it: feast your eyes on the magic. It's a heavenly book. Nobody writes about the gravitational pull of parent-child relationships--all that we yearn for and all that we can't have--like George Bishop."--Minrose Gwin, author of "The Queen of Palmyra"
" "
"Equally sweet and sad, this is a fine novel of love and forgiveness."--Stewart O'Nan, author of "Snow Angels"
" "
"Bishop's one of our best, and this book's a quiet marvel."--Josh Russell, author of "Yellow Jack"
" "
"A deft, clear-eyed, and sensitive examination of the mysterious bonds of family, the allure of the unattainable, and love and desire--and their consequences--in all their many forms."--Ellen Baker, author of "I Gave My Heart to Know This"
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Praise for "Letter to My Daughter"
"George Bishop is a novelist to keep your eye on."--Pat Conroy, author of "South of Broad"
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"George Bishop writes "Letter to My Daughter" with a keen eye, an open heart, and a lot of love."--Adriana Trigiani, author of" The Shoemaker's Wife"
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"Before you sit down to read this book, put aside a few hours or you'll miss some appointments."--Clyde Edgerton, author of "The Night Train"
Praise for George Bishop's "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 girl's 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 Shoemaker's Wife"
"Before you sit down to read this book, put aside a few hours or else you'll miss some appointments. You will be pulled into every paragraph."--Clyde Edgerton, author of "The Night Train"
