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Title details for End of August by Paige Dinneny - Wait list

End of August

A Novel

by Paige Dinneny
ebook
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Wait time: About 2 weeks
A captivating, multigenerational debut novel of a young woman navigating the personal trauma that ties herself, her nomadic mother, and her alcoholic grandmother together, perfect for fans of Ask Again, Yes and What the Fireflies Knew.
1979. Fifteen-year-old Aurora Taylor’s single mother prefers to leave when things get hard. She’s spent years abandoning bad boyfriends and dead-end jobs, without so much as a glance in the rearview mirror. After fifteen years in the passenger seat, Aurora needs more than two hands to count the towns she’s lived in. She’s learned to live small—it’s easier to leave when you don’t need to say goodbye. So when her mother, Laine, shows up at school with the car loaded, Aurora assumes her latest fling has run its course. Instead, it’s her grandpa Jay’s death calling them back to the town Laine has spent fifteen years running from.
Every visit to Monroe, Indiana, ends in an explosive fight. Her mother and her Gran are oil and water, and it doesn’t take Aurora long to realize Gran has fallen off the wagon—again. With Gran drinking and Laine’s discomfort in the little blue house, Aurora gives their visit a week, tops. But when Laine begins an affair with the town’s married mailman, everything changes. While her mom falls in love with a man she can’t have, Aurora has time to fall in love with the town. Her life begins to feel full—she has a friend to call her own, a gran who loves her, and a picture-perfect pastor’s son who sees Aurora as more than “Laine’s daughter.” It’s everything she never let herself dream about.
As the summer months march on, and her mom’s happiness becomes even more dependent on her unstable new relationship, Aurora worries the dream she allowed herself will end in heartbreak. This isn’t just another map dot on their endless journey, and Laine won’t just burn a bridge this time. Her choices threaten to light the town on fire, burning Gran’s hope, Aurora’s future, and her own chance at redemption to the ground with it.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    February 11, 2025

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9798892420259

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9798892420259
      • File size: 1486 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Booklist

      Starred review from January 1, 2025
      At 15, Aurora is used to leaving. When things get hard, her mom, Laine, packs everything they own into a couple of cardboard boxes, and they move on. Things get hard a lot. Aurora doesn't bother to make friends or get settled in her new places, because they'll only stay as long as her mother's latest relationship lasts. But this time, when her mom shows up at Aurora's school with their boxes packed, it's to take them home to Monroe, Indiana, because Aurora's beloved grandfather Jay has died. Aurora is surprised when Laine wants to stay in Monroe for the summer but less surprised that she starts up a relationship with a married man. Most surprising of all are the ways Aurora finds herself making friends, establishing a life, feeling like Monroe could be home--and terrified that Laine's decisions will tear it all apart. This is a strong debut about the ways mothers and daughters are alike and different, with compelling prose and complex characters that readers will wish the best for despite their flaws. Perfect for fans of Anne Brashares' The Last Summer (of You and Me) (2007) or Jessica Anya Blau's Mary Jane (2021).

      COPYRIGHT(2025) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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