Unstoppable Moses
A Novel
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- $17.99
Publisher Description
In this coming-of-age debut, a seventeen-year-old boy has one week in the aftermath of a disastrous prank to prove to the authorities, and to himself, that he’s not a worthless jerk who belongs in jail.
Moses and his cousin Charlie were best friends, wisecracking pranksters, unstoppable forces of teenage energy—until the night they became accidental arsonists and set in motion a chain of events that left Moses alone, guilt-stricken, and most likely trapped in his dead-end town.
Then Moses gets a lucky break: the chance to volunteer as a camp counselor for week and prove that the incident at the bowling alley should be expunged from his record. And since a criminal record and enrollment at Duke are mutually exclusive, he’s determined to get through his community service and get on with his life. But tragedy seems to follow him wherever he goes, and this time, it might just stop him in his tracks.
“Unstoppable Moses is radiant; one of those rare debut novels that shines with humor, love, compassion, and hope, with a cast of unforgettable characters that jump off the pages and into your heart. Tyler James Smith is a masterful storyteller.”
—Andrew Smith, Printz Honor and Boston Globe-Horn Book Award-winning author of Grasshopper Jungle
“When people say reading makes us more empathetic, they are talking about books like Unstoppable Moses by Tyler James Smith. A lyrical, hilarious, so-real-it-hurts debut that reminds us all just how much we have to lose, and why it’s important to never give up. I’m so happy this book is in the world.”
—Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock, Morris Honor-winning author of The Smell of Other People’s Houses
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The people of Guthrie, Ill., blame high school senior Moses for burning down the local bowling alley, an event that ended with his cousin his best friend getting shot by the police. But is Moses really to blame? If so, will he find forgiveness? In this highly introspective debut novel set during the aftermath of a prank gone terribly wrong, Smith persuasively and empathically portrays Moses's conflicting emotions as he comes to terms with a traumatic event. Instead of going to jail, Moses is sentenced to a one-week camp where he is to be a "buddy" to a group of eight- to 11-year-olds. In a place where no one except the camp director knows about his past, Moses begins to feel like his old self, making friends with the other buddies and mentoring Lump, a bullied girl. But when Moses plays hooky and a child goes missing, his feelings of guilt and shame rise to the surface. Rather than casting judgment, Smith leaves readers to decide the degree of Moses's culpability. This thought-provoking, gut-wrenching novel presents human nature as it is instead of as it should be. Ages 12 18.)
