The Book of Joe - Paperback

by Jonathan Tropper (Author)

A man must return to the hometown he disowned in this "sweet, deft, and sentimental coming-of-age-at-34 story" (New York Daily News) from the New York Times bestselling author of This Is Where I Leave You

"An elegiac, wickedly observant look at a small town and its secrets."--Tom Perrotta, author of Mrs. Fletcher

Fifteen years after leaving Sleepy Bush Falls, Connecticut, Joe Goffman wrote a savage bestselling novel about his hometown. The book went on to become a hit movie, making Joe a pariah in the Falls, which was fine with him, since he never planned on going back. But when a family tragedy strikes, Joe is left with no choice. His return ignites a maelstrom of hostility among the town's still enraged residents.

As Joe walks the familiar streets of his childhood, he revisits the terrible events of his senior year in high school, and the heartbreak and catastrophe from which he's never fully recovered. After almost two decades of hiding it, Joe will finally have to face his troubled past and start mending fences with family, onetime schoolmates, and a former love. And with the help of some old friends, Joe might actually learn something--if he manages to live through the homecoming.

Front Jacket

Right after high school, Joe Goffman left sleepy Bush Falls, Conneticut and never looked back. Then he wrote a novel savaging everything in town, a novel that became a national bestseller and a huge hit movie. Fifteen years later, Joe is struggling to avoid the sophomore slump with his next novel when he gets a call: his father's had a stroke, so it's back to Bush Falls for the town's most famous pariah. His brother avoids him, his former classmates beat him up, and the members of the book club just hurl their copies of Bush Falls at his house. But with the help of some old friends, Joe discovers that coming home isn't all bad--and that maybe the best things in life are second chances.
Fans of Nick Hornby and Jennifer Weiner will love this book, by turns howlingly funny, fiercely intelligent, and achingly poignant. As evidenced by The Book of Joe's success in both the foreign and movie markets, Jonathan Tropper has created a compelling, incredibly resonant story.

"From the Hardcover edition.

Author Biography

Jonathan Tropper is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous novels, including Everything Changes, This Is Where I Leave You, and One Last Thing Before I Go. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages. Tropper is the cocreator and executive producer of the television drama Banshee, as well as a screenwriter who adapted This Is Where I Leave You into a major motion picture.