Even before Jen disappeared, Jimmy knew his best friend was leaving him behind. While she attracts stares from boys and men, fifteen-year-old Jimmy still passes for a child at the movies. He takes refuge in the past, before their friendship and life became so complicated. She's his favorite subject - in front of the camera and otherwise - but photos can't capture what he really wants. Yet Jimmy remains devoted, even lying for her when she runs off with strangers - men-she's met online. Jimmy feels that Jen's disappearance is his fault, just like the twelve-acre blaze he starts in the canyon near their trailer park. And he's holding on to a secret that no one can drag out of him - not the taunting kids at school, an apathetic psychologist, or his despairing mother. Revolving between past and present, Paul W. Buchanan's vivid "snapshot" vignettes evoke a young man's struggle with oncoming adulthood, heartbreak, and incredible loss.

 

There are 216 pages in this book. This book was published 2008 by Llewellyn Publications, U. S. .

Paul W. Buchanan's family immigrated to Southern California from Belfast, Northern Ireland when he was eight years old. Currently he lives with his wife and three children in Orange County, where life is pretty much the way they portray it on television. He enjoys reading, writing, film noir, eBay, NPR podcasts, and sarcasm.