Release Date: October 7, 2020
Pages: 261
About The Book:
Set against the backdrop of the Newark riots in 1967, a teenage Benjamin Baum leaves the city to spend the summer at an idyllic lake in northern New Jersey. While fishing from his grandparents’ dock, the dead body of a beloved neighbor floats to the water’s surface—a loss that shakes this Jewish community and reveals cracks in what appeared to be a perfect middle-class existence. Haunted by the sight of the woman’s corpse, Ben stubbornly searches for clues to her death, infuriating friends and family who view his unwelcome investigation as a threat to the comfortable lives they’ve built. As Ben’s suspicions mount, he’s forced to confront the terrifying possibility that his close-knit community is not what it seems to be—that, beneath a façade of prosperity and contentment, darker forces may be at work.
In The Boy and the Lake, Adam Pelzman has crafted a riveting coming-of-age story and a mystery rich in historical detail, exploring an insular world where the desperate quest for the American dream threatens to destroy both a family and a way of life.
Thoughts:
As someone who grew up and lives in New Jersey I found the book to be eye opening. Learning more about the riots in Newark. Woven within is a boy coming of age while dealing with a death that effects him throughout. I did enjoy the characters and the flow of Pelzman’s writing. I very much felt as if I were there in this piece of work. Definitely go check this one out.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Melissa (Lexijava) 