http://worldcat.org/entity/work/id/476193863

Shohola Falls a novel

Haunted by his mother's death and abandoned by his father, young Tommy Blanks is forced to confront the world on his own, circa 1966. Tommy, an ancestor of the real-life inspiration for Huckleberry Finn, is sent to a juvenile facility in his middle teens after he is caught stealing a handful of books written by Mark Twain. It is at the Catholic boys' facility near the New York-Pennsylvania border that Tommy meets a girl and falls in love. He is also forced to confront racism, the Vietnam War, and another sort of more local violence. Soon, the knowledge that his great-great grandfather was a close friend of Twain's will send the teen on a cross-country journey in search of his family history and his own identity. Pearson is at his best when evoking the desperation and longing of teenage love, and this appealing blend of road novel, historical novel, and coming-of-age tale makes a nice addition to the many books that wrestle with the ghost of Mark Twain.

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