Hope Points North

Book excerpt: A compass is a very helpful tool-as long as its wielder knows the direction he wants to go. This wasn't often the case in the sixties in America, when many felt directionless, with an unpopular war that had the country's moral compass spinning. "Hope Points North" is a coming-of-age experience that takes place on Long Island during this turbulent period. Of the three boys, Chris McKellar is the conventional one of the group-the glue that binds the troubled Teddy and smart, introverted Charlie together. The story is Chris's adult recollection of the time when he, Teddy, and Charlie decide to travel on their own to Grumman Aerospace Company, the builders of the Lunar Excursion Model-the craft that will eventually deliver man to the moon. Just as the boys embark on their journey, the dark-hearted preacher Lovejoy ambushes them. Teddy's grandpa has amassed a secret fortune, but it's no secret to Lovejoy, who is seducing Teddy's mother and will do anything to get the money. But the boys resist the preacher's attack in a way that leaves him dead in the creek...or so they think. In shock, they follow their compass, toward the fraternity of hopes, dreams and, unsuspectingly, manhood.