Monday, Monday

Book excerpt: “This rapturous novel starts with one of the most heinous shootings in history, yet every page shines with life. . . . [A] stunning achievement.” —Caroline Leavitt, New York Times–bestselling author of Is This Tomorrow and Pictures of You On an oppressively hot Monday in August of 1966, a student and former marine named Charles Whitman hauled a footlocker of guns to the top of the University of Texas tower and began firing on pedestrians below. Before it was over, sixteen people had been killed and thirty-two wounded. It was the first mass shooting of civilians on a campus in American history. Monday, Monday follows three students caught up in the massacre: Shelly, who leaves her math class and walks directly into the path of the bullets, and two cousins, Wyatt and Jack, who heroically rush from their classrooms to help the victims. On this searing day, a relationship begins that will eventually entangle these three young people in a forbidden love affair, an illicit pregnancy, and a vow of secrecy that will span forty years. Reunited decades after the tragedy, they will be forced to confront the event that changed their lives and that has silently and persistently ruled the lives of their children. With electrifying storytelling and powerful sense of destiny, Elizabeth Crook’s Monday, Monday explores the ways in which we sustain ourselves and one another when the unthinkable happens. “Beautifully written . . . compelling . . . each character is honestly but lovingly portrayed” —BookPage “A vivid portrayal of resolve in the face of great tragedy.” —Booklist “A gorgeous, worthy and entirely believable read.” —San Antonio Express-News “Confident and lyrical as it smartly engages terror and its aftermath.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review “Rich and satisfying.” —Library Journal “[An] intensely imagined novel.” —Publishers Weekly