by Larry Brown
Fay leaves home at seventeen, searching for more from life than a migrant worker existence. She crosses paths with a cast of dysfunctional characters, some of whom grow to care deeply for Fay, some who trick her into thinking that they care, and some who are just plain scary. Fay manages to keep her wits about her and keep the sympathies of the reader even as the bodies start piling up behind her.
I love coming of ages stories like this one, where the protagonist comes of age under the most hardscrabble circumstances. I was left wanting to know more, and hoping that Fay turns out ok. The characters are developed so well that I could actually find compassion even for those who committed such ugly atrocities.