In the mid-seventies in Spencerville, VA, 8 yo Rocky worships his rebellious older half-brother, Paul. When Paul betrays the family and disappears one night, Rocky is devastated, confused, and left to weather adolescence w/o Paul's guidance. As a teen, Rocky begins a dangerous tryst w his older neighbor that has consequences that reverberate through the whole town. When Paul returns and tragedy immediately follows, Rocky is left wondering how well he ever really knew his brother. This is a really well done coming-of-age novel told in the voice of a likable, insightful narrator by a talented writer. Tarkington has a gift for both character and prose to the extent that you're willing to forgive him some of the missteps in plot. His novel includes a handful of surprising shifts in focus but there's a self-awareness in the writing that allows for it. The title comes from the Neil Young song and the music of Young and his ilk features prominently in the story (another plus as far as I'm concerned). Good read. #bookworm #january2017reads #playingcatchup #laaaaaatergram #goodreadschallenge2017
