Mr. Ives' ChristmasOscar HijuelosLabel: Grand Central PublishingDescription: In 1960s New York Edward Ives is a picture of the American dream. Adopted as a child by a widowed print shop manager who helped him cultivate a love of drawing he now has a successful career as an illustrator in advertising a beautiful home with his wife and muse Annie and two loving children. But this idyllic life is brutally wrenched away when Ives's 17-year-old son Robert-who has just decided to commit his life to the priesthood-is murdered by another teenage boy just before Christmas a crime of opportunity that proves to be as random as it is senseless.Consumed by grief Ives withdraws from the world. Grappling with a loss of faith-a force that has guided him steadfastly since childhood-he starts to question every aspect of human existence contemplating what it really means to live an emotionally and spiritually fulfilling life. This mourning consumes him-until he takes on the monumental task of working through his suffering and ultimately faces his son's killer.Mr. Ives' Christmas is a tender passionate story of a man working to rediscover what it means to love forgive and live after unspeakable tragedy. It is another tremendous achievement from one of America's most talented writers.Includes a Reading Group Guide.
