Car Trouble

<p>From a bright new talent a witty moving and inspirational coming-of-age debut novel set in 1970s Brooklyn about a teenager and his abusive father whose obsession with broken down vintage cars careens wildly out of control.</p><p><em><strong>S</strong></em><strong>uch a pleasure to read.... This is a coming of age story but it is also so much more than that.--Dominic Smith <em>New York Times</em> bestselling author of <em>The Last Painting of Sara de Vos</em></strong></p> <p>Nicky Flynn is coming-of-age in 1970s Brooklyn riding into his sophomore year at St. Michaels the last hurrah of the Diocesan school system. A budding young actor Nicky is at once sensitive resilient exasperated and keenly observant--especially when it comes to his father Patrick. Undeniably enigmatic and coasting on vanity charm and desperation Himself as Nicky calls his father is given to picking up old car junkers for cheap at NYPD auctions--each sputtering tail-finned treasure subsidized by poker games.</p><p>To Patrick these chrome glamour tanks are his obsessions repairable reminders of the past when he was young and everything seemed new and gleaming and possible--before he had a family. For Nicky each one is a milestone. Whether it's a harrowing joy ride or a driving lesson they're unforgettable markers on his path toward an unpredictable future. But as Patrick's compulsions slide into alcoholism and abuse Nicky his mother and sisters brace themselves for an inevitable sharp turn in their addled lives.</p><p>Narrated with humor and a rueful awareness <em>Car Trouble</em> is an exhilarating novel about acceptance regret compassion and finding your authentic adult self amid the rubble and rumble of growing up.</p><p> </p><p></p>