I found this fair-condition softcover among the charity-sale books at a local Hannaford. It's an involving, often very disturbing look at teenager Paul and his painfully-dysfunctional family: his older brother is a football star and is their father's guiding light, to the point where the father barely seems to notice Paul at all; Paul himself has vision problems stemming from an incident he can't quite remember. And when the family relocates to the town of Tangerine, Florida, which has its own problems - economic, ecological, racial, and more - things get increasingly challenging.

I liked Paul's survival instinct in the face of the many difficulties in his path, and was caught up in his attempts to build a new life and new friendships - and was horrified at the savagery and selfishness that wrecked some lives and risked others.

This isn't a cheerful book, but it does have its upbeat moments, and I found it involving throughout. The descriptions of tangerine orchards and the efforts required to tend them added to the story.

[There's a TV Tropes page on the novel.]

I left this book on a bench near the stables of the famed Clydesdale horses, some of whom were out in the pastures (see photo). Hope the finder enjoys the book!

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

*** Released for the 2017 April Showers/May Flowers release challenge. ***