Glad News of the Natural World

Twenty years ago, T. R. Pearson'sA Short History of a Small Placewas hailed as "an absolute stunner" (Jonathan Yardley,The Washington Post) and its hero, young Louis Benfield, was dubbed "a youth not as wry as Holden Caulfield, but certainly as observant, and with a bigger, even sadder heart" (Fran Schumer,The New York Times).Now, older but not necessarily wiser, Louis Benfield returns inGlad News of the Natural World. Having moved to New York City from his hometown of Neely, North Carolina, in order to get a sense of the larger world, Louis is a modern-day Candide, looking for love and experience in all the wrong places. However, when tragedy strikes, he finds the maturity needed to be more than man enough for the job.

T. R. Pearson's widely acclaimed novels include A Short History of a Small Place, Cry Me a River, Off for the Sweet Hereafter, Blue Ridge, and Polar. He lives in Virginia and Brooklyn, New York.