The one-in-a-million boy
Ratings9
Average rating4.3
15
Ratings9
Average rating4.3
Guitarist Quinn Porter chases gigs on the road, largely absent to his twice-ex-wife Belle and their odd, Guinness recordsobsessed son. When the boy dies suddenly, Quinn seeks forgiveness by completing the requirements for his son's unfinished Boy Scout badge. For seven Saturdays he does yard work for Ona Vitkus, the wily 104-year-old Lithuanian immigrant the boy had visited weekly. Despite himself, Quinn picks up where the boy left off: talking Ona into gunning for the world record for Oldest Licensed Driver.
Reviews with the most likes.
One of those rare books that I wanted to start reading again as soon as I turned the last page.
Such wonderfully drawn characters and surprising turns of phrase give the book a warm, unique voice that had me gasping out loud. Used up a whole stack of post-it flags marking the bits I want to remember. The author used an interesting frame for telling the story, using taped interviews and lists as a way to tell backstory in alternating chapters, yet keeping you moving through the story's plot and connected to the characters.
A book that makes you feel good after reading it and start noticing the people around you who are lonely or struggling or just human, and recognizing they have more to them than you know.
This is a sweet story that gets the bitter parts out in the beginning, and then works through the resulting tangles as the book progresses. It's a very good book, and I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good heartwarming story to read over a weekend. This book made me think of my own grandmother, who passed five years ago. She had come from Hungary when she was just a girl, and this book made me regret not getting to know her story better.
