The Summer Guest -- Justin Cronin

<b>With a rare combination of emotional insight, narrative power, and lyrical grace, Justin Cronin transforms the simple story of a dying man's last wish into a rich tapestry of family love. <p/>"A work of art . . . a great American novel."--<i>The Philadelphia Inquirer</i> </b> <p/> On an evening in late summer, the great financier Harry Wainwright, nearing the end of his life, arrives at a rustic fishing camp in a remote area of Maine. He comes bearing two things: his wish for a day of fishing in a place that has brought him solace for thirty years, and an astonishing bequest that will forever change the lives of those around him. <p/> From the battlefields of Italy to the turbulence of the Vietnam era, to the private battles of love and family, <i>The Summer Guest </i>reveals the full history of this final pilgrimage and its meaning for four people: Jordan Patterson, the haunted young man who will guide Harry on his last voyage out; the camp's owner Joe Crosby, a Vietnam draft evader who has spent a lifetime "trying to learn what it means to be brave"; Joe's wife, Lucy, the woman Harry has loved for three decades; and Joe and Lucy's daughter Kate--the spirited young woman who holds the key to the last unopened door to the past. <p/> As their stories unfold, secrets are revealed, courage is tested, and the bonds of love are strengthened. And always center stage is the place itself--a magical, forgotten corner of New England where the longings of the human heart are mirrore