This novel’s rendering of the attempts by an estranged father and daughter to establish a new relationship is straightforward, down to earth, unvarnished and very effecting because it never overtly pulls at the reader’s heartstrings. The lives of the crusty but not uncaring father, the feisty daughter, her surprisingly but not unrealistically mature 12-year-old son and a dedicated and long-suffering family friend intertwine in emotionally resonant fashion.