- Rudy
- Lanier
- is
- a
- clever
- but
- average
- student
- in
- a
- Los
- Angeles
- High
- School
- in
- 1977.He
- longs
- to
- overcome
- numerous
- childhood
- fears—including
- death.
- After
- a
- confrontation
- with
- a
- bully
- ends
- badly,
- Rudy
- is
- incited
- to
- face
- his
- demons,
- but
- he
- soon
- realizes
- another
- fear,
- becoming
- like
- his
- slovenly
- Uncle
- Si,
- who
- has
- been
- mentally
- impaired
- since
- childhood
- from
- mass
- envenomation
- by
- yellowjackets.
- Rudy's
- veiled
- shame
- and
- disgust
- for
- Si
- result
- in
- a
- destructive
- outburst
- that
- aggravates
- his
- mostly
- dysfunctional
- family—including
- an
- alcoholic
- mother
- and
- his
- father
- with
- PTSD
- from
- Vietnam.His
- three
- closest
- friends
- are
- his
- elderly
- mentor,
- Helen;
- her
- grandson,
- Reed,
- an
- artistic
- iconoclast;
- and
- Arturo,
- an
- undocumented
- immigrant
- striving
- for
- a
- career
- in
- medicine.
- Rudy
- admires
- their
- passions
- but
- agonizes
- over
- his
- perceived
- lack
- of
- purpose.
- Reed's
- fatal
- car
- accident
- provokes
- Rudy
- to
- carry
- out
- retribution
- against
- two
- former
- friends
- who
- had
- often
- maligned
- Reed.
- Helen,
- Artie,
- and
- Rudy's
- new
- friend,
- Libby,
- try
- to
- lend
- him
- support.Rudy
- leads
- mourners
- on
- one
- of
- Reed's
- favorite
- nighttime
- hikes
- to
- spread
- his
- ashes.
- Back
- at
- home,
- Rudy
- passes
- out
- from
- internal
- blood
- loss;
- his
- mother
- says
- he
- is
- faking,
- but
- then
- it
- is
- Si
- who
- goes
- for
- help
- from
- Rudy's
- grandparents,
- Doctor
- Grant
- and
- Mildred.As
- he
- is
- slid
- into
- an
- ambulance,
- Rudy's
- fears,
- hopes,
- and
- his
- redemption
- with
- Si
- are
- all
- at
- stake,
- along
- with
- his
- life.
*****
Legacy
- Book
- Press
- LLC
- is
- a
- traditional
- publisher
- of
- personal
- stories
- told
- via
- non-fiction
- (like
- memoir),
- autobiographical
- fiction,
- poetry,
- or
- a combination.
pro-mbooks3 : libris
