Another well-written, although boring, book.

Can anyone recommend a well-written, face-paced book with a plot?

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Didn't get far into this at all. I grew up in a town like this, but not with these depressing people.

"Me & Emma" is my favorite book of all time, so I had high expectations for this book. Sadly, Elizabeth Flock did not deliver this time. This book is so sad and depressing...if not for the introduction of Celeste, I would rate this zero stars. She is the only redeeming quality in this tragedy. I feel so bad for the main character, Henry, that I wanted to cry through the whole book. Then I got to the last page, and I was like, "what? this is it?"... I am currently 3/4 of the way through "Sleepwalking in Daylight" (also by Elizabeth Flock), and I'm enjoying it so far, so if this is the only book you have read by this author, and you are very disappointed, I strongly encourage you to check out her other works. ( )

To everyone on the outside, the Powells are a happy family, but then a devastating accident destroys their fragile facade. When seven-year-old Henry is blamed for the tragedy, he tries desperately to make his parents happy again. As Henry grows up, he is full of potential - a talented sportsman with an academic mind and a thirst for adventure. However, Henry soon begins to question if the guilt his parents have burdened him with since childhood has left him ultimately unable to escape his anguished family and their painful past.

Most people might not enjoy reading books with depressing plots, but I am not one of them. I enjoyed this book very much and found it to be very well written. It was perhaps a little slower to get into than I would have liked, however in my opinion, the plot picked up appreciably about halfway through. I will say that I felt intensely sorry for Henry and all that he went through in his life. I give Everything Must Go by Elizabeth Flock an A! and will certainly be on the lookout for more books by this author to read. ( )

Henry Powell, the middle child of a family with three sons, is destined to lead a sad and meaningless life when he is responsible for the death of his younger brother when he is very young. His father is ultimately a failure as a businessman, a father and husband. Henry's mother is an alcoholic whose aspirations to becoming part of a "higher" social status fail and her life spins out of control following the death of her youngest child. Henry shows early promise as a high school athlete, but his athletic scholarship to a noted university is thwarted when he is needed at home to care for his mother, and ultimately becomes her primary caretaker. He settles permanently into what was a part-time job at a men's clothing store while he was in high school and remains there until he is middle-aged and the store closes. Henry is constantly astounded by the rapid passage of time as he reconnects with former classmates who have succeeded in life. This is a tragic story of a life never fully lived with the recurrent theme of what might have been for Henry. ( )