PRAISE FOR LABOR DAY

AUTHOR PRAISE Labor Day is a sexy, page turning, poignant story told by a sweetly baffled young hero, perhaps the best kind of hero to narrate any tale. Joyce Maynard is at her finest. — Jane Hamilton, author of Laura Rider’s Masterpiece and A Map of the World Surely Joyce Maynard is one of our best storytellers. And Labor Day is her best novel yet. It is such a generous book, full of love and hope. Long after I finished reading it, I was full of all it gave me: the joys of a perfect pie, of babies, and of love. — Ann Hood, author of The Knitting Circle and Comfort I ask one thing of a novel: that it makes me feel as if it’s a life I am living rather than a book I am reading. Labor Day, for me, is that long-sought-for novel -- smart, wry in all the right places, deeply felt, beautifully observed. I was enthralled and moved and grateful to Joyce Maynard for creating such quirkily lovable and unforgettable characters. What a pleasure. — Elinor Lipman, author of The Family Man BOOKSELLER PRAISE I LOVED this book!! You are so right about the emotional wallop. Enter the world of thirteen-year-old Henry and his mother, Adele -– and it is indeed a small world -- and you will find it difficult to leave. Here is a story so affecting that once finished you will want to start it all over again. — Kym Havens, Wellesley Booksmith, Wellesley, MA Being a short work, I thought I could finish quickly, which I did. Then I sat back down for a second reading. Maynard's tale of a Labor Day weekend long past is truly the story of a last summer. Her words pack a wallop and her characters grab you and make you part of their lives. I do love this book. — Dan Radovich, Barnes & Noble, Vernon Hills, IL Riveting, disturbing, heartwarming, unforgettable, original. Labor Day is about seeing the good in someone when no one else can; how spending a few minutes sharing a talent with a child can affect his entire life and the person he ultimately becomes; about true love that once found can never be torn away no matter how strong the outside forces; about families and what the word really means; about believing that someone can be better than they think they are and having the same beliefs about yourself; and about hope. It moved me deeply on so many levels. — Cathy Allard, BayShore Books, Oconto, WI Wow. I feel as if I have just read one of the books of the year. Joyce Maynard's Labor Day is simply put: gorgeous. What, on the surface, seems like such a small story, becomes a stunning work on the nature of love and forgiveness. This book made me weep, I'm not ashamed to say. I wept from the beauty and simplicity and deep truths contained in its pages. Maynard's prose is perfect. An absolute must read. — Joe Eichman, Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO An all-consuming, impeccably written story that will pierce your heart and fill your soul. Clear a spot in your schedule, because once you start reading Labor Day, you’re on the hook till it’s finished. — Linda Ellingsworth, Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, VT This story, which I easily devoured in a lazy day at home, is touching on so many levels. This gentle story of love and hope is sure to be a hit. — Jackie Blem, Tattered Cover Bookstore, Denver, CO I’m so grateful that you sent me Labor Day because I thoroughly enjoyed it! To write believably in the voice of a thirteen-year-old boy and to convince me that an escaped convict was truly a good, lovable man was an accomplishment. — Juliet Dickerson, Barnes & Noble, Prairie Village, KS I did love it. In Labor Day, Joyce Maynard shows us how a situation that most people would perceive as terrifying turns into a life affirming time for the three main participants. This is a story of a boy learning to be a man and a story of true love and how it completes us when we find it. These are characters that you will not soon forget. — Patricia Sanders, Barnes & Noble, Towson, MD Joyce Maynard manages to pack so much emotion and history into one long weekend it's impossible to walk away from this book without being deeply touched by the characters and their emotions. The characters are real, they have flaws but are also kind and lovable. — Rosey McArdell, Barnes & Noble, Apple Valley, MN PUBLISHER PRAISE I read Labor Day and ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT. It is a grabber from the first sentence to the last. The narrative voice is so strong and vivid and totally plausible as that of a teenage boy. The plot is so compelling, the characters so richly drawn and my response was so emotional.(I was on the edge of my seat, dreading the outcome, which was both so sad and so hopefully simultaneously.) I can't wait to begin talking it up in my bookstores, I have already hand-sold it to everyone in my family and several friends. It is a pleasure and an honor to publish such a terrific work. — Jennifer Sheridan, Field Sales Rep READ AN INTERVIEW WITH JOYCE ON LABOR DAY READ AN INTERVIEW WITH JOYCE ON The Art of Making Pie E__Kirkus_Review_on_Labor_Day.htmlE__Kirkus_Review_on_Labor_Day.htmlE__Frank_teaches_pie.htmlE__Frank_teaches_pie.htmlshapeimage_3_link_0shapeimage_3_link_1shapeimage_3_link_2shapeimage_3_link_3
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A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER on the extended list for paperback books.