Books with author Ali Benjamin

My name is Simon Cherry. I'm fifteen-years-old and my father is a drunk. You see, every night my father sits down at the kitchen table and drinks a bottle of vodka while reading his King James Bible. When the liquor is emptied, he becomes unpredictable and, frequently, dangerous. This is the only family, the only life, I've ever known. When my estranged grandfather passes away, my father and I have to travel south to Russelltown, Kentucky. There, I meet a boy--Zack--who challenges me to be something more than just an invisible, forgotten kid; there, I watch as my father copes with his own personal demons which have come to life again in the town of his upbringing. Just as the two of us finally start to find some peace with our places in this world, a terrible tragedy strikes and we are suddenly catapulted into circumstances which threaten our progress and our very sanity. STARRY NIGHTS AND FIREFLIES is Benjamin's debut novel, told from Simon's perspective. The story delves into the darkness of alcoholism, the confusion of coming to terms with one's sexuality, and the beauty of small-town Kentucky.