Tom Perrotta

I hate when I have nothing to read.  There are very few people who's book recommendations I trust (I am a book snob, through and through), and I rarely like the most popular crazes.  So when I finish a book, I always have a sense of loss until I stumble upon another great read.

That is why I love finding authors whose works I consistently enjoy.  They're like best friends - you can always depend on them.  

One such author is Tom Perrotta.  The first book of his that I read is called Little Children (this was also turned into a film).  It has been so long since I read it, I can't recall the details and honestly, when I just read the back of the book, the plot didn't even sound familiar.  But I do remember liking it.

I liked it enough to buy another of his books, The Abstinence Teacher.  This book is about a sexual education teacher who finds resistance to her teachings, especially from another man who was recently saved at his evangelical Christian church.  It seems a common style of Perrotta's is writing from different characters' perspectives until they all collide.  Again, it has been awhile since I read this one also, but I remember enjoying the story.

Recently, Sarah Dessen (a young adult writer I really enjoy) tweeted that Tom Perrotta had a new book, so I immediately bought it on my Kindle.  It is called The Leftovers.  I loved the idea behind this novel.  It takes place in a small town that has just suffered a tragedy - one day, numerous people in town suddenly disappeared into thin air.  Most people thought it was The Rapture, where people are sent up to heaven and others are just left behind.  The book focuses on how different people in town respond to being "left behind."  What a concept - the idea itself kept me turning the pages.  Of course, some people responded with jealousy and began pointing out every sin of the deceased; others became obsessively religious, joining a cult with strange behaviors; still other just struggled to exist, always questioning why it happened and why they weren't included.  

I enjoy Perrotta's novels.  They're a little less depressing than some of the ones I will write about, although of course there's plenty of drama.  Check him out if you're looking for a new author to follow.