I have a lot of Lutzke left to read, but this is far from my first. If I’m honest, I’ve kind of been saving this one. It seems to hold a special place in the hearts of all Chad’s diehard readers. Now I get to count myself among the lucky ones who know why.

As is his modus operandi, Chad Lutzke trims anything resembling fat from the beginning of the story and drops us right into the story. Denny is a twelve year old boy whose mom is barely there. The book has quite a bit to say about alcohol addiction, all of it relevant and poignant. Denny wakes one day to find that his mother has passed away. Instead of immediately seeking help, Denny thinks of all the ways this could derail his plans for the upcoming spelling bee, and chooses to simply...ignore it.

What follows is the story of a young boy coming to terms with the life he has lead up to this point, and what his life will be going forward. Lutzke’s gift for creating compelling characters has us wanting to take Denny under our wing from page one, and as a result, invests us in every decision he makes, no matter how trivial it might seem.

One of my favorite parts of the story were Denny’s interactions with Sam, and the role she plays in his journey, however direct or indirect you look at it. The emotional climax of the story is stunning, and I can only imagine what it must have been like for readers that had no inkling of what this author could do with 150 pages before they picked up Of Fosters Homes and Flies.

This book should be required reading. Feel free to fight me over it.