Where Things Come Back / John Corey Whaley / 228 pages

Really fresh writing.  Very well-done characters.  Whaley had a lot of currency with the woodpecker and the zombie images.  Whaley, being only ten years out from high school really captures the spirit of that time period and also what it is like to live in one of those tiny towns.  Lily, Arkansas could have been LeGrand, Iowa or any other of the thousands of tiny towns throughout the midwest where few people hope to spend their lives.  I had a little trouble following his time line transitions in the book, but that soon cleared up.
A warning for those who don't want "language".  He uses a fake bad word a lot and one real warranted F word.  It's probably enough that some parents will reject the book, but shouldn't.  This book would make a great book discussion book with the issues it brings up.  I hope there is another book from this author.