Mattagash

This is the story of the trials that beset the McKinnons, the first family of Mattagash, Maine, when they try to arrange a funeral for the family matriarch. Bubbling with quirky humor, this marks a dazzling debut for a gifted and richly talented young writer.

The typically tranquil backcountry town of Mattagash, Maine, is buzzing with news. Amy Joy Lawler, the last of Mattagash's founding clan, just announced her engagement to Jean Claude Cloutier-an outsider. Her scandalized mother takes to bed in protest while the rest of the town gleefully anticipates the social event of the year.

Welcome to Mattagash, Maine, a town where everyone's personal lives are as entwined as their family trees. On the day of the first snowfall, the residents brace themselves for the long winter ahead. Mere survival will be hard; dealing with each other is another story. As winter settles in, various Mattagashians careen from conundrum to conundrum, trying to save dying small businesses, caring for crabby loved ones, and cruising through town, stirring up gossip any way they can get it.