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The Risk Pool by Richard Russo

This coming of age story takes place in fictional Mohawk, a dying blue-collar town in upstate New York, during the 1950s and ’60s. Ned Hall is the son of an absentee father and a mother who has mental health issues. When she suffers a breakdown, Ned goes to live with his father and becomes part of his father’s life, a nocturnal world of gambling, town bars, and pool halls. Russo’s depiction of small-town life is poignant and realistic. His writing is smart and funny. While this is a long book at almost 500 pages, it kept me both entertained and involved.

Sue, Breakwater Books, Guilford