The Shack

by Tom Munn

It was our home away from home. It was a gathering point, a place to go when there was nowhere else to go. If you wanted to find a friend, the first place to look was The Shack What is "normal"? And how does the past affect the present? In his early teen years, Tommy Carter's family falls apart. He finds something with his friends that he can't find with his family; he discovers that peace of mind is found at the bottom of a bottle, even if only temporarily. Everyone drinks at the age of fourteen, right?It's the late 1960s, and the world appears to be coming apart at the seams. Politicians continue to be assassinated, and the United States becomes embroiled in yet another war. The lives of four boys in a small Midwestern town mimic the turbulent times as their worlds crumble around them. Tommy and his friends (Jake, Mitch, and Ralphie) find that to survive, they must rely on each other-and alcohol.The Shack is a first-person account of families destroyed and youth interrupted-of troubled times when a family history of alcoholism can affect lives in ways that are understood only many years later. It's a story of dysfunction, friendship, addiction, redemption, and eventual forgiveness.

126 pages, Paperback

First published July 4, 2005

Reviews

[Whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the only reason I made it through this books was because my Aunt, who has recommended a lot of great books to me, suggested it. Decent writing and characters but nothing exceptional. Initially I thought/hoped that the religious references were being facetious but when Mack met "Poppa" I was quite disappointed with all of the religion talk. That said, there are a lot of really great points made about human interaction and this book could be beneficial to both religious people and non-believers. I feel like it was really a self-help book disguised as fiction and may even give it another read at some point.

[Kristina L Murphree · Rating 4 out of 5]

WOW, it was like reading a chapter from my life during the late 69's and 70's

Loved the book(biography?) It was very interesting type of writing. The author made you feel complicit somehow. It was sad, and really personal. I was introspective as I read it.