Tracy Manaster

You Could Be Home by Now Tracy Manaster

Marc Notes: Two young professionals working in a retirement community discover that one of their residents is hiding her grandson in her unit. Word spreads quickly, and in the midst of their own personal struggles, they must find the best solution for this problem --; Provided by publisher. Biographical Note: Tracy Manaster is a graduate of Wesleyan University and The Iowa Writers' Workshop. She was the 2006 recipient of the National League of American Pen Women's Joanna Catherine Scott prize for novel excerpt. Her nonfiction has appeared in "iAgora" and "Moxie" magazines and as interactive exhibit texts for the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and twin daughters. Review Quotes:"Manaster weaves...disparate tales of strife and grief eloquently, impressively depicting an adolescent girl and an aging man with equal fullness and depth. She also resists the urge for easy resolution...instead offering small amounts of emotional satisfaction that feel realistic and earned." --"Publishers Weekly""The setting is the only thing sleepy about Manaster's debut. Complex, interweaving stories tangle inside The Commons, a retirement community outside Tucson, Arizona.... A scintillating drama that's touching, funny and impossible to put down." --"Kirkus Reviews""Manaster's debut is an adventurous undertaking, both light and insightful. The wide range of characters...is well depicted and appealing. For fans of realistically written, flawed-human narratives--with a flair for fun." --"Library Journal""Poignant, funny debut.... A hoot that will touch your heart!" --"People Magazine""Each character has quirks that can be entertaining, saddening and harrowing.... Manaster weaves an entertaining tale of retirees and youthful souls who are living with circumstances that challenge their personal expectations of life.... The experiences of the characters in the story are...delightful." --The Deseret News"Tracy Manaster's debut novel "You Could Be Home by Now" is a book for the New Year if ever there was one." --BookTribPublisher Marketing: An hour and a half outside Tucson, Arizona, The Commons is a luxury retirement community where no full-time resident under the age of fifty-five is permitted. Young professionals Seth and Alison Collier accept jobs there as a means of dealing (badly) with a recent loss. When a struggling resident, underwater on her mortgage and unable to relocate due to the nation s ongoing housing crisis, is discovered to be raising her grandson in secret, the story--with the help of a well-meaning teenaged beauty blogger and a retiree with reasons of his own to seek the spotlight--goes viral. "You Could Be Home By Now" explores the fallout for all involved, taking on the themes of grief and memory, aspiration and social class, self-deception, and the drive in all of us to find a place to belong." Review Citations: Publishers Weekly 10/06/2014 (EAN 9781440583124, Hardcover) Kirkus Reviews 11/01/2014 (EAN 9781440583124, Hardcover) Library Journal 11/15/2014 pg. 78 (EAN 9781440583124, Hardcover) People Weekly 12/15/2014 pg. 56 (EAN 9781440583124, Hardcover) Contributor Bio:  Manaster, Tracy Tracy Manaster is a graduate of Wesleyan University and The Iowa Writers' Workshop. She was the 2006 recipient of the National League of American Pen Women's Joanna Catherine Scott prize for novel excerpt. Her nonfiction has appeared in "iAgora" and "Moxie" magazines and as interactive exhibit texts for the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and twin daughters.