Welcome to Peculiar County by Stuart R. West

Peculiar County, my first YA book for Books We Love, is a cross genre affair. Nominally it's a ghost tale, sure, but it also encompasses nostalgia (in my opinion, all effective ghost stories should be somewhat nostalgic), suspense, romance, humor, paranormal, murder mystery, and a coming of age tale. It's also my attempt at evoking the early sixties in a Midwest small town; a turbulent time not only for my fifteen year old heroine, but the entire world.

Pardon me if I get a bit writerly, but here we go...

The year the book's set, 1965, can be seen as a metaphor for my young heroine, Dibby Caldwell. The first major shock of the sixties had happened two years earlier: the assassination of US president John F. Kennedy. The tragedy portended the end of the easy-going fifties, a time of silly, blinders-on innocence. The world wasn't adequately prepared for the radical changes of post 1963: hippies, the Vietnam War, rampant drug use, free love. Bell bottoms, for God's sake! Culture shock at seismic levels.

On a smaller, more personal front, Dibby's experiencing similar unsettling changes. Fifteen years old, hormones are rattling her to her core. Not just changes to her body, but of her self-perception, an awakening of sexuality and adulthood. The arrival of "cool" bad boy, James--representative of the new, scary times to come--really triggers matters.

But, hey, Peculiar County's also a fun ghost story and murder mystery. It ain't Dostoevsky.

A tale for all age groups, it's perfect reading for the upcoming fall season.

Here. Blurbs always say it so much better:

Growing up in Peculiar County, Kansas, is a mighty...well, peculiar experience. In 1965, things get even stranger for Dibby Caldwell, the mortician's fifteen year old daughter. A young boy's ghost haunts Dibby into unearthing the circumstances of his death. Nobody—living or dead—wants her to succeed. James, the new mop-topped, bad boy at school doesn’t help. Dibby can’t get him out of her head, even though she doesn’t trust him. No, sir, there's nothing much more peculiar than life in Peculiar County…except maybe death in Peculiar County.

Peculiar County...click here for the most peculiar--not to mention, inexpensive--road trip you'll take this year.

Stuart R. West's Books We Love Author's Page: http://bookswelove.net/authors/west-stuart-r/