A Fragile Peace - Hardcover

Heckler, Jonellen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0399130454 ISBN 13: 9780399130458

Publisher: Putnam Adult, 1986

Synopsis

Although Mike Stockman's alcoholism is destroying him and his family--his daughter, Lee, driven to be the perfect student, his son, Rick, holding back from achievement, and life--his wife Katy's fiercely protective love is keeping him from confronting his predicament

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

Mike Stockman's drinking problem is destroying his public relations career, his health and his family. His wife Katy unwittingly contributes to the predicament by refusing to recognize the extent of the crisis, and by her blind determination to "nurture him back to the man he used to be." Their two teenage children, Rick and Lee, are emotional wrecks, unable to distinguish between love and hate. Although both of them find solace in healthy (and beautifully portrayed) relationships with friends of the opposite sex, they remain alone in their fear and anger. Katy gradually realizes that she can no longer protect Mike in his alcoholic cocoon, but is unable to act until Lee attempts suicide. It is impossible not to be moved by the pathetic, all-too-real story that Heckler (Safekeeping) relates. The reader is brought into the consciousness of each of the Stockmans in turn, sharing their overwhelming confusion and pain. This would make a searing film. January
Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal:

The Stockmans are an American family on the riseMike is a brilliant advertising executive; his wife, Katy, is a loving homemaker; and their two teenagers are good solid kids. But behind this facade of normalcy the family is being wrenched apart by Mike's alcoholism. Katy feels the family must hide Mike's behavior, but 17 year-old Rick and his 14 year-old sister, Lee, find it increasingly difficult to come to terms with their father's conduct. In this novel the author deftly takes the reader inside the mind and body of an alcoholic, while exploring the deep-seated feelings of resentment, rage, sympathy, and disgust experienced by the family members. The characters are fairly well-delineated and believable and the imagery is vivid. A poignant and sensitive tale. Highly recommended. Maria A. Perez-Stable, Western Michigan Univ. Libs., Kalamazoo
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Putnam Adult
• Publication date: 1986
• ISBN 10: 0399130454
• ISBN 13: 9780399130458
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 300