Hush, Boy

HUSH, BOY, a novel about Jonathan Harding, a young boy growing up in the Deep South, is an adventure in storytelling. This third book of a trilogy about Dr. Jonathan Harding, thoracic surgeon and hospital accreditation surveyor, is structured as a prequel to the other two. The young Jonathan longs to be older, like all the people in his life, and he searches for ways to make his grandfather love him. A curious boy, his questions about the departure of his father, about sex, about race, about life itself, are never answered by the adults around him. The only answer he gets is, "Hush, boy, we don't talk about that." Some of the novel's chapters depict Jonathan telling his growing-up stories to his close friend, FBI Agent Peter Larsen, and their discussions about whether to include them in a novel Jonathan is writing. Against odds, the young adult Jonathan makes it through medical school and a grueling surgical residency. Grown up at last, he finally discovers the truth about his late grandfather's love and devotion.