What an absolutely endearing read with humor and heart wrapped in a compelling plot line.

In 1938, twelve yr old Sheldon Horowitz is in a suspicious car accident when his father is run off the road resulting in his father’s death. His mother died the prior year in a movie theater fire so he moves from Massachusetts to his uncle’s house in Hartford. His cousins Abe and Mirabelle, and his best friend Lenny help him through not only general teenage growing pains, but also coming to terms with being Jewish at the time the Nazi’s power begins growing in Europe, and in his determination to find the man who caused his father’s death.
The author’s first book “Norwegian Night” – which I just read - is about this unforgettable character as an old man. So I guess this new book is kind of like its prequel though coming after. Taking place in Norway, it is also filled with laugh out loud humor and heartache, but is also a bit of a thriller. Loved it.
Richard Russo, one of the best story tellers ever, states that Sheldon is “one of the most memorable characters…that I’ve encountered in years.”

This was very interesting. Not my usual read but glad I took a chance. Refreshing and insightful. I want to go back and read Norwegian By Night to get a better grasp on Sheldon and his world. Beautifully written.

Enjoyable, but not quite what I was expecting after the author’s earlier books with Sheldon. I loved Norwegian By Night. But, the subsequent novels didn’t quite hit me with the same force.

The spirit of Augie March is hovering somewhere, somehow in the background of Sidney Horowitz's life as we follow his bittersweet fictional journey from boyhood to manhood through the uncertain years leading to WWII in Derek Miller's latest accomplished novel, a captivating and devastating portrait of a nation on the brink of cataclysmic changes. As the dangerous saber-rattling and war mongering noises are getting louder and more tangible in Europe, recently orphaned Sid will have to learn how to deftly navigate his way to adulthood through a series of treacherous pitfalls and life changing experiences. Full of anger, love and humor, this marvellous novel is also a delicious and unforgettable slice of 20th century American history and the American experience that one must enjoy without moderation....

Many thanks to Netgalley and HMH for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date

Sidney Horowitz, the wonderful protagonist from Norwegian by Night returns in this book by Derek B. Miller in a novel about Sidney's early years. The same humor and endearing personality are present here in the story of an orphaned Sidney, living in Hartford, Connecticut with his uncle Nate and cousins Abe and Mirabelle. Sidney's experiences include living through a horrific car accident, the 1938 hurricane, and visiting the Colt armory in Hartford where his uncle Nate works.
The tale continues through Worked War Ii, and the reader can only hope a sequel is in the works to continue Sidney's story up to Miller's Norwegian by Night!

“There was a dance tonight. Sheldon had forgotten all about the dance. How had he forgotten about the dance? He had forgotten about the dance because he was busy. He had a mafia assassin to frame, a thief to rob, and vengeance to be delivered. These were (all) encompassing activities.”

How To Find Your Way In The Dark is book one in the Sheldon Horowitz series by award-winning American-born author, Derek B Miller. When eleven-year-old Sheldon Horowitz lost his mother to a theatre fire in 1937, he and his father, Joseph battled on. They missed Lila, even if they didn’t talk much about her, but Joseph and Sheldon were close: they connected.

His father’s death, barely a year later, meant that Sheldon had to leave Whately, the woods he loved and his best friend, Lenny Bernstein, to live in Hartford with his older, city cousins and his widower uncle, Joseph’s younger brother Nate. Nate acted more from duty than love but, despite a lukewarm welcome from Abe and Mirabelle, he was soon sharing with Abe his theory, as earlier disclosed to Lenny, about the murder of his father, and his plan for revenge.

The reception from his seventeen-year-old cousin surprises Sheldon, who expected scepticism. Abe is an intelligent and passionate young man who views the building fascism in Europe and the anti-Semitism in America (some blatant, some subtle or even insidious) with a concern absent in his father. Sheldon soon finds himself involved in an unlikely escapade with his cousins that nets him a snow globe of Cleveland.

What follows is a marvellous tale: part crime fiction, part coming-of-age, part war story. There are jewel thieves and fences; arson; the mob and guns and a bag of cash; B24 bombers and Nazi U-boats and thwarted enlistment; summer jobs as bellhops and comedy routines and master keys. There’s infatuation and love and romance and marriage.

Miller uses apt headings rather than numbers mark the chapters. His characters are multi-faceted and many are appealing for all their very human flaws and poor decisions, because there’s also kindness and courage and loyalty and doing one’s patriotic duty even when country’s leaders don’t recognise the need. Sheldon is a thoughtful, rather earnest character whose loving upbringing has produced a young man with a strong sense of justice, one who thinks deeply on serious issues.

Some of those issues, such as the reasons for America’s long delay in entering WW2, or America’s attitude to Jewish refugees, are certainly thought-provoking but, lest readers expect a humourless tome, it’s fair to say that this book is often laugh-out-loud funny. While there’s a bit of sitcom in there, it mostly comes from Sheldon: his inner monologue; and his dialogue with Lenny, with his cousins, with his dead father, with mirror-Sheldon. One particular crossed-purpose exchange is hilarious.

This is eighty-two-year-old Sheldon from Norwegian By Night, but when he was still establishing his opinions, still developing his beliefs. Readers who met and liked the rather cranky, argumentative old man in Miller’s debut novel will enjoy this examination of his early life, looking at the boy to perhaps see some of what made the man. But more than that, this is also a darkly funny tale of wrongdoing and revenge, of integrity and principles, of loss and grief, of family and friendship. Exciting, moving, insightful and hugely entertaining, this is probably Miller’s best yet.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by the author, NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

The best! Derek Miller just keeps getting better and better and this book continues the story of Sheldon Horowitz,, one the stars of Miller’s earlier book Norwegian By Night. This book traces Horowitz’ youth in before and during WWII. The book deals with him dealing with his father’s death, unrequited love, war, comedy and everything in between. It is a picaresque novel in one sense as it traces Horowitz life(and I suspect there will be a sequel to this book-since there is a lot more Horowitz to chronicle) but it is so much more-so intelligent and well written and touching on so many facets of life. It’s just wonderful and a little hard to explain. Just read it and Miller’s other books. It’s a unique reading experience.

Sheldon, as a child, seems to outsmart adults and mobsters easily and it was entertaining to see how some of the crimes play out. While interesting, I'm not sure we needed the story to occasionally switch to Abe's point of view.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.