The Lies We Tell
by Jamie Holland
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Pub Date Sep 23 2015 | Archive Date Apr 04 2016
Description
It’s 1974 in suburban Maryland, and Martie Wheeler is consumed by anxiety. Her father has just dropped dead from a heart attack, two girls have disappeared from the local mall, and President Nixon has turned out to be the liar of the century. With no outlet for expressing her feelings, Martie’s teenage angst is magnified by the sense of deceit hovering over both the country and her home.
When her mother moves the family to Milwaukee, Martie becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to the missing girls while her depressed older sister, Blaire, befriends a strange artist known as “the witch.”
While trying to survive her new life on the shores of moody Lake Michigan, Martie learns of a dark family secret that threatens to upend her world altogether.
The Lies We Tell captures the wonder and confusion of adolescence in the 1970s while growing up in a household rocked by lies.
When her mother moves the family to Milwaukee, Martie becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to the missing girls while her depressed older sister, Blaire, befriends a strange artist known as “the witch.”
While trying to survive her new life on the shores of moody Lake Michigan, Martie learns of a dark family secret that threatens to upend her world altogether.
The Lies We Tell captures the wonder and confusion of adolescence in the 1970s while growing up in a household rocked by lies.
A Note From the Publisher
Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.
Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.
Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.
Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.
Advance Praise
“Holland…demonstrates her honest sensitivity to the extremes of youthful vanity and the limits of parental responsibility… A warm novel….” --Kirkus Reviews
“To subtle but startling effect, Holland roots her delicate coming-of-age story squarely in the middle of a perfectly rendered 1970’s. Against a backdrop of large-scale deceit, thirteen-year-old Martie, struggling with grief, learns what a nation learned: truth can break your heart even as it sets you free.” --Marisa de los Santos, author of Love Walked In and Belong to Me
“Jamie Holland is a strong, fresh, powerful new voice in fiction. From the very first page The Lies We Tell instantly pulls you in to 1974 and the vivid, mesmerizing, heart-felt world of thirteen-year-old Martie Wheeler. This is one character, one book, you won't forget.” --Jessica Anya Blau, author of The Summer of Naked Swim Parties and The Wonder Bread Summer
“Anyone who stumbled through middle school is bound to relate to the protagonist in Jamie Holland’s haunting and evocative The Lies We Tell. An adult writing the voice of a child is a daunting task but with her pared-down prose and airtight storytelling, Holland makes it look effortless. Told with the backdrop of the Watergate crimes and the upheaval of the 1970s, The Lies We Tell is not just a good coming-of-age story, it is a great novel, period.” --Julia Slavin, author of Carnivore Diet and The Woman who Cut off her Leg at the Maidstone Club and Other Stories
“A hidden gem of a book. Through shy, observant Martie we rediscover what it's like to be thirteen again: the pain when the people we love change, the confusion of shifting allegiances, the intense desire to be somebody, anybody. It's the kind of crossover coming-of-age story we need more of, written from the perspective of a young narrator who’s just beginning to find her power and her voice. Holland writes like the wise and quirky offspring of Judy Blume and Wes Anderson.”--Rebecca Flowers, author of Nice to Come Home to
“In her wonderful debut, The Lies We Tell, Jamie Holland has created a memorable and endearing protagonist. Martie’s humorous observations and unflinching quest for truth draw us in and make us hold our breath as she confronts the grief, and secrets, that engulf her heart-broken family.” --Karen Day, author of Tall Tales and A Million Miles from Boston
“To subtle but startling effect, Holland roots her delicate coming-of-age story squarely in the middle of a perfectly rendered 1970’s. Against a backdrop of large-scale deceit, thirteen-year-old Martie, struggling with grief, learns what a nation learned: truth can break your heart even as it sets you free.” --Marisa de los Santos, author of Love Walked In and Belong to Me
“Jamie Holland is a strong, fresh, powerful new voice in fiction. From the very first page The Lies We Tell instantly pulls you in to 1974 and the vivid, mesmerizing, heart-felt world of thirteen-year-old Martie Wheeler. This is one character, one book, you won't forget.” --Jessica Anya Blau, author of The Summer of Naked Swim Parties and The Wonder Bread Summer
“Anyone who stumbled through middle school is bound to relate to the protagonist in Jamie Holland’s haunting and evocative The Lies We Tell. An adult writing the voice of a child is a daunting task but with her pared-down prose and airtight storytelling, Holland makes it look effortless. Told with the backdrop of the Watergate crimes and the upheaval of the 1970s, The Lies We Tell is not just a good coming-of-age story, it is a great novel, period.” --Julia Slavin, author of Carnivore Diet and The Woman who Cut off her Leg at the Maidstone Club and Other Stories
“A hidden gem of a book. Through shy, observant Martie we rediscover what it's like to be thirteen again: the pain when the people we love change, the confusion of shifting allegiances, the intense desire to be somebody, anybody. It's the kind of crossover coming-of-age story we need more of, written from the perspective of a young narrator who’s just beginning to find her power and her voice. Holland writes like the wise and quirky offspring of Judy Blume and Wes Anderson.”--Rebecca Flowers, author of Nice to Come Home to
“In her wonderful debut, The Lies We Tell, Jamie Holland has created a memorable and endearing protagonist. Martie’s humorous observations and unflinching quest for truth draw us in and make us hold our breath as she confronts the grief, and secrets, that engulf her heart-broken family.” --Karen Day, author of Tall Tales and A Million Miles from Boston
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About the author:
Jamie Holland grew up in Massachusetts, Maryland, Wisconsin, New York and Texas. Her short stories have appeared in Antietam Review, Baltimore Review, Brain Child, District Lines, Gargoyle, Literary Mama, and other journals. Since 1986, she and her husband have been living in Washington, D.C. They have two teenage girls. She is currently working on a young adult novel about betrayal.
Jamie Holland grew up in Massachusetts, Maryland, Wisconsin, New York and Texas. Her short stories have appeared in Antietam Review, Baltimore Review, Brain Child, District Lines, Gargoyle, Literary Mama, and other journals. Since 1986, she and her husband have been living in Washington, D.C. They have two teenage girls. She is currently working on a young adult novel about betrayal.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9780692300442 |
| PRICE | $12.00 (USD) |
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