A homeless son and troubled father must reconnect in Southern California before it's too late.
Dylan Glass, an 18-year-old high school dropout, has been kicked out of his mother and stepdad’s palatial house. Now homeless, he sleeps in his SUV behind an abandoned movie theater in an aging San Fernando Valley suburb. Although he has a job at a dollar store and support from the people he meets, he finds himself challenged by old temptations and a new woman, the alluring and enigmatic Pearl.
Miles away in Orange County, his estranged father, Dr. Oliver Glass, struggles with demons of his own. A private practice and a beautiful girlfriend with children of her own can’t make up for a past of tragedy and abuse. Memories of long-ago terrors constantly haunt Oliver.
Oliver seeks to reconnect with his son. Dylan seeks love and acceptance. Can they overcome their painful pasts? Or will they surrender to their self-destructive urges? Find out in the new adult novel that has been called “an intensely moving story” and a “powerful page turner,” The Remainders.
Excerpt
I finally came to that park, the one that was supposed to have showers. But I didn’t see any buildings that looked like they had showers. It was just a grassy area with picnic tables and lots of trees. But it looked like there was another part of the park on the other side of the wash. Maybe the showers were there. Or maybe they were at the buildings just past the park. My mission became to find those showers. I needed some way to get clean. I couldn’t keep asking Pearl. I didn’t want to impose, and I didn’t want her to keep looking at where I was circumcised.
followed along this street called Kittridge towards those buildings. But they weren’t a part of the park. It was a high school, the one Pearl went to. It was like everything else in Reseda. It looked old, but they painted it to make it look nice. The school colors were almost like the ones at Dana Hills, shades of blue.
I wondered how much better things would have been for me if I stayed in high school and got good grades. Muriel did great in school, and she “wound up going to a university. Most of all, she got away from our family. I still believed she didn’t give a fuck about me. Why would she when she had a great life in Minnesota?
But Pearl did all the things Muriel did and then some. Why was Muriel able to go to college, and Pearl had to work at Buck & Awesome?”
Professional Reviews
An Intensely Moving Story
“An intensely moving story. Matthew Arnold Stern has created a complex and believable cast of characters…I enjoyed this story immensely. The writing style keeps the reader involved and guessing, while eagerly wanting the characters to find what they need. It is well told, and the gentle romance is so real and touching. Overall, it is a moving tale. I highly recommend this story. It’s a great read and I look forward to reading more novels by this author.” — H.R. Kemp, author of Deadly Secrets
Powerful Page-Turner
“In this powerful page-turner, the reader is drawn to the familiarity of family pain and discord. Throughout it, the revolving inference of family history and circumstance sets the underlying tone and the ultimate hope for change, love, and acceptance. Matthew Arnold Stern weaves his diverse characters’ plights, emphasizing how kindness sparks community in a harsh world. Told in multiple first person, Stern engulfs the reader into the plight of his characters, both separate, lost, and trying to find themselves, but ultimately each other. I hope to read more of his work.” — Maisy Menold
Good People Who Endure Misfortune Without Giving Up
“This endearing, sometimes sad, often hopeful novel concerns good people who endure misfortune without giving up…The plot cleverly weaves their circumstances together while keeping them physically distant…” — Carolyn Geduld, author of the upcoming novel Who Shall Live
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