An Ocean in Iowa A Novel [Paperback]

In a small town in Iowa, Scotty Ocean has announced that seven is going to be his year. It does turn out to be his year, but not quite the one he had imagined. It is the year his mother abandons the family. At first, Scotty does astonishing things to get her to return. When he realizes she won't be coming back, he decides he must replace her. And when that proves impossible, he takes the dramatic step of trying to remain seven forever.
Funny, sad, and constantly surprising,An Ocean in Iowaexplores the fragile contracts between parents and children and what it really means to grow up.What Scotty Said
When he was four or thereabouts, Scotty Ocean liked to stand on the piano bench while his mother, a painter of abstracts, played the only song she knew.
She practiced it daily, her eyes closed, a Salem cigarette burning in the nearby ashtray.
For Scotty there was no place better to be than at her side, where he might tug at her blouse or whisper in her ear or pound the black keys with his fists. But it hardly mattered what he did because when Joan Ocean played her song, everything -- even Scotty -- disappeared.
One day he said something that brought her to a stop.
She made him say it again. This time she watched closely as his pink lips shaped the sounds. She would never forget it. Later it would haunt her: his eyes, his voice, and the words, spoken simply...
Seven is going to be my year.
Copyright © 1998 by Peter HedgesTable of Contents
What Scotty Said
Almost Heaven
Look at Scotty Grow
A Good Boy
Christmas
Other Mothers
The Wrong Crowd
What Was LearnedReading Group Guide
Discussion Points

1. An Ocean in Iowais a striking title because of its incongruity. What is the title conveying about Scotty's feeling about his place in the universe and his ability to fit into his environment?
2. The father in this story is strikingly complex, eliciting anl"