Lake Wobegon summer, 1956 - Garrison Keillor

A hilarious coming-of-age novel, Lake Wobegon Summer 1956 serves up the world according to 14-year-old Gary, an endearing geek, a self-described 'tree-toad', and a writer in the making whose best friend is his Underwood typewriter. Always with humour, and often with great sympathy, charm and honesty, the author tells us a story that both satirises and celebrates the traumas and the passions of adolescence. Keillor takes us back to a newly-minted America. With its post-war optimism and Cold War suspicions of outsiders, the 1950s are evoked in unforgettable Wobegon fashion.

Garrison Keillor lives in St Paul, Minnesota, home of A Prairie Home Companion , his radio show that has been on the air since 1974. He wrote and appeared in Robert Altman's final film, A Prairie Home Companion and is the author of many books including the Lake Wobegon novels, which include Lake Wobegon Days , Pontoon and Pilgrims.