Bridge of Clay

The five young Dunbar brothers must live on their own, in poverty and chaos, after their mother dies from cancer and their father walks out on them. The boys detest their father for his actions and when he reappears, only one brother – Clay – tries to re-connect with him. Told through the eyes of the mother, the older brother and narrator Michael, and Clay, the book demonstrates the strength of sibling bonds and family relationships and the issues that can break a family apart. Suitable for mature readers in grades 11-12, this complex novel deals with abandonment, grief, loss, growing up, building relationships, and forgiveness, and can be used for whole class, literature circle, or independent novel.