Far from Shore is the story of what happens to a family when the work gives out. It's also the story of Chris, who, despite his strong Newfoundland speech, could be a teen-aged boy anywhere yearning for the security of a solid home, awkwardly pursuing the excitement of sex, stabbing at the adventure and responsibility of manhood. It begins on Christmas Eve when Father stumbles home drunk and crashes into the Christmas tree. (p. 21)

Over the next couple of months things get worse until finally Father takes off for Alberta to find work. Mother gets a job in a fast-food restaurant—and more than a friend in the affectionate, lonely widower who owns it. Jennifer immerses herself in her last year at school. And Chris begins to cave in.

Growing angry and morose, he loses his girlfriend, he fails his year and decides not to go back to...