Stay

By: Catherine Ryan Hyde

Narrated by: Nick Podehl

An unforgettable novel about the power of friendship and kindness by the New York Times bestselling author of Pay It Forward.

In the summer of 1969, 14-year-old Lucas Painter carries a huge weight on his shoulders. His brother is fighting in Vietnam. His embattled parents are locked in a never-ending war. And his best friend, Connor, is struggling with his own family issues. To find relief from the chaos, Lucas takes long, meandering walks, and one day he veers into the woods.

There he discovers an isolated cabin and two huge dogs. Frightened, he runs. And the dogs run with him. Lucas finds unusual peace in running with the dogs, and eventually he meets their owner, Zoe Dinsmore. Closed off and haunted by a tragic past, Zoe has given up. She doesn’t want to be saved. She wants out. But Lucas doesn’t want her to go, and he sees an opportunity to bring more than one friend back into the light. It’s either the best or worst idea he’s ever had, but Lucas isn’t giving up on Zoe or Connor.

Their unexpected connection might be the saving grace that Zoe thought she’d lost, that Connor needs, and that Lucas has been running toward.

©2019 Catherine Ryan Hyde, Trustee, of the Catherine Ryan Hyde Revocable Trust created under that certain declaration dated September 27, 1999. (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Delivering this coming-of-age audiobook about friendship, healing, and love, narrator Nick Podehl brings many fascinating characters to life." (AudioFile)

“Charting Lucas’ journey from a sheltered teenager to a worldly young adult, Hyde (Have You Seen Luis Velez?, 2019) brings signature compassion to her characters and highlights the relationships that allow us to feel a deeper sense of connection to the world around us. Fans of Hyde’s previous novels and those who enjoyed Meg Donohue’s You, Me, and the Sea (2019) will adore this ode to unlikely friends.” (Booklist)

Wonderful Heartwarming Story

Heartwarming without being smarmy or having your teeth ache. This book is a good balance of the truly poignant and the harsh realities of the world.
Beautifully defined characters who totally involved me. Lucas, a 14 year old boy, was drawn with precision and clarity and imbued with a mature awareness that even though I thought might have been a bit over the top, I still fully appreciated.
I was completely involved in the story especially as it was from the boy's point of view. All the characters resonated and I loved. loved the dogs! The way the author described their actions and behavior was so real.
I liked Nick Podehl's narration except for sounding just a bit too much older than a 14 year old boy. But I chalked that up to Lucas reminiscing at a later time.
This is a wonderful book from an author I have not been familiar with, but glad to be now.

Family

Luis tells this story, as an adult, about his coming of age as a teen dealing with growing up during the Vietnam War. Their is turmoil everywhere (parental discord, older brother fighting in war, and an elderly lady that no longer feels wanted). Each of these encounters helped him to mature.

Hyde always gets it right!

A delicately balanced story that grows into a force of nature. Hyde's characters learn to express their emotions like we wish we could.

Really Enjoyed

I enjoyed this book. It really highlights that we all have purpose even when we don’t realize it and have made mistakes. Just be open to people. They probably aren’t what we originally see. I also liked how it integrated a 12 step program. I would recommend.

Stayed in my seat reading!

Another emotionally charged and complex driven character book by Catherine Ryan Hyde. I love her prose and narratives. I really think she hit it out of the park with this family drama set in the Vietnam era.

Highly recommend.

A lovely mistake!

I believed I was listening to an audible by another author with a very similar name. I’d searched by author because I so enjoyed the books I’d already finished. About an hour into the book I thought to myself that this was very different from her previous books.
Long story short about 3+ hours in I realized this was a different author- and type of book I generally enjoy. For some reason though, this story was so inviting and engaging I was really captured.
Beautiful descriptions and truly real characters will leave you wanting more.

Excellent

I have a new favorite author!! I just found her books and I can't stop listening to them. Her characters are so rich and deep and the narrators are amazing. Excellent story, I cannot say enough good about this book!!

Good book about friendship.

Good story about friendship.
Don't judge a book by its cover as the saying goes. Once they all let go of the opinion they had of each other and saw each other for who they really are the friendships were forever!!

a winner every time.

CRH always writes a winner. difficult subjects, wonderful wounded characters. poignant amd beautifully told. the narrator was so good, great characterizations!

Great story.

I loved it!!! Enjoyed the characters and performance. One of her best so far. Glad I found her stories.