num_pages: 384
description: When twelve-year-old Sidney Henderson pushes his friend Connie off the roof of a local church in a moment of anger, he makes a silent vow: Let Connie live and I will never harm another soul. At that very moment, Connie stands, laughs, and walks away. Sidney keeps his promise through adulthood despite the fact that his insular, rural community uses his pacifism to exploit him. Sidney's son Lyle, however, assumes an increasingly aggressive stance in defense of his family. When a small boy is killed in a tragic accident and Sidney is blamed, Lyle takes matters into his own hands. In his effort to protect the people he loves—his beautiful and fragile mother, Elly; his gifted sister, Autumn; and his innocent brother, Percy—it is Lyle who will determine his family's legacy.
language: English
title: Mercy Among the Children
titlecomplete: Mercy Among the Children
genres: Adult Fiction, Novels, Family, Book Club, Literature, Contemporary, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Canadian Literature, Canada
ratings_count: 5741
places: New Brunswick, Canada
awards: awardedAt: 946713600000
name: Scotiabank Giller Prize, awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Canadian Booksellers Association Libris Award
category: Fiction Book
publisher: Washington Square Press