The Ocean at the End of the Lane

A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. Although the house he lived in is long gone, he is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock, and her mother and grandmother. He hasn't thought of Lettie in decades, and yet as he sits by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean) behind the old farmhouse, the unremembered past comes flooding back. The story explores a strange, frightening, and dangerous childhood experience, conveyed with delicate storytelling and deep understanding of human nature. Includes bonus features such as a meet with Neil Gaiman, a reading group guide, and an interview with the author.