For adults. Blowing Rock, North Carolina, 1951. Blackburn Gant, his life irrevocably altered by a childhood case of polio, seems condemned to spend his life among the dead as the sole caretaker of a hilltop cemetery. It suits his withdrawn personality, and the inexplicable occurrences that happen from time-to-time rattle him less than interactions with the living. But when his only friend, the kind but impulsive Jacob Hampton, is conscripted to serve overseas, Blackburn is charged with caring for Jacob’s wife, Naomi, as well. Jacob and Naomi’s elopement has scandalized the community and angered Jacob’s parents. Shunned by the townsfolk for their differences and equally fearful that Jacob may never come home from the war, Blackburn and Naomi grow closer, even as a stunning betrayal shatters familial bonds. A profound examination of friendship and rivalry, as well as a riveting story of unfolding deceit, The Caretaker brilliantly depicts the human capacity for empathetic compassion and selfish destruction, all justified as acts of love. This discussion is supported in part by North Carolina Humanities, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, www.nchumanities.org. Copies of the book are available for checkout, although it is not necessary to have read the book to participate in NC Reads. For more information, call (336) 570-6730.