We The Animals

Prepare to take a blow to the gut with Justin Torres' breathtaking debut novel, We The Animals:  the story of three young brothers of mixed White and Puerto Rican races who come of age in the most heartbreaking of circumstances.  Their story is told through the narration of the youngest boy whose observations of his father's infidelity, his mother's erratic behavior, and his brothers' development into like-creatures, are genuine in their horror and humor.  Ultimately, our narrator's observations lead him to acts of self-discovery, and his eventual, painful coming-of-age that will leave readers in awe and empathy.  Highly recommended, this is a work of masterful storytelling and prose.