This small Texas town will never be the same again.<br /><br />When the good people of Cranston learn a hometown boy has been killed in Iraq, they begin preparing a memorial for their fallen hero.<br /><br />But nobody thinks to ask the boy&rsquo;s father, Joe Morton, if such a service is wanted - or welcome. Crippled by grief, Joe goes along with the plans of the townsfolk until he can bear no more. On the Fourth of July, he tells them just how he feels.<br /><br />Joe&#39;s act of independence has unexpected consequences. The residents - and Joe himself - are completely unprepared for what happens next: change and the outside world come to Cranston.<br /><br />First runner-up, 2010 Pirate&#39;s Alley Faulkner Society Gold Medal