The town of Madison has held a secret within the city limits for a long time but you would never know it if you happened to drive through the town. The town has been made to be as inconspicuous as possible. The only thing that would point to the strangeness of the town is that there isn't a church in the entire town. But that can be explained away very easily and generally the people that notice are the same that forget the town as soon as they leave it.
What is left behind is a special town whose inhabitants are each granted one wish on their eighteenth birthday. In Madison it is the single most important day of your life. Everything leading up to the wish doesn't matter quite so much as what each person imagines their life will be after they make their wish. There are a few stipulations that the inhabitants must follow but those are easy. Wish for money, someone's love, eye sight... something to change your life for the better.
It seems easy, except for Aldon Wilkes deciding on what he should wish for...or even if he should wish for something, is the most difficult decision he has ever had to make. His mother wants him to wish for his sister's health. Many people believe the only good wish is one for money. As Aldon looks around he sees how unhappy everyone is with their lives... and he blames the wishes they made. Getting what you want doesn't equate happiness. So, after being tasked to learn about the wishes and motives behind them from many of the town's inhabitants Aldon learns more and more about himself, his future...and maybe what he should wish for.
This book is about Aldon growing up and beginning to see the possibilities (outside of wishing) that life has for him.
What is left behind is a special town whose inhabitants are each granted one wish on their eighteenth birthday. In Madison it is the single most important day of your life. Everything leading up to the wish doesn't matter quite so much as what each person imagines their life will be after they make their wish. There are a few stipulations that the inhabitants must follow but those are easy. Wish for money, someone's love, eye sight... something to change your life for the better.
It seems easy, except for Aldon Wilkes deciding on what he should wish for...or even if he should wish for something, is the most difficult decision he has ever had to make. His mother wants him to wish for his sister's health. Many people believe the only good wish is one for money. As Aldon looks around he sees how unhappy everyone is with their lives... and he blames the wishes they made. Getting what you want doesn't equate happiness. So, after being tasked to learn about the wishes and motives behind them from many of the town's inhabitants Aldon learns more and more about himself, his future...and maybe what he should wish for.
This book is about Aldon growing up and beginning to see the possibilities (outside of wishing) that life has for him.