Dinner with Lisa

First thus-Inscribed by Prendergast, R. L." ALWAYS TRUST YOURSELF!"-" In the disastrous economic times of the 1930s, Joseph Gaston, a young widower with four children, arrives in the small town of Philibuster seeking security for his family. Instead, he faces barriers everywhere. He does his best despite great adversity, but the strain of feeding and protecting his family whittles away his strength. Finally, destitution forces him to consider giving up his children in order to save them. Enraged by his situation, he attempts one last desperate act-on the night he learns about the mysterious Lisa. Heart-wrenching, humorous, and historically authentic, Dinner with Lisa incorporates the crucial issues of the depression: poverty, unemployment, drought, and racism. In the midst of love and loyalty, trickery and despair, the ultimate message of the novel are one of hope and the courage to survive even the worst odds.".