{"product_id":"the-lifeguard-9781636282893","title":"The Lifeguard","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAUTHOR OF BESTSELLER, \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eIN A PERFECT WORLD\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAUTHOR OF THREE BOOKS ADAPTED TO FILM: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eSUSPICIOUS RIVER\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e, \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eTHE LIFE BEFORE HER EYES\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e, AND \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eWHITE BIRD IN A BLIZZARD\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER IN POETRY FOR \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eSPACE, IN CHAINS\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaura Kasischke dives back into novels with this thrilling small town mystery, \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eTHE LIFEGUARD\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis is a novel about grief and ambition, innocence and blame-a tale that spools out of and around a Midwestern swimming pool one summer afternoon, 1969, and into the future of an America yet to be imagined.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the town of Mission Hills, Michigan, an elementary school child drowns in the Olympic-sized pool at a summer swim club. By most, but not all, the lifeguard on duty that afternoon--a teenage girl who becomes the town's scapegoat, bearing the weight of their grief and fears--is seen as responsible for the tragedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eKasischke weaves together overlapping narratives and shifting perspectives, gradually peeling back the layers of what really happened that day. Through poetic, sensory-rich prose, she explores the liminal spaces between memory and reality, innocence and culpability, childhood and adulthood. The story probes the arbitrary, inexorable nature of fate--how a single moment can alter lives forever, and how the search for answers can reveal unsettling truths about ourselves and those around us.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Red Hen Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/12\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781636282893\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 248\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.96lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.69d","brand":"Laura Kasischke","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52360497692853,"sku":"9781636282893","price":31.41,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_4983441e-17d5-4635-8284-206197f8f1ec.jpg?v=1773721235","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-lifeguard-9781636282893","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}