Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving

With a typical Irving cast of unusual characters who find themselves in life situations that start quite ordinary and spin in directions most unusual we follow the life of the young boy Danny and his father affectionately called Cookie. The story begins in the hard scrabble environment of the New Hampshire logging camps of the 1950's. An act both innocent and tragic, sends them on a journey where both struggle to keep the other safe. Loves are found and lost and always connections are made in the various kitchens where Cookie reigns. As the reader, you can't help but ask, "Where does Irving get his ideas?" As an aside I loved the political commentary.