The Bones in the Cliff

The Bones in the Cliff follows eleven-year-old Pete, a shy boy who has just become friends with the adventurous Rootie, as he hides out on Cutlass Island with his alcoholic father. They wait for a gunman Pete's father fears will kill him, and Pete keeps watch while his father stays terrified and intoxicated. The story describes the tense situation of a child forced to guard his family in a remote, isolated setting.