Wayne Kovok lives in the world of before - before everything went wrong. Karen Harrington’s Mayday is a heart-warming drama where the main character, Wayne Kovok, is a fact-spitting machine, but when he is in a plane crash, he not only loses his voice, but also experiences many other setbacks throughout the book.

Wayne lived a pretty normal life before the crash. Well, as normal as it could be for him. When his uncle died, everything changed. Before the crash, his friends and facts were all he had. “Did you know that the poinsettia was named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, which is lucky because what if his name was Frankenbut? Then we’d all say ‘Here, have this beautiful Frankenbuttia.’”

His friends would laugh and tell him it was interesting, but when Wayne lost his voice, he was no longer able to fill the awkward space with facts. He would just have to be awkward all the time. This was not the way Wayne wanted to live his life.

The American flag that the army funeral service provides to all of the families of the dead was lost in the crash, and Wayne spends his days looking for it. He feels as if it's the only thing keeping him going, as his grandpa and dad aren’t helping at all either. They make him feel like he doesn’t belong in their life. Wayne’s grandpa is making him do everything for him, even though Wayne was the one who was in the plane crash. He’s the one who’s suffering from the consequences, not his grandpa. Although, as the book goes along, you find out that it really is just tough love.

This book is a real tear-jerker as you watch Wayne grow and stand up to his bullies as well as accept who he is as a person. The author makes you feel every feeling Wayne has as you get caught in this book’s net. I assure you that you won’t be able to put this book down once you pick it up.