Keeper and Kid (A Novel)

"A fine, fetching novel with a good heart . . . a tribute to the author's endless comic inventiveness." —Stewart O'Nan, author of Songs for the Missing



Three years after his divorce, James Keeper is enjoying his new job selling antiques at a quirky shop. His new love, Leah, is intriguing and passionate. Business is steady and Keeper's friends always turn up for Card Night. But one phone call from his former mother-in-law changes it all.

Days later, Keeper comes away with a son he never knew he had. Immediately, life takes on a new meaning. As he and Leo adjust to the shock of each other and their suddenly altered lives, Keeper begins to let in the people in his life—by turns strange and heartwarming; funny and painful. A coming of age story for the guy who thought he had already grown up, this novel is a sharp and witty account of what we do for love.

"One of the most enchantingly realistic tots in recent fiction. We don't know whether to keep turning the pages or dive into them and offer to help babysit." —The Boston Globe

"Keeper and Kid is a marvel. I dare you. Open this book and try to put it down." —Ann Hood, author of The Knitting Circle

"At once immensely engaging and about the things that matter most: how we love, how we move on, how the past moves with us. Lovely, wise, and surprising."

—Elizabeth Graver, author of The Honey Thief

"It isn't merely ‘amusing,' it is downright funny . . .[Hardy] creates characters so eccentric and endearing you'll be sorry to see the last of them." —Statesman Journal (Salem, Oregon)