ABOUT THE BOOK

Hudson was Emma’s best friend in the whole world. What would she do without him? He was the only one who cared about her at all. The only one who didn’t think she was weird. Or if he did, he didn’t mind. She had to save him. She just had to.

Golden Boy is a love letter to all the dogs we’ve loved during our lifetime that we wish could have lived forever.

Fifteen-year-old Emma Branch is the brilliant daughter of the football coach in a small South Carolina town where her talent for science is not appreciated. In the lush Carolina Lowcountry, where ancient live oaks drip with Spanish moss and the marshes teem with crawdads and oysters, Football is King.

Unfortunately for Emma’s distant father Wayman, his team hasn’t won a game in over a decade. If he can’t pull off a winning season this year, the whole family will be run out of town on a rail. With the school’s headmistress leading the charge.

When Emma’s golden retriever Hudson collapses, she brews up a serum based on her school science project — hoping to activate some of the genes dogs share with humans in order to extend his life. The next morning, Emma awakens to discover that she has apparently activated a few too many genes. Her golden retriever has become human overnight!

A human-canine hybrid actually. A Golden Boy. Hudson may look like a human teenager on the outside, but inside he’s pure golden. After witnessing Hudson’s extraordinary physical prowess, Wayman sees the miracle he needs to save his football team and his family. He recruits Hudson to first string, and Hudson soon becomes the town’s new football star.

But more than that, Hudson’s innocence and positivity changes the lives of everyone he meets. Crotchety alumni start dancing. Cynical bullies become defenders of the bullied. He inspires the football team to enjoy the moment, have fun, and roll in the mud every once in awhile. Wayman’s team finally starts winning. Hudson becomes a local celebrity. The whole world wants to know where this mysterious football star came from.

And through it all, Hudson helps repair Emma and Wayman’s damaged relationship, reawakening their ability to love. But just when things couldn’t get any better, the serum starts wearing off. Will this house of cards built upon Hudson disintegrate around them?

Golden Boy is a modern-day fairy tale about the transformative power of unconditional love.

And football. Because football is important, too.