Life might have other plans for Boy Cornelius McVeigh, as he discovers in this magic-tinged, coming-of-age novel about future plans conflicting with a complicated past and the inescapable present. Boy’s final year of high school is unraveling. Fast. He had it all worked out, from crushing his final exams to military school to a career in the air force. But his family’s tragic past and its complicated present have caught up to him, and his marks are slipping, jeopardizing all of his plans.