Zermatt: Calvin Becker Trilogy, Book 3

In this sequel to his acclaimed novel Portofino, Frank Schaeffer's memorable young narrator, Calvin Becker, returns in a story that is a coming-of-age gem.

It is 1966, and Calvin is fourteen, torn between his naturally volcanic sexual curiosity and a fundamentalist family so strict that he has never seen a movie, watched television, or danced. But at the Hotel Riffelberg, a supposed safe haven from the sinners listening to jazz far below in Zermatt, Calvin nevertheless falls into the hands of Eva, a young waitress who begins Calvin's initiation. Even so, it is only after his mother catches him in the act-or so she thinks-that Calvin's real education begins. The resulting family meltdown builds to a climax destined to push Calvin's childhood into the past.