I literally had to wait a day to write this review because I needed to digest this brilliant story. It is heartwarming, charming, poignant, and totally memorable. I will start this out by saying, WHY isn't this on everyone's TBR? It ought to be!

What Holly Kennedy has done is take 30 year old Denny Voss, a man untolerated by many people or at the very least, misunderstood because he is neurodiverse, (meaning he lives with natural variations of the human brain like those with ADHD, autism or learning disabilities). His issues stem from oxygen deprivation at the time of birth and possibly because of his prematurity. But he is a loveable, kind, and sweet character (think Forrest Gump) who lives with his Nana-Jo and his adopted dog George who is blind and deaf. Denny shows George how to live in the world with those issues and has the sweetest love for his dog. They all live in duplex 8B and shares a wall with 8A where his cousin Angus lives. Angus and Denny work together at the DOT picking up road kill or replacing damaged road signs. Angus is very protective and loving though at times he gets frustrated with Denny's constant questions. Denny has a sister Lydia who works as a photographer in NYC and isn't around much. Denny is fine with that because "she isn't nice." Denny and Nana-Jo watch tv together and the rule is that he shouldn't watch tv alone because there are things on tv that would make him mad or uncomfortable but sometimes, he breaks the rules and does watch without her. What comes up on the tv are stories about gun violence and this disturbs him on such a deep level that his heart goes "bam-bam-bam" and he has to calm himself down by singing the theme song from Toy Story.
Nana-Jo is a housecleaner and has worked for the Tesky family for 24 years. She doesn't make very much from her cleaning jobs so they have to live frugally but one day, Nana-Jo is told by Mr. Tesky, following his wife's death, that her services are no longer needed and she is devastated. As she is trying to digest this news, and Denny is asking is usual array of questions, she tells him that he needs to "start figuring out how to solve his own problems." And since Denny listens to his Nana-Jo as to how to live in the world, he strategizes a plan. After watching a tv program asking for the public to help reduce gun violence by turning their guns into the nearest police station, he decides to take all his late Papa-Jo's guns to the police in town. But this backfires badly when the sled he is using to transport the weapons gets away from him and smashes into a tree at the bottom of Pigeon Hill and the guns fly everywhere. Somehow, the police are on the scene within minutes, arrest him and he is taken to jail. Also discovered is that Mr. Tesky has been shot dead in his home. Tesky is not well liked so there aren't a lot of tears shed especially by Denny or his family. But what happens then is that one of the guns that the police recovered from Denny's pile is the pistol that shot Mr Tesky. So now, Denny is in jail for murder!
Because of his issues, he is assigned a counselor to help him navigate what is happening, as well as a nice attorney who smells like lemons and as Denny begins to share his story, the reader understands more about how his life has been, how his mind works and how he sees the world. He also shares his two previous arrests and one of those arrests includes the kidnapping of Tom Hanks!
Kennedy uses wonderful techniques as she writes how Denny thinks, taking big words or concepts and in parentheses, expresses how Denny defines the word or concept. This treatment is so endearing! It is charming that he uses Google a lot to help him understand what he is confused about. The author slowly builds the tension as to who the killer truly is as well as Denny's origin story as so many secrets are uncovered, it shocks Denny to pieces and now he doesn't know who he can trust. And Denny doesn't have the coping mechanisms either to deal with his confusion and anger.
Denny's heart is always in the right place even though he doesn't always go about things the way rest of the world might. He is proud that he is a 72 (his IQ) and that "he's fine just as he is." He befriends a little boy with Tourette's syndrome and his mother who runs the local laundry mat, and a homeless man and both of these characters gain confidence through Denny's friendship and encouragement.
The Author's note at the end of the story was quite eye-opening as it shares how the story evolved over time for her and she takes so much of her own story for this book, it is in some ways, autobiographical.
This is a fabulous story about diversity, acceptance and how it is possible to live in the world if everyone shows kindness. There are such sweet moments you can't help but giggle and you might need tissues every once and a while too.
READ THIS BOOK!!