Tinsel: A Search for America's Christmas Present [signed] [first edition]

In Tinsel, Hank Stuever turns his unerring eye for the idiosyncrasies of modern life to Frisco, Texas a suburb at once all-American and completely itself to tell the story of the nation s most over-the-top celebration: Christmas. Stuever s tale begins on the blissful easy-credit dawn of Black Friday, as he jostles for bargains among the crowds at the big-box stores. From there he follows Frisco s true believers as they navigate through three years of holiday drama. Tammie Parnell is the proprietor of Two Elves with a Twist, a company that decks the halls of other people s McMansions. Jeff and Bridgette Trykoski spend eleven months preparing the visible-from-space, awe-inspiring light display they stage on their lawn each December. And single mother Caroll Cavazos, a devout churchgoer, hopes that the life-affirming moments of the season can transcend her everyday struggles. Tinsel is a humane