Lottery by Patricia Wood

Perry Crandall is mentally challenged, lives with his Gram, and works at Holsted's Marine Supply in Everett, Washington. People close to him consider him lucky, especially when he wins twelve million dollars in the lottery. Soon, his relatives who usually want nothing to do with him--his mother and two older brothers, John and David--start coming around because they want his money. It is up to Perry's friends, Keith (a Vietnam vet and Perry's best friend), Gary (Perry's boss at Holsted's) and Cherry (a cashier at the local mini-mart and object of Perry's affections) to be there for him. Lottery is the story of Perry's journey through life after becoming rich and how his life changes in unimaginable ways. Perry and the rest of the characters in the novel are quirky and memorable. The book reminded me of Ron McLarty's The Memory of Running and a bit of Jim Kokoris' The Rich Part of Life, one of my favorite novels, which is also about a lottery winner.