New Novel — STREETS OF GOLFITO by Jim LaBate (Costa Rica)

Streets of Golfito: A Novel by Jim LaBate focuses on two individuals who meet in Golfito, Costa Rica in 1974. Jim (Diego) is a 22-year-old Peace Corps Volunteer from upstate New York, and he has been assigned to introduce sports other than soccer to the young people. By contrast, Lilli is a shy, beautiful, 17-year-old Costa Rican girl who wants to learn English and escape her small town, a banana port on the Pacific side near the Panamanian border. In alternating chapters, the first third of the book shows these two characters growing up in their respective countries. Then, after they meet, Lilli experiences a tragedy that will drastically change her life, and Jim does all he can to help her survive and thrive in her new circumstances.

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Streets of Golfito: A Novel
by Jim LaBate (Costa Rica 1973-75)
Mohawk River Press
252 pages
October 2020
$9.99 (Kindle); $19.95 (Paperback)