Books › The Vast Fields of Ordinary
The Vast Fields of Ordinary
First published 2009 · 309 pages
A sun-drenched, bittersweet exploration of the messy, heartbreaking summer between high school and whatever comes next.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like living inside the sticky, languid heat of a Midwestern summer, the kind where you are just waiting for your real life to begin. It captures the suffocating liminal space between high school and college, wrapping the reader in an atmosphere of suburban stagnation and secret, desperate longing. The prose is observant and tender, perfectly channeling the messy, cynical, yet deeply earnest voice of a teenager trying to figure out who he is while his family falls apart. As the story shifts from the quiet ache of a hidden relationship to the terrifying thrill of living authentically, the mood turns bittersweet and ultimately heartbreaking. It is a perfect match for anyone who loves emotionally raw, character-driven queer coming-of-age stories that do not shy away from the sharp edges of growing up.
- Mood
- sun-drenched
- melancholic
- nostalgic
- bittersweet
- Tone
- introspective
- earnest
- wry
- tender
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- liminality of late adolescence · the pain of the closet · messy family dynamics · first love and heartbreak · suburban stagnation
- The writing
- Lyrical and observant, capturing the sensory details of a Midwestern summer with raw, unpolished honesty.
- The arc
- Moves from stifled frustration and secret longing to the terrifying, liberating, and ultimately heartbreaking reality of living authentically.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love character-driven, emotionally messy queer coming-of-age stories set in the sticky heat of a suburban summer.
Content notes
- homophobia
- underage drinking and drug use
- parental divorce
- death of a peer
About the book
It's Dade Hamilton's last summer at home. He has a crappy job at Food World, a boyfriend who won't publicly acknowledge his existence (maybe because Pablo also has a girlfriend), and parents on the verge of a divorce. College is Dade's shining beacon of possibility, a horizon to keep him from floating away.
Then he meets the mysterious Alex Kincaid. Falling in real love finally lets Dade come out of the closet and, ironically, ignites a ruthless passion in Pablo. But just when true happiness has set in, tragedy shatters the dreamy curtain of summer, and Dade will use every ounce of strength he's gained to break from his past and start fresh with the future.
Description from Open Library.
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