Walter and Alice are expecting their first baby, but their timing is a bit off: Walter, once a successful loan officer, has been unexpectedly downsized. They've had to relocate to Florida so that they can live rent-free--in Alice's deceased aunt's condo. When Alice's brother-in-law Mid offers Walter a job, he literally can't refuse. But what he doesn't know--about the nature of the job, about the depth of Mid's shady dealings, about what he's really supposed to be doing--far outweighs what he does know. And soon enough, things escalate so out of control that Walter is riding shotgun with Mid in a bright yellow Camaro--chased by the police.
Drew Perry paints a landscape of weird and beautiful Florida and its inhabitants--all wholly original and hilarious, and utterly believable. And at the center is a portrait of a father-to-be who is paralyzed by the idea of taking responsibility for another human life when he can't seem to manage his own. Kids These Days takes perfect aim at the two sides of impending fatherhood--abject terror and unconditional love.
Drew Perry's first book, This Is Just Exactly Like You, was a finalist for the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, a SIBA Okra Pick, and an Atlanta Journal Constitution Best Book of 2010 pick. He has published fiction in Black Warrior Review, Atlanta Magazine, Alaska Quarterly Review, and New Stories from the South. He lives in Greensboro, North Carolina, and teaches at Elon University. Visit him online at www.drewperry.net.
"This book is so funny and engaging that I was reading it and forgot to pick up my kids."
-Tom Franklin, author of Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
"A timely look at contemporary America . . . Readers of Nick Hornby, Dave Eggers, and Jonathan Tropper should enjoy this compelling novel." -Library Journal
"Drew Perry does some amazing things in this wonderfully funny novel, not least of which is the way he so skillfully frames the uncertainty of parenthood against the larger uncertainty of simply living in these strange times. This is an astonishing book." -Kevin Wilson, author of The Family Fang
Walter and Alice are expecting their first baby, but their timing is a bit off: Walter, once a successful loan officer, has been unexpectedly downsized.They've had to relocate to Florida so that they can live rent-free-in Alice's deceased aunt's condo. When Alice's brother-in-law Mid offers Walter a job, he literally can't refuse. But what he doesn't know-about the nature of the job, about the depth of Mid's shady dealings, about what he's really supposed to be doing-far outweighs what he does know. And soon enough, things escalate so out of control that Walter is riding shotgun with Mid in a bright yellow Camaro-chased by the police.
Drew Perry paints a landscape of weird and beautiful Florida and its inhabitants-all wholly original and hilarious, and utterly believable. And at the center is a portrait of a father-to-be who is paralyzed by the idea of taking responsibility for another human life when he can't seem to manage his own. Kids These Days takes perfect aim at the two sides of impending fatherhood-abject terror and unconditional love.
Praise for This Is Just Exactly Like You
"Richly imagined, beautifully written, and completely absorbing . . . What a fine, fine book." -Tim O'Brien, winner of the National Book Award and author of The Things They Carried
"[A] precision portrait of men, women, marriage, parenthood, and love . . . It's difficult to come across a sentence, let alone a word, that doesn't smack tone-perfect and also refreshingly colloquial, candid, real." -The Boston Globe
"Drew Perry, a terrific writer, has written a wonderful book about a man dealing with--among other things--the angst of impending fatherhood. It's sweet, soulful, smart, and funny as hell. A great read." -Dave Barry, author of Insane City
