First published 2018
Matthew loses his father and grandfather within a short span, leaving him adrift at sixteen. His mother inherits money and moves them from Jackson Heights to an upscale Manhattan apartment building in 1976. The city feels alien to Matthew, just three miles from his Queens neighborhood but a world apart. He meets Lou Reed, who lives in the same building with his transgender girlfriend Rachel. The drug-using rock star becomes Matthew's unlikely mentor and surrogate father. Matthew also falls hard for Veronica, a sophisticated girl from his new school who seems older than her years. Reed guides Matthew through this confusing time with his unconventional wisdom. Matthew tells this story two years later at eighteen, looking back on how Reed shaped his transition to adulthood. The novel ends with an epilogue set in 2013, three days after Reed's death, when Matthew reflects on their relationship as a man in his fifties.
Genres: literary-fiction, 20th-century, coming-of-age, contemporary, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family, mentor-mentee
Setting: Jackson Heights, Manhattan, New York
Period: 1976, 2013
Audio CD · Highbridge Co
Content warnings: drug-use