Barnaby Gaitlin is a thirty-year-old man living in Baltimore, working for a business called Rent-a-Back where he performs manual labor for the elderly. His family treats him as a perpetual disappointment due to a teenage juvenile record involving a neighborhood break-in. He spends his days hauling boxes and fixing faucets while navigating a strained relationship with his wealthy parents. Everything changes when he meets Sophia, a disciplined and traditional woman, leading him to attempt a more respectable version of adulthood to win her favor.
Readers interested in the quiet dynamics of family disappointment and the difficulty of escaping a bad reputation will find this story observant. People read this to see how a person reconciles their past mistakes with their current identity. The book offers a clear look at how class expectations and family cynicism shape a person's self-worth. You walk away with an understanding of how small, daily choices define a life more than a single dramatic event or a new romantic interest ever could.
- Published
- 1998
- Language
- EN
