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Book Summary

Reviewed by Matt Berman

High school senior Sutter Keely is never without a drink -- in a go-cup, hip-flask, or car trunk -- and he is always slightly buzzed, sometimes falling-down drunk. Sutter is a happy drunk, the life of the party. He prides himself on living in the moment, and can't understand why his classmates seem so interested in planning ahead. When he meets shy Aimee, who supports her mother's gambling with her paper route, Sutter decides he is just what Aimee needs. But his friends don't seem to agree.

Is It Any Good?

3

This lightweight confection doesn't go where you think it will. Sutter does not learn the Big Lesson, he doesn't see the error of his ways or join AA: by the end he is still an alcoholic, and the author doesn't seem interested in preaching about the evils of drink, drugs, or sex. Sutter, both in his own words and in his lifestyle, makes a case for the pleasures of mild hedonism. It's not all roses: he does wrestle with some issues, and there is a downside to his choices, but overall it doesn't look so bad.

Like Sutter, the novel has a pretty good time going not much of anywhere. There's little plot, just a succession of days, events, and parties that float by in a haze. He does go to meet his estranged father, who is a disappointment, and he shows kindness and concern to those around him. He's a good kid living a pointless life, but he doesn't seem to mind much, and neither does the reader. No big drama or messages here, just a pleasant, if morally ambiguous, read.


From the Book:
So, it's a little before ten a.m. and I'm just starting to get a good buzz going. Theoretically, I should be in Algebra II, but in reality I'm cruising over to my beautiful fat girlfriend Cassidy's house. She ditched school to get her hair cut and needs a ride because her parents confiscated her car keys. Which I guess is a little ironic considering that they're punishing her for ditching school with me last week.

Anyway, I have this sweet February morning stretching out in front of me, and I'm like, Who needs algebra? So what if I'm supposed to be trying to boost the old grades up before I graduate in May? I'm not one of these kids who's had their college plans set in stone since they were about five. I don't even know when the application deadlines are. Besides, it's not like my education is some kind of priority with my parents. They quit keeping track of my future when they divorced, and that was back in the Precambrian Era. The way I figure it, the community college will always take me. And who says I need college anyway? What's the point?

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