Buckeye

'[A] luminous and tender 20th-century saga of wounded souls and small-town secrets' GUARDIAN

'A thing of wonder' CHRIS WHITAKER

'I've been yearning for a novel that connects the American generations who dealt with our two wars - one of Omaha Beach, the other of the la Drang Valley. Buckeye is that book, and it soars' TOM HANKS

THE BIG-HEARTED BESTSELLING PHENOMENON THAT READERS ARE CALLING THEIR BOOK OF THE YEAR

Cal Jenkins, wounded not in war but by his inability to serve in it, aspires to live a quiet, honest life in Bonhomie, Ohio. His wife Becky – intuitive, whimsical – senses danger long before she understands its shape. Across town, Margaret Salt carries secrets she's spent a lifetime burying, while her husband Felix tries desperately to be the man the world insists he must be.

Everything changes on V-E Day, when a single, stolen moment binds all four of them together. As wartime gives way to an uneasy peace, the consequences of that day ripple forward, pulling the next generation into its undertow.

But in a small town where nothing stays hidden, how long can the truth stay buried?

'A glorious sweep of a novel' ANN PATCHETT

'Written in the key of Dickens … it's not just a great Midwestern novel, it's a great novel, period' FINANCIAL TIMES

'A poignant, powerful exploration of small-town America' INDEPENDENT, BOOK OF THE MONTH

About the Author

Patrick Ryan's short story collection The Dream Life of Astronauts was named one of the Best Books of the Year by the St. Louis Times-Dispatch, LitHub, Refinery 29 and Electric Literature, and was longlisted for The Story Prize. His debut collection of linked short stories, Send Me, was chosen for Barnes & Noble's Discover New Writers program.

His work has appeared in The Best American Short Stories, the anthology Tales of Two Cities, and elsewhere. The former associate editor of Granta, he is the editor-in-chief of the literary magazine One Story. He lives in New York City.