From Memorial Day until the student workers and tourists leave in the fall, the island community of Put-In-Bay, Ohio, thrives on alcohol, drugs, sexual experimentation, and any other means of forgetting responsibilities. To Brad Shepherd—recently forced out of his job as a junior high math teacher after the overdose death of a student—it''s exactly the kind of place he''s looking for.
Allured by the comfort and acceptance of the hedonistic atmosphere, Brad trades his academic responsibilities and sense of obligation for a bouncer''s flashlight and a pursuit of the endless summer. With Cinch Stevens, his new best friend and local drug dealer, at his side, Brad becomes lost in a haze of excess and instant gratification filled with romantic conquests, late-night excursions to special island hideaways, and a growing drug habit. Not even the hope from a blossoming relationship with Astrid, a bold and radiant Norwegian waitress, nor the mentoring from a mysterious mandolin player named Caldwell is enough to pull him out of his downward spiral. But as Labor Day approaches, the grim reality of his empty quest consumes him. With nowhere left to run or hide, Brad must accept that identity cannot be found or fabricated, but emerges from within when one has the courage to let go.
A look at one man''s belated coming of age that''s equally funny, earnest, romantic, and lamenting, Doug Cooper''s debut novel explores the modern search for responsibility and identity, showing through the eyes of Brad Shepherd how sometimes, we can only come to understand who we truly are by becoming the person we''re not.
Industry Reviews
Praise for Doug Cooper's Outside In
"A deep, entertaining read about all the truths that find us when we're looking the other way."
?Jerry Stahl, author of Permanent Midnight, Bad Sex on Speed, and Happy Mutant Baby Pills
"Rarely does an author capture the frenzied descent into drug and alcohol abuse as Doug Cooper does in his tumultuous novel, Outside In. A story of disillusion drowned in excess, tempered by the decisions we make to survive another day. A searing debut."
?Stephen Jay Schwartz, Los Angeles Times bestselling author of Boulevard and Beat
"This modern take on finding oneself shows readers what can happen when you completely lose control and become someone you are not. It reminds us all of Shakespeare's counsel, ?To thine own self be true.'"
?Weldon Long, author of the New York Times bestseller The Power of Consistency
"Outside In takes readers on a wild ride with the final destination being a rediscovered sense of self."
?Colleen Hoover, author of the New York Times bestseller Slammed
"Doug Cooper writes authoritatively about the ease with which circumstances conspire to ensnare a promising young teacher into a lush life of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. It remains to be seen how easy it will be for him to get himself out?or if he will just become another bleached-out lotus-eater in the Florida sun. A charismatic cast of characters populates this promising novel from a rising talent."
?Stuart Smith, CEO, Central Recovery
?[An] insightful coming-of-age story."
?ForeWord Reviews
??the relatable tale of one man's quarter-life crisis that will resonate with readers of all ages."
?Red City Review
?A look at one man's belated coming of age that's equally funny, earnest, romantic, and lamenting, Doug Cooper's debut novel explores the modern search for responsibility and identity, showing through the eyes of Brad Shepherd how sometimes, we can only come to understand who we truly are by becoming the person we're not."
?Literally Jen
