Junior

by Jon Boilard

Set in rural western Massachusetts, this novel follows Junior Beauchamp, who has a good shot at art school if he can just stay out of prison. All he’s got to do is keep his nose clean for the summer. When his mother disappears on a drug-fueled bender, Junior shacks up with a gun-toting Black hermit called Bluepriest who teaches him and his kid brother a thing or two about living off the grid. Junior makes friends with some Puerto Ricans and then falls in mutual love with one of their sisters. His kid brother is learning to handle himself as well. Life is shaping to look up. Then the situation flounders with his mother and matters move from bad to worse when a skeleton from Junior’s past threatens his future and he’s accused of murder.

246 pages, Paperback

Published October 18, 2024

About the author

Jon Boilard (1967-present) was born and raised in small towns in Western Massachusetts. He has been living in Northern California since 1986. His award-winning short stories have appeared in some of the finest literary journals in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia. Jon’s debut short story collection, SETTRIGHT ROAD (Dzanc Books/2017), was preceded by two novels, THE CASTAWAY LOUNGE (Dzanc Books/2015) and A RIVER CLOSELY WATCHED (MacAdam Cage/2013). ARCW was a finalist for the Northern California Book Award. He has participated in the Cork International Short Story Festival in Cork, Ireland, the Wroclaw Short Story Festival in Wroclaw, Poland, and LitQuake in San Francisco, California.