garbage cans & wastebaskets
sag harbor
the warm funny and supremely original new novel from one of the most acclaimed writers in america br the year is 1985 . benji cooper is one of the only black students at an elite prep school in manhattan . he spends his falls and winters going to roller disco bar mitzvahs playing too much dungeons and dragons and trying to catch glimpses of nudity on late night cable tv . after a tragic mishap on his first day of high school when benji reveals his deep enthusiasm for the horror movie magazine fangoria his social doom is sealed for the next four years . br but every summer benji escapes to the hamptons to sag harbor where a small community of african american professionals have built a world of their own . because their parents come out only on weekends he and his friends are left to their own devices for three glorious months . and although hes just as confused about this all black refuge as he is about the white world he negotiates the rest of the year he thinks that maybe this summer things will be different . if all goes according to plan that is . br there will be trials and tribulations of course . there will be complicated new handshakes to fumble through and state of the art profanity to master . he will be tested by contests big and small by his misshapen haircut which seems to have a will of its own by the new coke tragedy of 85 and by his secret lite fm addiction . but maybe with a little luck things will turn out differently this summer . br in this deeply affectionate and fiercely funny coming of age novel whitehead using the perpetual mortification of teenage existence and the desperate quest for reinvention lithely probes the elusive nature of identity both personal and communal .
benji one of the only black kids at an elite prep school in manhattan tries desperately to fit in but every summer he and his brother reggie escape to the east end of sag harbor where a small community of african american professionals has built aworld of is own .