Vast Fields of Ordinary

Vast Fields of Ordinary – Nick Burd

Dial Books - 9780803733404

M: Once again we have lined up some awesome guest bloggers for you guys: Elizabeth Dunn-Ruiz and Kathryn Holmes, who are soon to receive their MFAs from the New School! Boy that school sure churns out the talent--right, Julie?

J:  Does my MFA make me as talented as Elizabeth and Kathryn?  I sure hope so!  What an interesting and insightful review they've written. I feel a powerful need to sit down with the two of them and get all of their book recommendations!

M: Stop fishing for compliments, Julie. ;) So far all of our guest bloggers have made me very happy. And in honor of all of them (including your little ladies), let's give away a free copy of VAST FIELDS OF ORDINARY!  What do you say?

J:  That's a terrific idea!  How about this:  Anyone who posts a comment to this entry during the next week is eligible.  We'll put all of your names in a hat.  If your name gets picked out of the hat, you're the winner!  I love contests, don't you?!  (Speaking of which, we haven't forgotten about our picture book contest.  We're working it!)

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Elizabeth: I was excited to read VAST FIELDS OF ORDINARY after hearing Nick Burd speak at Teen Author Reading Night at the Jefferson Market Library. In the short passage he read I was captivated by his humor and how he had channeled such intense emotion through that humor. And the novel did not disappoint. There were many moments in it that made me laugh at loud or where I felt my lips pull back into the same smirk I imagined the protagonist giving as he delivered the line.

The main character, Dade, felt like someone I would have been friends with, or would have been...well, okay, was. Am. I think this book really resonated with me because Dade struggles with wanting to feel and yet being fearful of feeling. He has to learn how to care and this book tracks the beginning of his transformation from guarded to willing.

Kathryn: It's interesting that you say you were like -- or at least would be friends with -- the protagonist, Dade, and his friends. Because teenaged me barely appears in this book at all. I wasn't a slightly marginalized outsider like Dade, nor was I in the popular party crowd that has made Dade's life hell. I was somewhere in the background of Burd's book -- probably outright avoiding the crazy keg parties that Burd's characters spend their summer attending. And yet the emotional life of these characters resonated so strongly with me.

The summer after high school is full of unknowns; nothing will ever be the same. It's scary and exciting and you want to remember the past but you also are beyond ready to move on to what's next. Dade may be dealing with problems that are specific to him -- being gay and officially coming out, watching his parents' marriage collapse, losing his first love and finding a new love -- but the feelings are universal. Change is scary, but it's also necessary for growth, and Dade is going to grow by the end of the book if it kills him. 

Elizabeth: Yes! Even though the particulars of his experience were not the particulars of my experience the truth of his inner conflict felt deeply familiar. And, in my humble opinion, that is the mark of great literature.

Burd has written a very specific novel and through his specificity has revealed universal themes. He has also written a distinctly contemporary novel- what with the Taco Taco, media frenzy, hip hop tracks, condos and country clubs- that feels timeless. Yay Nick Burd! 

In the New York Times, Ned Vizzini wrote, "The Vast Fields of Ordinary reads like the best kind of first novel — it’s packed with insights that might have been carried around for years, just waiting to come out." Ignoring the bad pun at the end, I totally agree with his comments. What about you?

Kathryn: Well, first of all, I can only hope that my first novel-in-progress is similarly "packed with insights," as Vizzini pointed out! Regarding Burd, I definitely agree. This book tackles a LOT of different themes and issues, almost to the point that each storyline could have been a book in its own right. (Perhaps written by a lesser author...) But it's the intersection of these various plots that gives the book its depth that makes the characters and the lives they're leading feel particularly real.

Rarely does life throw only one thing at us at a time, and some things we handle better than others, but they all affect each other and our reactions to them. So I guess I have to add "brilliantly juggles numerous plotlines and emotions" to the list of things I admire about Burd and his first book. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for what's next from him! 

Elizabeth: I, for one, can assure you that your first novel IS packed with insights!

And now back to Burd! I agree with you. While reading I never lost sight of the fact that Dade exists in a world, our world. I imagine this is what people mean when they say a novel has texture.

This book also has great tension. As you mentioned, the intersecting plots contribute to that, but I also credit his diction. In the section entitled BEFORE, which accounts for the first 2 ½ pages, his word choice clearly establishes Dade’s voice and introduces the main conflict of the book, and sets the mood and tone. The first sentence alone does all of these things! Check it out:

“I spent a good part of my senior prom drawing DH + PS in a giant heart in the last stall of the Cedarville High boys’ bathroom.” 

The hard edged sounds of all those consonants, the anonymity of initials instead of names, the fact that it is the last stall, the one furthest away, and the sound of which is similar to “last straw.” There is a romanticism in Dade, a giant heart with initials in it, but also a cynicism, the heart hidden away in a bathroom while the world happens separate from him.  It’s brilliant. Again I say: Yay Nick Burd!

Kathryn: Well, it's pretty obvious that we both enjoyed and admire this book. So to sum up, I'll echo you: Yay, Nick Burd! And also: Yay, you, for recommending that I read it!

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M: Well there you have it. Don't forget to comment, for a chance to win a free copy of VAST FIELDS OF ORDINARY.

Comments

[Sam]

I really enjoyed the dialog between the two ladies. I've seen the review for VFO on Elizabeth's blog, but I never got the chance to check it out. The passion and excitement from the two bloggers makes me more eager to read it!

[Elizabeth]

Thanks Sam!

[Julie Sternberg]

from Susannah Elliott:

i'm interested!!! any other good books to recommend? hope all is well...

[Julie Sternberg]

from Bruce Mehlman:

When will Amazon have a "By Julie Sternberg" title? Or are you considering a Nom de Plume? Juliana Von Steinway?

[Julie Sternberg]

From Stephanie Abramson:

Everyone should check out Jules' website! It's great.

[M.Garcia]

Julie! It's pretty funny that you post other people's responses. :)

[Julie Sternberg]

Yes, especially when they're praising my website! But they're posting their comments on Facebook, and I like having them all in one place, so we put everyone's name in the hat for the contest! Is that so wrong?!

[Janet Trumble]

What a fun review!

I just posted an interview with Nick in which he discusses his thoughts on elements in VFOO that have stirred up some readers. If you're interested: http://bit.ly/cUR63q

Keep up the great work!