The Boyhood of Cain

The debut novel from Amherst (after the memoir Go the Way Your Blood Beats) is a muted coming-of-age tale set in 1990s England. Daniel’s father leaves his job as headmaster of the local preparatory school, where Daniel is enrolled, due to health issues. His parents sells their house and move to the country, a rupture that feels to Daniel “like a death.” Awkward and slight, he struggles at school without the safety net of his father being in a position of power. He befriends Philip, a new student, and tries to win the approval of Mr. Miller, the school’s English and art master. Daniel’s mother suffers bouts of depression and his father drinks to excess. Meanwhile, their son challenges the local vicar when discussing Jesus (“If you are God then there shouldn’t be poor always,” he contends) and butts heads with Mr. Miller while analyzing John Constable’s painting The Hay Wain (“Reality and truth are not the same thing,” Mr. Miller argues). Amherst writes with a measured pace and careful attention to his youthful protagonist’s malleability as Daniel questions his sexuality and other supposed binaries of life. The result is an authentic depiction of youthful fears and confusions. Agent: John Ash, CAA. (Feb.)