Idlewild

July 17, 2023
In Thomas’s intoxicating debut, two estranged friends look back on their high school years at a Manhattan Quaker school in the early 2000s. As a junior at Idlewild, Nell Rifkin develops an intense, nonsexual friendship with her crush Fay Vasquez-Rabinowitz. The girls become the “F&N unit” aka “The Invert Society” and write stories about classmates Theo and Christopher, whom they imagine to be gay, and discuss queer readings of Othello and The Scarlet Letter. Nell and Fay appear in a school production of Othello set in the antebellum South, which elicits accusations of racism against their beloved drama teacher, Wanda, who is subsequently fired. Many of the students rally in support of Wanda, including Fay, and Nell’s ambivalence about Wanda drives a wedge between the two friends. More cracks in the F&N unit are caused by the stress and uncertainty of college applications, and Fay’s exploration of her sexuality and gender, as she crushes on Theo and wishes she were a gay boy. Thomas astutely captures his characters’ anxieties as the drama unfolds, and his choice to give them the benefit of hindsight allows for a nuanced and sensitive portrayal of Fay’s identity formation. It’s easy to grow obsessed with this auspicious novel. Agent: Ayla Zuraw-Friedland, Francis Golden Literary.

August 15, 2023
Two teenagers wrestle with friendship and attraction at a New York City private school in this hilarious and sexy debut. In the early 2000s, Nell and Fay are best friends at Idlewild, a private Quaker school in lower Manhattan. Nell "is good at numbers and homework," while Fay "is good at having big tits and being the boss." Together they form the "F&N unit," and for most of senior year, they move through the school with a sense of urgent inseparability. Under the surface, though, are unspoken tensions--like the fact that shy, sincere Nell has a massive crush on brash, confident Fay. Whereas Nell is out, Fay's sexuality remains mysterious and elusive. In class, Fay is known for passionately arguing that literature from The Great Gatsby to Othello is full of "HoYay," an internet term meaning "Homoeroticism: Yay!" Fay's fantasies about gayness, what qualities attract and excite her, are explored with subtlety, precision, and originality, even as they are likely to feel relatable to many readers. While in the process of naming her desires, Fay's vacillation between frustration and exhilaration is movingly conjured on the page. Everything changes when Fay and Nell befriend two sophomore boys: the enigmatic, erratic Theo and his puppy-doggish friend and roommate, Christopher. At first, Fay is fascinated by the boys' friendship, living arrangement, and possible sexual chemistry--but soon, Fay's interest shifts specifically to Theo, who seems to understand parts of Fay that no one else has. Narrated in turns by the adult Nell and Fay, looking back at their Idlewild years, and the royal "we" of the F&N unit in 2002, the novel bursts with voice, skillfully conjuring both the easy banter of best friends on AIM and the ruminating uncertainty of adolescence. Equal parts funny and insightful, this is a propulsive exploration of gender identity, sexuality, and self-discovery.

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