Into the Great Wide Open

by Kevin Canty

Book Overview

Building on the success of A Stranger in This World , the widely praised collection of stories that was one of the most exciting literary debuts of recent years, Kevin Canty has written a blistering, unforgettable first novel. Set in the sprawl of suburbia, with its shattered families and hollow lives, Into the Great Wide Open is the story of two young people fleeing their families' emotional abandonment to find refuge in each other. Smart but scarred,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679776524
• ISBN13: 9780679776529
• Release Date: September 1997
• Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Can't wait for his next novel!

Canty's lyrical style and raw emotional text made me yearn for more of this book. I was completely absorbed and in awe of the authentic characters, Kenny and Junie. This is a must read - anyone who had a first young love will be compelled by the reality of Canty's emotional language. He beautifully puts into words the thoughts and feelings one had at that tender age. I liked the way that the book didn't neatly tie up all the loose ends or answer all the questions about the characters. It leads one to form one's own judgement. I have recommended this book to all my friends.

This book is superb!

I read this book when I was twelve. Only because I thought I was the most mature girl in the world. That was a laugh, but this book changed my view of love forever. I learned to appreciate love and to hold on to it more tightly. This book is absolutely amazing. Canty wrote a piece of pure genious. This book is definitely NOT for a twelve year old, but from anyone 14 and older. Its... there are no words to describe it. Its that good.

When you feel like the best part of you is in someone else:

Read this book. It describes everything you couldn't when you first realized that love wouldn't save you from becoming less than you had hoped you'd become - from the monumental boredom of adulthood. The story stays with you long after you've finished it - in the same way Canty's protagonist is haunted by the feeling that the truest part of himself was in someone else, and entirely behind him. If you read books to be changed by them this one won't disappoint you. It's a gift from Kevin Canty.

I loved this book so much, I've read it a dozen times

I read a review of this book in a magazine and decided to go out and buy it. That was about a year and a half ago, and i've read it at least a dozen times. It is an amazing book, and I would recommend it to everyone between the ages of 14 and 20. Into the Great Wide Open is the tragically sad and moving story of Kenny and Junie, seventeen and in love. Of course, as with all young love, there are obstacles: Junie's "problem", Kenny's alcoholic father and institutionalized mother, and the world that Kenny knows will take Junie away from him. This book made me cry a lot and laugh a little, but most of all, it made me think about what a fragile gift love is. Kevin Canty made me feel everything Kenny felt as if I was in the story. I have never read a book that lets us into the mind and heart of the character as much as Into the Great Wide Open does. It is a beautifully written tale with the univeral theme: "Why must I be a teenager in love?"

Excellent!

This book is actually based on a character from one of the short stories in Canty's collection. When Kevin first meets Junie, there's so much uncertainty about her, and it's just like the start of a dynamic relationship in real life - it keeps you on the edge of your seat, wondering if he's "in" or not. Laced with the problems of his alcoholic father vs. trying to relate with her Martha Stewart-like mother, it drove the plot and made it impossible to put the book down. Although slightly unbelievable in places, the book continues like this, and I always wondered if she was going to stay or go. The ending is much of the same - it's hard to talk about how excellent it was without giving it away, but reading the book tore the feeling out of me, and reminded me of my own youth. It's hard to put down, and aside from the plot, contains lots of excellent writing. If you like this book, make sure to check out his short stories - also a 10.