- A cocky young man travels to Oregon to work on an apple farm. Out of his element, he finds his lifestyle and notions being picked apart by everyone who crosses his path.
- Leaving the ivy-covered walls of Yale behind, the privileged and intellectual David sets out to discover the real world armed with books and a strong conviction of atheism. He goes to work at an apple orchard under an alias, but is thrust into a world he is wholly unprepared for with religious locals and untrustworthy co-workers. His sexuality and lack of faith will be tested as he learns to rely on strangers in a world that can't be taught in books and a classroom.—Anne Campbell
- After graduating from grad school at Yale in his home state of Connecticut, David, not knowing what to do and not wanting to go home in having an issue with his mother, decides to head west with his "girlfriend" Jennifer to get a manual labor job picking apples in Oregon, Jennifer who, at the last minute, decides instead to follow him shortly after he takes the bus cross country. Although seeing himself as an intellectual, David may or may not be aware of just how lost he is emotionally. In Oregon, he tries to distance himself from everyone he meets in giving them a false name - Samuel - yet he craves human connection lamenting whenever those connections don't happen. Because of Jennifer, David decides to extend his stay in Oregon as he moves from situation to situation out of circumstance. As he tries to make those human connections in navigating this part of his life, his encounters with two people arguably expose his life for what it is: Brian, nicknamed Curly, a forklift operator at an apple processing plant; and Jon, a war vet, recovering alcoholic, stone mason (who is making clocks out of jade in the shape of a map of Oregon to sell at an upcoming craft fair), and born again Christian, which potentially places him at odds with avowed atheist David.—Huggo
- David, who calls himself Samuel, is in graduate school at Yale but needs to take some time off and discover new things while getting away from normal life. He takes a bus to Oregon, informs his mother by phone that he doesn't want to stay in touch, and goes to work picking apples. His girlfriend was going to join him but she got a ride with another guy who she now likes. Most of David's co-workers are Mexican because local people seem to be "too good" for this sort of work. David speaks almost no Spanish and the others speak little English, but he tries to make friends with Pedro. It's not really clear if he has. Hobbs, his boss, isn't particularly nice, but when his nephew dies, he lets David have the nephew's trailer and tells him the nephew's job at an apple processing plant is open.
The workers are miserable and don't seem to care to socialize with David. With one exception: Curly is really nice. But he has a secret, so he won't be David's best friend after all.
It is obvious what's coming. Earlier in town, David met Jon, a man passing out literature about C.O.G., which wants people to follow Christ. David already told us on the bus that religion is for people who want to feel special, and he's not interested in the "ghosts" that those people follow.
So David and Jon will meet again. Jon is an artist living in the basement of some church members, making Oregon-shaped jade clocks. He has a past and religion has been good for him.
So will David find Jesus? Will his friendship with Jon work out? Will David return to his normal life?
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