As a 21-year-old traveling alone, camping and picking up hitchhikers from Maryland to Colorado, Nathan Leslie ’94 came across some interesting personalities. Years later, the cross-country excursion he took after college graduation inspired his début novel.
In The Tall Tale of Tommy Twice, an orphan dreams of living in a “typical” home. But, as he’s tossed from country to city and coast to coast to stay with one eccentric relative after another, he begins to question his desire for a conventional life.
Family relationships, childhood wonder, and the difficulties of establishing an identity in America are explored as Tommy gets to know Grandma Gaga, whose home is perched on Pike’s Peak; Aunt Tess, who hides things in her fluffy hair; Aunt Penny, who communicates through ESP; and Aunt Chelsea, who hunts coyotes.
Jason Sanford, a founding editor of the quarterly journal Story South, said of the work, “I have long been a fan of Nathan’s first-person writing style, and this [novel] showcases his ability to great effect.”
Leslie, assistant professor of English at Northern Virginia Community College and former Pedestal Magazine fiction editor, has written seven story collections. His short fiction has appeared in Slab, Gargoyle, Boulevard, Red Rock Review, Dos Passos Review, and North American Review.
Published by Atticus Books, October 2012