A magnificent debut that traces the lives of young, working-class people navigating love, grief, survival, and the pursuit of something more.

In eight breathtaking parts, Locals explores what we owe each other as children, parents, lovers, and friends-and what it means to find a sense of belonging when those roles become indelibly warped. Set in the aughts, Jared Jackson's dazzling fiction vibrates with an unforgettable cast of funny and achingly frank young people who are forced to grow up too quickly in a deeply stratified Hartford, Connecticut. As characters reappear across these interlocking stories, we're invited to see them again through the eyes of others and to consider the tenderness that lies beneath their brashness.

Collin reveals his cowardice when he fails to show up for Bebo, an outsider far braver than Collin will ever be. Mikey becomes a man too early when he hunts for emotional scraps from his uncle's girlfriend. Minnie wants redemption. And Andrews wants his white fraternity brothers to accept him despite being a "local," while all his cousin Ant wants is for Andrews to remember that being a local is a worthy inheritance.

From absent parents and fractured bonds to found family and profound acts of care, Locals is at once a love letter to a city's people and a critique of its inequities. Jackson generously invites readers in, to share both in his characters' frustrations, and their triumphs. A striking vision for reclamation-of faith in city, and faith in self-Locals announces the arrival of a generational talent.