"Jaffe's directness of style . . .lends itself well to the emotional tenor of adolescence."— New York Times Book Review
"Jaffe’s exceptional debut, a heartfelt coming-of-age story set in Portland, Ore., in 1992, exquisitely captures the nostalgia and heartbreak of youth."— Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
"Its title notwithstanding, this moody coming-of-age novel is soaked in the damp of Oregon winters and poolside locker rooms. Julie, a high-school student, joins the swim team, hoping to orbit a female crush and to understand the disappearance of her brother, a former Olympic hopeful. She is exquisitely attuned to itches and aches—the constriction of a new bathing suit, the throb of a full bladder. Only the pool releases her to a dimension 'like sugar, like a dream.' Jaffe’s meticulous, frank texturing keeps the sex talks and scenes from sinking under tropes of adolescent awakening and presents queer desire as just one of Julie’s innumerable, unstoppable sensations."— The New Yorker
"Sara Jaffe is a damn fine writer and an important new voice."— Justin Torres, author of WE THE ANIMALS
"A coming-of-age story about a young girl’s growing awareness—of sexuality, loss, and family truths. . . . [W]e relive the awkward agonies of adolescence, so well-sketched by Jaffe . . . Moving sideways with its weight of secrets, this novel never strikes a false note."— Kirkus
"A solid addition for libraries looking to strengthen their
collections with fiction about the LGBTQ experience. "— School Library Journal
"The chronicle of a teenage girl in Portland
circa 1992, it reads like My So-Called Life's Angela Chase cut
with Annie Dillard, plus something all Jaffe's own."— The Portland Mercury
"Remarkable. It’s realism, but its realism brushes ever so deftly against the allegorical, making the novel shimmer, part diary, part dream."— Maggie Nelson, author of THE ARGONAUTS
"Dryland is a gorgeous, layered, meticulous, clamoring, beating heart of a thing about a sullen teenager swimming and not swimming, kissing and not kissing, in Portland in the days of grunge. It will make you want to swim there back there back twenty times without stopping."— Sarah Marcus, author of GIRLS TO THE FRONT
"I love it. I don’t know that I’ve ever read a book that felt more sincere, that was so unbesmirched by knowing irony or commentary or authorial interventions. It’s a rare and sweet thing."— Pete Rock, author of THE SHELTER CYCLE
"Sara Jaffe offers a coming-of-age story so
steadily understated it'll ring incredibly true to those of us actually of
age."— Bustle
"Highly introspective, thoughtful, and compassionate, Dryland is an exacting and authentic coming-of-age story."— Electric Literature
" Jaffe captures a perfect time capsule of an age when cassette tapes ruled
and personal phone extensions were the closest thing to a smart phone but when
growing up was still no easier than it is today."— KGB
"Sara Jaffe's Dryland is a poignant coming of age novel set in the Portland of the early '90s, a fascinating debut."— Largehearted Boy
"Dryland is is a unique portrayal of teenage angst, as well as an interesting and sincere perspective on a young woman’s discovery of her own desires."— Rain Taxi
"The chronicle of a teenage girl in Portland circa 1992, it reads like My So-Called Life's Angela Chase cut with Annie Dillard, plus something all Jaffe's own."— Portland Mercury
"Achy in that way that nostalgia for the teen years is. Ethereal, shrouded in mist, like the Pacific Northwest the book is set in, seeming at once crisp and fuzzy. Like waking up from a really vivid dream."— Keysmash
"...a powerful book with a unique voice."— A Bookish Affair
"The real highlight of this month was Dryland by Sara Jaffe. It’s such a small book, and it packs a huge punch. It takes place in the 90’s, and somehow reminded me a lot of The Perks of Being a Wallflower ... It’s about swimming, and families, and growing up, and so many things in under 200 pages. Amazing."— Read A Latte
2015-06-01
A coming-of-age story about a young girl's growing awareness—of sexuality, loss, and family truths. Jaffe's debut novel begins quietly, like a swimmer's sleek dive into a pool. Pools and swimming feature prominently in this haunting story about a girl struggling in a family blighted by the departure, years earlier, of her older brother, who was a star competitive swimmer. Fifteen-year-old Julie lives with her parents, who are quiet and hands-off to the point of near-absence. When an older student, Alexis, suggests Julie join the swim team along with her best friend, Erika, Julie's response is ambivalent—she hasn't swum for a long time and warily defines swimming as her brother's world. Competitive swimming is clearly both Julie's fascination and some kind of nemesis, but she's encouraged by Alexis' interest, which is distractingly intense. A flirtatious and powerful attraction grows between the two girls, one Julie is quietly committed to acknowledging but Alexis, with a boyfriend and "popular girl" visibility, is less so. As Julie struggles to deal with her relationship with Alexis, to compete as a swimmer, to conduct herself appropriately at parties, and to be a good friend to the increasingly boy-crazy Erika, we relive the awkward agonies of adolescence, so well-sketched by Jaffe. With writerly acuteness, Jaffe focuses close attention on materials—the clutch of a too-tight swimsuit, the comfort of a warm sweatshirt—maybe because adolescence is so much about trying to fit inside external layers or because clothes can have outsize importance before real self-definition takes place. But Julie moves slowly and steadily toward that, finding the honest people she needs and eventually even finding her way to the truth about her brother. Moving sideways with its weight of secrets, this novel never strikes a false note.
