while I can see where some of the introspection can get ‘tacky’ or faux at times, i think on the other hand theres great work taken by the author to make his points line up correctly and serve to deepen our understanding of the characters and the way they behave and act toward one another. for ex. >! i love the ending passages about his father and the table (i drew comparisons of him being given a table in lieu of a home, and an abusive father in lieu of a caring dad) both also seemingly all his mother and grandma could give at the time. i think this also lends itself to the passages where he describes how he learned to appreciate things for what they were, and too see the ‘good’ in the littlest of things, because everything else was so shit in hartford. i also love the metaphor of cows, meateating, and veals being used to describe the nuance of internalized homophobia and closeted homosexuality, and how it then extends to the relationship of the main characters mother!<