Ben Monopoli

At the heart of these twelve interconnected stories is Ollie Wade, a gay guy navigating life and love from age 13 to 28.

At a middle-school dance, a boy keeps a secret from his date; on a subway platform, he realizes a young green-eyed stranger has the same secret. Through a computer screen, a high-school boy falls in love with his longest friend; in a dorm room, a college boy opens up to his newest. At a hospital, a young man looks into his future; on snowy Cape Cod, he connects with his past. In the passenger seat of his car, a grown man seizes the day with a soldier; under summer fireworks, he shares his story.

Ollie shows us how even the most ordinary days can move us in profound ways. In "The Youth & Young Loves of Oliver Wade," we see that our lives may be just a series of moments, but it's these moments that become our momentum.

A stand-alone companion to "The Painting of Porcupine City."