Don't Skip Out on Me

Don't Skip Out on Me by Willy Vlautin
2/13/18; 304 pages
HarperCollins

Don't Skip Out on Me by Willy Vlautin is the very highly recommended story and character study of a young man with a dream and the father figure who supports him.

Horace Hopper, 21, is half-Paiute, half-Irish, and is treated like a son by his guardians, the Reeses. His parents left him with his racist grandmother when he was 12, promising to return, but never did. When Horace was 14 his grandmother could no longer take care of him so he went to live with Eldon and Louise Reese on their sheep ranch in a canyon outside Tonopah, Nevada. Horace has always longed to be someone and dreams of being a Mexican boxer because he feels they are warriors who never quit. His plan is to go to Tucson, Arizona, to participate in a Golden Gloves competition and then become a professional boxer.

Mr. Reese is 72 and has a bad back. He really needs Horace's help on the ranch, but he supports Horace's dream and knows that he must find his own way. The Reeses will support Horace unconditionally but also truly believe that Horace will return to the ranch, which will become his, one day. By the time the Reeses became guardians for Horace his self esteem and sense of worth was already broken from being abandoned by his parents and living with his grandmother. Mr. Reese understood that Horace had to try to succeed at his dream, no matter how unobtainable it was.

As expected, the writing is pitch perfect with decisive, clean prose in this haunting, compelling portrayal of two men in different stages of their lives. The narrative seamlessly moves back and forth between Horace and mr. Reese, developing them as fully realized, believable, and sympathetic characters. While Horace is searching for identity and purpose, Mr. Reese is seeing the end in sight.

Yes, there is a lot of boxing in the novel but the underlying theme of the novel transcends boxing. As in any quest to find meaning and purpose, brutal hardships and uncompromising facts appear and leave the protagonist the choice to either face them realistically or ignore the signs. It is also difficult for most people to admit defeat and return home with their broken dreams. Mr. Reese told Horace the story of his return home, leaving a dream behind. Horace chose to miss the obvious fact that he would be accepted, loved, and find purpose if he returned home. The ending is abrupt and heartbreaking.