num_pages: 240
description: In the highly anticipated follow-up to his beloved debut What Belongs to You Garth Greenwell deepens his exploration of foreignness obligation and desireSofia Bulgaria a landlocked city in southern Europe stirs with hope and impending upheaval. Soviet buildings crumble wind scatters sand from the far south and political protesters flood the streets with song.In this atmosphere of disquiet an American teacher navigates a life transformed by the discovery and loss of love. As he prepares to leave the place hes come to call home he grapples with the intimate encounters that have marked his years abroad each bearing uncanny reminders of his past. A queer students confession recalls his own first love a strangers seduction devolves into paternal sadism and a romance with another foreigner opens and heals old wounds. Each echo reveals startling insights about what it means to seek connection: with those we love with the places we inhabit and with our own fugitive selves.
language: English
title: Cleanness
publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux