Henderson manages to take a "scene" and make it universal by populating it with real people whose virtues and foibles become recognizable as our own. This is not simply a story of the straight-edge movement and resistance to gentrification on New York's Lower East Side, and the desert land of late '80s exurbia, but a tale of generations, loss and redemption. Culture junkies will thrive on the thick description, which carries the reader into empathy for these characters and compassion for ourselves. I highly recommend this for your consideration.