Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Protagonist archetypes
Synopsis
London book editor Christopher Metcalfe is fifty when he returns to his childhood home after the death of his father. As he prepares for the burial, he unearths his own past: the one pivotal relationship in his life, which occurred when he was fifteen and fell in love with an older boy at boarding school who promised to love him but ultimately did not.
Is Now and Then appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 16 and up.
Adult literary fiction exploring a gay romance at boarding school in the protagonist's youth. Contains mature themes of first love, loss, and grief, with moderate sexual content implied rather than explicit.
What to know going in
This book has no graphic violence, moderate sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include death of parent, grief, and heartbreak.
Who'll love this
Older teens interested in literary explorations of identity and first love will connect with this introspective coming-of-age narrative.