Small-town secrets in postwar America

03 October 2025, The Tablet

‘The wisdom that comes with age was needling, because it brought the clarity of hindsight without the means to change anything.’

Buckeye
PATRICK RYAN

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Buckeye is set in Bonhomie, N. Ohio, a town situated off Route 23 at a distance from warehouses, petrol stations and gun stores and far from the excitements of city life. It is a quiet, friendly place with solid houses, sidewalks and a local bakery. It has its own inner districts where neighbours come round with meals in Tupperware to help the bereaved while keeping an eye on anything worrying. When Margaret leaves her husband and son, and is seen driving off, there is much concern.

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