My summer was bookended by Madeleine Dunnigan’s debut novel, Jean. I started Jean just as the spring was coming to a close—when it was finally warm enough to read outdoors in the sunshine—and I slowly worked my way from start to finish whenever the mood felt right. My careful, somewhat laissez-faire approach towards reading this book has resulted in a genuine fondness for this text. It feels as though it was a close companion through the hot summer days.
Jean is a novel reminiscent of the summertime; it is a book about youth, self-discovery, shame, and relationships. It follows the main protagonist, Jean, as he navigates a posh but free-spirited boarding school for troubled boys, Compton Manor. Jean’s issues stem from his antisocial nature, a strained and suffocating relationship with his mother, and, notably, from his elusive and complex sexual identity. This book has essentially dropped readers right at the tail-end of Jean’s coming-of-age; it is a moment when everything that occurs to him will steer and affect the coming decade or so of his life. For this reason, you can’t help but read in relatable awe and pity of his story. Well, at least if you’re over the age of 23 and have thus already experienced most of what he is going through.
Dunnigan anchors Jean’s life within Compton Manor while, through flashbacks, inner monologues, and late-night confessionals typical of seventeen-year-olds, we learn about his childhood and the moments that have shaped his sense of self thus far. What struck me about this novel is the way it captures the painful freshness of adolescence. It illustrates that moment before adulthood when everything that has happened to you in your early years—everything that has felt shockingly embarrassing, made you feel vulnerable, or left you feeling disgustingly or deliciously human—is still front of mind and creates a great sense of awkwardness. Plainly, this book is about Jean as he wrestles against this awkwardness and shame at a moment when these feelings become abundant, clear, and identifiable.
Jean can choose to be steered by these growing pains and the figures that hold power over him or he can choose to leave his issues in the past and carve out a new identity for himself. While his life after boarding school is left somewhat ambiguous, and we as readers are unsure how the liberating yet painful revelations he faced at Compton Manor will impact him, there is a sense of enigmatic greatness in Jean. It is a greatness that other characters seem to immediately see in him (and often take advantage of), but it is a greatness that you hope he will one day see in himself. If you’re looking for a warm, relatable, and thoughtful book to enjoy these final August days, Madeleine Dunnigan has your covered.
