BOOK OF THE DAY

Review

Buckeye by Patrick Ryan review – behind the American dream

AK Blakemore

Thu 4 Sep 2025 07.00 BST

Iam not the kind of reader who naturally gravitates toward slice-of-life Americana. I’m an enthusiast for the sort of American fiction where cowboys make dolent pronouncements while staring into fires, sure – but less the kind where people are generally nice, and go to places called things like “Fink’s Drugstore” to drink “root beer floats”.