Hard Land

Wells is a smooth writer, but this reads too much like a YA book for me and I'll stop now at ~25%. The novel resembles so many coming-of-age stories - an outsider, going through troubles at home, finds a clique of (oh so diverse) new friends, learns life lessons, falls in love - that I immediately felt bored.

Why does a German author choose Missouri as the site for his teenager story, when the location seems completely irrelevant to the plot? The book even has an English title. Smells like someone wants to conquer the American market.