Set in the early 1960s in the Midwest, An Early History of Fire centers around Danny, a young man who is exposed to an alluring and unsettling new world when Karen comes back from college on the east coast. Danny struggles to break free from the grip of his immigrant father, who clings to his only son.
What Is the Story of An Early History of Fire?
Set in a medium-sized Midwestern town in the early 1960s, An Early History of Fire is the story of Danny, a twenty-something who lives in his childhood home with Pop, his German immigrant father. When Danny meets Karen, an affluent college student, at the bus stop, he discovers Catcher in the Rye, marijuana and a passion inside him that he never knew existed. As Danny struggles to discover himself and grapple with the repressed pain of his mother’s death, he pushes against the influence of his idealistic father, who keeps his only son on a tight leash. Ultimately, Danny must choose between a small-town life filled with familiar faces and a new world of unlimited possibilities.
"[An Early History of Fire] is an entertaining, accurate portrayal of a time when America was on the cusp of social upheaval."
Associated Press
Jennifer Farrar
"There’s a moment of stopped time, in which Ms. Darke’s character holds a spoon filled with peanut butter over a piece of bread while the others stare unblinkingly into the future, that beautifully captures both the age of the characters and of the country they belong to. Their glazed but rapturous expressions summon an eternal chapter of youth when, to borrow from a Stephen Sondheim lyric, everything is possible and nothing makes sense."
The New York Times
Ben Brantley