[1][2][3] The marketing copy from the paperback edition declared, "This is the story of a love-smitten Charles; his friend Sam, the Phi Beta Kappa and former coat salesman; and Charles' mother, who spends a lot of time in the bathtub feeling depressed."

As the novel begins in the time between Christmas and New Year's, Charles, several days short of his 27th birthday, is dealing with his mentally ill mother's recent hospitalization.

Neither is fond of their step-father Pete, a friend of their late father, who died of a heart attack at the age of 39.

Charles is obsessively in love with Laura, a married woman who once worked as a librarian for his employer.

He must plow through his dull daily life while dealing with his feelings for her and coping with his family and his friend Sam.