Ventura and Winnetka

The author of Ventura and Zelzah follows up that critically acclaimed debut novel with the further adventures of Douglas and his friends as they come of age in Southern California's San Fernando Valley in the late 1970s. Now seniors in high school, the gang spends their final year before college practicing stunt-driving in Marco's red Celica, getting high, obsessively listening to the great rock and roll of the era, and partying at the prom in powder blue tuxedos. Straddling youth and adulthood, Douglas is feeling the pressure to get serious about his future. He gets his first taste of office culture working for his dad, and enjoys writing for the school newspaper, but so much about his immediate future is still uncertain. Will he go to San Diego State University with his best friend, Hank, like they've always planned? Will his father finally stop pushing him to follow in his footsteps in sales and marketing, and support his budding interest in journalism? And what's going on with his new girlfriend Annie? She says she loves him, but her actions say otherwise, causing Douglas a great deal of teenage heartache. Like Ventura and Zelzah, with Ventura and Winnetka, J.G. Bryan has written a funny, poignant, and nostalgic coming-of-age tale about the relationships of teenagers on the verge of adulthood. The re-creation of the Valley culture of the late 1970s is palpable and magical.