The Amateur

Chris Bohjalian

The Amateur

Chris Bohjalian
50 pages1-hour read
Fiction
Novel
Adult
Published in 2026

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Part 2, Chapters 14-19Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of cursing, substance use, child sexual abuse, pregnancy termination, suicidal ideation, death by suicide, and death.

Part 2: “The Season of Depositions”

Part 2, Chapter 14 Summary: “The Boy Could Dance”

Olivia’s parents are gone for the day, so she and her friend Becca take Mira to see Kenny’s bedroom. Contrary to Mira’s expectations of chaos, the room is immaculate, with books on European history and Renaissance art neatly shelved. On the walls are posters for Jaws, Elton John, and the Bee Gees. Becca mentions that Kenny had a girlfriend in Miami and was a skilled disco dancer who practiced in secret. She shows Mira his old polyester leisure suits and other clothes he stopped wearing after moving north, in order to fit in.


While they look through his record collection, which includes disco artists like Donna Summer, Olivia tells Mira that Kenny had a crush on her and had hoped they would become friends. The realization that she never truly knew him overwhelms Mira, and she begins to weep.


Downstairs in the kitchen, Mira spots Theo’s home phone number on a chalkboard. Olivia explains that her mother and Theo’s ex-wife Eleanor have started working with a local priest and a social worker to create an organization that helps girls who have been “used” by older men. Devastated by these revelations, Mira leaves the Fosters’ house and cries in her car.


Later, Mira packs to leave for Smith, and Marie keeps her company.

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