The book is a coming of age story, or as pretentious college kids say, a "bildungsroman." It follows a young American rural boy and his journey to adulthood, in which he observes the faults of humanity, questions belief systems, survives heartbreak, deals with alienation among mankind, engages in the War on Terror, and struggles with mental illness. The book is also a criticism of the politics of the Bush Administration--mostly regarding its effect on the dynamic of the United States and the Middle East. In a general sense, the story explores the questions and situations that a young man might come to ponder as he flounders in the process of getting older.