For residents of Shelk, a sleepy Pennsylvania town lying along a vein of the Appalachian Mountains, life has always been a series of unchallenged routines and circulating gossip. But when a group of teenage runaways settles in the hills and begins to invade their homes and lives, lines are drawn between those residents seeking to insulate themselves from the outside world and those reaching for more.

Caught in the middle of this clash is Ramsy, a bar owner whose quiet life is threatened by his newfound loyalty to JT, a streetwise runaway who begins to visit his bar, and the re-emergence of the tragic story of his former love, Stella Vale, whose daughter was abducted as an infant fifteen years prior. As tensions between the townspeople and the newcomers rise, Ramsy and Stella will face the locals’ dangerous anger—and their own tragic history.

A piercing tale of isolation, redemption, and belonging, Each Vagabond By Name is a powerful exploration of the intricacies of small town life by a commanding new literary voice.