Upward Bound
Published on 2. April 2026
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-1-78733-641-4 (ISBN)
Description
A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK
A vibrant, profoundly moving novel about the interlocking lives at an adult daycare centre in southern California.
'Wonderfully inspirational' Paul Beatty
'Moving and funny and ringing with life' Guardian
'A complicated joy' Roddy Doyle
Among the clients and staff are Carlos, a charismatic aide who lost his mother as a boy, and Jorge, who is gentle, nonspeaking and prone to escape despite Carlos's best efforts. Tom, a beautiful young man with cerebral palsy, pines for Ann, the lifeguard for the summer who feels out of her depth. Then there's Dave, the centre's director. He wanted to be an actor, but finds himself on a very different path.
At the heart of Upward Bound is Walter, a recent college student returning to the company of his peers after a family tragedy. Around him, a story unfolds of friendships forged, connections missed and the dreams - some new, others almost forgotten - that shape us. With his wit, empathy and astonishing gifts as a storyteller, Woody Brown immerses us in life as we have never experienced it before.
'Deeply funny and eye-opening' Maria Semple
'It will open hearts and change minds' Jenna Bush Hager
'A singular debut' New York Times
'A luminous novel of human connection and hope' Cecile Pin
'It will change the way you look at the world' Angie Kim
'A story of friendship, dreams and rich inner worlds' Sean Hewitt
'A tender and important novel' Service95
'A moving, illuminating glimpse into a world we rarely have access to' Good Housekeeping
A BOOK FOR THE YEAR IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, TIME, HARPER'S BAZAAR, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING AND LITERARY HUB
A vibrant, profoundly moving novel about the interlocking lives at an adult daycare centre in southern California.
'Wonderfully inspirational' Paul Beatty
'Moving and funny and ringing with life' Guardian
'A complicated joy' Roddy Doyle
Among the clients and staff are Carlos, a charismatic aide who lost his mother as a boy, and Jorge, who is gentle, nonspeaking and prone to escape despite Carlos's best efforts. Tom, a beautiful young man with cerebral palsy, pines for Ann, the lifeguard for the summer who feels out of her depth. Then there's Dave, the centre's director. He wanted to be an actor, but finds himself on a very different path.
At the heart of Upward Bound is Walter, a recent college student returning to the company of his peers after a family tragedy. Around him, a story unfolds of friendships forged, connections missed and the dreams - some new, others almost forgotten - that shape us. With his wit, empathy and astonishing gifts as a storyteller, Woody Brown immerses us in life as we have never experienced it before.
'Deeply funny and eye-opening' Maria Semple
'It will open hearts and change minds' Jenna Bush Hager
'A singular debut' New York Times
'A luminous novel of human connection and hope' Cecile Pin
'It will change the way you look at the world' Angie Kim
'A story of friendship, dreams and rich inner worlds' Sean Hewitt
'A tender and important novel' Service95
'A moving, illuminating glimpse into a world we rarely have access to' Good Housekeeping
A BOOK FOR THE YEAR IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, TIME, HARPER'S BAZAAR, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING AND LITERARY HUB
Reviews / Votes
Implosive and wonderfully inspirational. Upward Bound is acutely aware that be it indigo, autism, social class, or the gamma ray, everything and everyone is on the spectrum -- PAUL BEATTY, Booker Prize winner of The Sellout A fascinating insight into the mind of an autistic person and genuinely entertaining... Want to know what it's like to be autistic? Read this novel * The Times * Great characters, great pace, great story - reading Upward Bound is a complicated joy -- RODDY DOYLE, Booker Prize winner of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha Awe-inspiring . . . deeply funny and eye-opening. If the highest calling of art is to open the heart to the perspective of others, thereby creating a more compassionate world, Upward Bound is a lodestar. Reading it, I felt energised to be a better person -- MARIA SEMPLE, author of Where'd You Go, Bernadette [A] revelation that forces you to ask: How much do we overlook in people - how many gifts do we fail to nurture - by making overly hasty judgments? -- Frank Bruni * New York Times * Compassionate, insightful, funny - and at times quietly, righteously angry at the slights and prejudices the community faces. Just beautiful * Marie Claire * A luminous, eye-opening novel of human connection and hope that will stay with me for a long time. Woody Brown's writing is deeply moving, and filled with so much heart -- CECILE PIN, author of Wandering Souls Upward Bound is a book that feels as if it was painted by David Hockney. This is a story of friendship, dreams, and rich inner worlds. Woody Brown writes with a levity that cuts to the heart, in a language that brims with light -- SEAN HEWITT, author of Open, Heaven Upward Bound gives us the world from the perspective of someone rarely noticed or understood . . . Wondrous and distinctly brilliant -- RIVKA GALCHEN, author of Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch Reading Upward Bound reminded me why stories matter. Woody Brown's writing carries an earned wisdom that remains with us long after the final page -- JACQUELINE CROOKS, author of Fire RushMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Vintage Publishing
Dimensions
Height: 220 mm
Width: 144 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
315 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78733-641-4 (9781787336414)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Woody Brown
Upward Bound
The New York Times bestselling novel about friendship, connection and the dreams that shape us
E-Book
03/2026
Vintage Digital
€12.99
Available for download
Person
In 2022, Woody Brown became the first nonspeaking autistic graduate of UCLA, where he received the English department's top writing honours. Brown completed his MFA in creative writing at Columbia University in 2024. He lives in Los Angeles.