Published in 2021, Jeff Zentner’s critically acclaimed coming-of-age novel In the Wild Light reflects the traumatic and emotional journey of 17-year-old Cash Pruitt, whose fledgling poetry proclaims that “The world is knives and wolves / but also swans and stars” (416): a difficult, complex truth that only the most courageous teenagers learn as they transition into adulthood. Cash, along with his best friend, Delaney Doyle, leaves his tiny East Tennessee town for the opportunity to attend a prestigious private school in distant Connecticut. There, Cash struggles to fit in, torn between immersing himself in fresh friendships and his newfound love of writing poetry and remaining true to the ties that bind him to his home. Despite his new opportunities, he remains deeply connected to his ailing grandfather and his doting grandmother, who have been his de facto parents ever since his mother died from a drug overdose.

Zentner’s previous novels, most notably The Serpent King (2016) and Goodbye Days (2017), have been shortlisted for several important YA awards, and the author has been recognized for both his probing and sympathetic understanding of Gen Z, as well as his use of a lyrical prose style that reflects his rich background in music. The New York Times named In the Wild Light one of the 25 best YA books of the year, and the prestigious Kirkus Review lauds the novel’s honest treatment of drug addiction and its impact on children and young adults. In the story of Cash and Delaney’s experiences in a new environment far from everything and everyone they know, the novel explores several different themes, including The Importance of Home, The Dynamic of Grief, The Redemptive Power of Poetry, and The Impact of Nature.

This study guide uses the 2022 Ember paperback edition.

Content Warning: This guide discusses substance use disorder and sexual assault.

Plot Summary

Delaney Doyle, an inquisitive science “nerd” at a small high school in the rural East Tennessee town of Sawyer, happens upon a new strain of mold when she and her friend, Cash Pruitt, are exploring caves along a river that runs through the town. After testing a sample of mold scraped from the cave walls, Delaney discovers that the new mold works just like penicillin and has potentially groundbreaking curative properties. The discovery becomes a sensation, and Delaney herself becomes an instant STEM celebrity. Following her discovery, Delaney is offered a full-ride scholarship to Middleford Academy, an elite private school outside New Canaan, Connecticut. She accepts the scholarship on the condition that the school offer a similar scholarship to Cash.

Delaney is eager for the opportunity to study at such a prestigious school, and her ties to Sawyer are thin. Her mother has a substance use disorder, and she and Cash first met at a support group for kids whose parents have a drug addiction. Unlike Delaney, Cash finds it difficult to leave Sawyer. After his father abandoned the family for work in the oil fields of Louisiana and his mother died from an accidental overdose of opioids, Cash was raised by his grandfather, “Papaw,” who has emphysema, and his grandmother, a loving woman who runs a pizzeria. Only after Papaw gently scolds him does Cash reluctantly agree to go to the new school with Delaney.

Adjusting to life at the elite academy is initially difficult, as Cash knows that he is less intelligent and affluent than the other students. Life in the dorm makes Cash aware of the reality of elitism and snobbery. His wealthy roommate, Tripp, is the most prominent among those students who mock his Appalachian roots and family ties. Only nightly Zoom chats with his grandparents relieve Cash’s loneliness.

When classes begin, however, Cash falls under the spell of Dr. Britney Rae Atkins, a passionate English teacher and poet with roots in Tennessee. She inspires Cash to explore the ways in which poetry can convert pain into art and encourages him to experiment with writing his own verse. In addition to discovering how poetry gives voice to his thoughts, Cash also finds much-needed camaraderie when he joins the school’s rowing team. He is ecstatic to be on a river again, for he misses the Pigeon River in Sawyer where he and Papaw would fish. When he meets Alex Pak, a son of Korean immigrants from Austin, Texas, Cash is impressed by Alex’s ambition to go to Yale Law and eventually run for Congress. The two boys bond immediately.

Cash and Delaney have a falling out, and for weeks Delaney becomes absorbed by her lab work and by socializing with her new friends, particularly the ebullient Viviani, “Vi,” from Brazil. Cash finds himself attracted to Vi, intrigued by her personable charm. The two begin to spend time together, and Cash comes to believe he is falling in love. A day trip to New York where the two spend the day together convinces Cash of his feelings. The two flirt with each other, casually holding hands until they share a kiss. Vi resists, insisting he is really in love with Delaney even though he does not realize it. In Cash’s next Zoom call with Papaw, Papaw cautions Cash to be sure of his true feelings for Delaney.

Delaney and Cash mend their friendship and head back to Sawyer together for Christmas. The visit is emotionally difficult for Cash, as his grandfather’s weakened condition is concerning. After the new term starts, Cash’s grandmother calls him home when Papaw’s health takes a turn for the worse. Just hours after Cash returns home, Delaney arrives at the hospital carrying a bottle of her “miracle” mold and demanding that the nurses administer her new-age penicillin to Papaw. She is escorted from the hospital by security. Later that day, Papaw dies. Cash is devastated, and after the services when Papaw’s ashes are scattered on the river he so loved, Cash feels alone and lost.

As spring returns, with the help of Dr. Atkins and the support of Alex and Vi, Cash slowly adjusts to his grief. During a raucous dorm party, Cash rescues an inebriated and unconscious student who is about to be sexually assaulted by his roommate. Cash intervenes, and despite suffering a cracked skull in the fight with Tripp, saves her. Later the school commends him for his moral courage and expels Tripp, and Alex agrees to be his new roommate. Cash and Delaney commit to counseling sessions to help manage their emotions about their families. As the school term ends, Cash confides in Vi about the circumstances of his mother’s death. During the summer, Cash, now writing daily in his poetry notebook, bonds with his loving grandmother and, feeling as if his own healing has begun, returns to writing poetry and eagerly looks forward to returning to Middleford with Delaney.