Float Up, Sing Down by Laird Hunt

It's 1982 in Bright Creek, Indiana. In this story collection, the reader spends a day with the inhabitants of this small town. There's teenagers Della and Sugar who are in the beginnings of a relationship, despite others' objections. Sugar's best friend, Greg, is obsessed with Kung Fu and works at the Galaxy Swirl with Della, while Della's grandfather Hank (the former sheriff) is stuck mulling between the past and present in his mind. Other people we hear from are Cubby, who owns the local garage, and Candy, an older resident who mourns her best friend, Irma Ray. For readers who enjoy Kent Haruf and Shannon Bowring.