Midwest Emo
"What a midwesterner he was, a thoroughly unhip guy with his heart in the usual place, on the sleeve, in plain sight." — Charles Baxter, The Feast of Love
Fiction that embodies the experience of being Midwestern and full of big feelings: depression, yearning, being lost in a cornfield
created by teddydee
last updated October, 2026
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NOTES:
— SOMEDAY THIS PAIN WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU (Cameron): This kid's a New Yorker in reality but a Midwesterner in his heart. The book stays — THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ (Baum): inspired by Baum's recurring childhood nightmare of a scarecrow pursuing him across a field. Additionally, in the film adaptation, the Toto subplot is never resolved, casting a shadow over Dorothy's relief to be home.
MULTIMEDIA RECOMMENDATIONS* BY STATE (SEEKING CONTRIBUTIONS!):
ILLINOIS
INDIANA
IOWA — 🎬 the Straight story (1999)
KANSAS
MICHIGAN
MINNESOTA
MISSOURI
NEBRASKA
NORTH DAKOTA
OHIO — 🎬 Bones and All (2022 — part of this was filmed 5 minutes from my house, lololol) — 🎶 Hang On Sloopy (Ohio's state rock song!) — 🎬 Heathers (1989) — 🎶 Mrs. Hippopotamuses' (Relient K) — 🎶 Ohio Is for Lovers (Hawthorne Heights) — 🎬 Super 8 (2011)
SOUTH DAKOTA
WISCONSIN — 🎬 the Straight story (1999)
*These recommendations need not be literally related to the emo music genre (although they totally can be). It's also enough if they somehow evoke the spirit of the thing: economic disenfranchisement, industrial pollution, those unspeakable feelings of alienation and yearning you would feel as a teenager running around your small-town 4th of July fair with your friends in the dark, riding the scrambler too many times and wondering if love would ever find you?
Okay well obviously Ohio is for Lovers by Hawthorne Hearts, from Dayton, Ohio.
I'd also recommend They can't kill us till they kill us, essays about music (much of it Midwest emo) by Columbus Ohio's sweetheart, Hanif Abduraquib
Oh yes we love Hawthorne Heights 😍 (I grew up near Dayton!)
And thank you! I have a companion list in my drafts for nonfiction and this book is on it! :)
Okay its set in Pittsburgh but I think the rust belt vibes and earnestness of perks of being a wallflower feel Midwest emo adjacent. . . Ill have to ponder 🌽
teddydeeOP
I actually agree with this but wasn't sure if it was too much of an edge case, lol. Let's ponder together 🤔🌽 And furthermore, I get Midwest emo vibes from The Killing Grounds by Joan Tierney, which is set in upstate NY
hello fellow dayton escapees super 8 directed by jj abrams takes place in like a 1980s dayton suburb (even though it was filmed in west virginia). its not my favoritest film ever but i’d say the vibes are pretty solid!!
Hello yourself! 🤝 Excellent, thank you! I forgot about this movie
They were one of my first favorite bands! I lived in Columbus for a decade and before I got there that song was all I knew about the state lol. Loving this list concept!
just want to say i love you “the book stays” note. you are fighting the good fight🫡 (agree abt that book too btw)
Your lists are always bangers and as an actual midwestern emo your description is very real.
teddydeeOP
Takes one to know one ;) and thank you!
teddydeeOP
EMERGENCY MIDWESTERN ADVICE NEEDED
AITA: I roadtripped to Ohio to visit my family for a few days and am leaving at 6am (in 4 and a half hours) to return home. We have been staying in my brother & sil's basement but haven't seen them much here because their kids are youngish and they apparently have them on a strict schedule. I have seen the kids a little bit hanging out at my parents' house, especially the youngest one, but while we were there the oldest one said something about wanting to show me how to play Minecraft, etc. We left my parents' house mid-afternoon today to go back to the basement to hang out with my other brother who lives an hour away and we hung out on the porch with some cider and swapped stories and updated each other on drama. But A COUPLE TIMES, various niblings appeared to let me know they were going to be playing the drums/eating chicken nuggets/etc, and then my other brother (their dad) came out to stop the crazy robot lawnmower and he said it's the kids' bedtime and I said oh! Are we being too loud? And he said no not at all! And went back inside. And then a little bit later my other brother (not their dad) left bc he has to get up early and we also went inside and went to bed bc WE have to get up early. Now it is 1:41am and I am in a cold panic that actually when I thought I was trying to not be rude and impose on their hospitality (she sometimes works from home; they've had guests; kid schedule is complicated) I have accidentally been rude in the other direction. Which I have, right ?!! These kids totally were asking me to come hang out and I totally blew it, didn't I?!! MIDWESTERNERS ONLY ANSWER
Hello friend! Born and raised Ohioan here. It does sound to me like the niblings were trying to hang out with you, especially if when they came out onto the porch they spoke to you specifically about what they were going to be doing and not to the porch at large. The oldest one who was talking about Minecraft earlier in the day definitely wanted to hang out with you. It doesn't sound like you rudely said no to them or anything, so hopefully they're understanding and just a little bit disappointed instead of upset?
Thank you! Exactly! I am also a born & raised Ohioan, idk what was wrong with me lol. I did speak with their mom a little bit and she said they didn't think we were rude at all, THEY were also trying to not intrude on US, so if anything we were ALL being too polite, which is the most Midwestern thing I've ever heard in my life. Anyway I'm going to call them from the hotel and we can have a fun chat.
Additional context for why we didn't: — the first time I went upstairs, the mom had company over — the second time I went upstairs, she was on the phone for work — they kept talking about having evening plans this day and getting up early that day and ???
BUT STILL. Mortifying
We did get them a thank-you card and Esther Price though, so it's not all bad
I’m glad everything worked out all right and I hope you have a nice chat! I agree that’s such a Midwestern story. It reminds me of many encounters I’ve had driving and walking where everyone is so polite that they keep waving on everyone else to go first, so no one actually goes anywhere.
teddydeeOP
Basically yes 😭 someone come help us all get out of this insane feedback loop
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