Orlean's "The American Male at Age Ten"

I enjoyed reading Orlean's short story about a characteristic young boy, Colin. Through her vivid use of imagery and good character development, I feel like you really understand this little boy on a different level than do his parents or peers. He lives a seemingly normal, middle-class life and yet Orlean uses her skill to make this ordinary boy a figure of interest. 

My favorite paragraph was the third on the first page in which Orlean describes Colin's house and the town he lives in. This, compared to some, is not a section filled with extremely vivid descriptions. However, this paragraph seems so important to me in terms of set-up and background that, with out it, I wonder if I would still have the outlook that I do in regards to the entire story. Setting up the background for where this kid comes from (a quiet, seemingly wholesome, good-natured town- though not without it quirks) adds to the character of the boy and I feel like I know a little bit more about him and his family, peers, et cetera, for knowing this suburban little town outside of New York City. What's also exciting to me is that this short description does not try to describe Colin's house or town to a tee, and in not doing so I, as the reader, get to imagine a general view of things as Colin moves along from school, home, the pizza parlor, et cetera. 

So, perhaps I'm looking at this too analytically, but I think this section in the writing is key and it would feel as if something were missing if Orlean did not include this as a backdrop in being instrumental to determining the mood of the story. I think I particularly enjoyed those sections where she set the setting of a place that Colin visited (the pizza parlor, the backyard, school) more than anything, simply because such descriptions truly transport the reader into the place/time in which the story is taking place. There is certainly such a thing as over-kill (which, to me, is truly agonizing when reading), but I do not think Orlean went that far in describing Colin, nor his hometown.