One of the new litter of boys tossed up by this brick-and-hoagie tow ten miles by trolley from a city of one million

Question

He is one of the new litter of boys tossed up by this brick-and -hoagie town ten miles by trolley from a city of one million.Hi,The above is from the novel "Loser;" I haven't the slightest idea of what the bolded part is about. Please shed some light. Thanks.

Mr Wordy · Accepted Answer

"tossed up by this ... town" means that these boys are a product of the town; they were born and/or raised there. It also has connotations of either casualness (perhaps suggesting that their lives are not very significant or remarkable) and/or suddenness (perhaps suggesting a new town or a town that has recently grown in size).

"ten miles by trolley from a city of one million" seems straightforward. A "trolley" is a public-transport vehicle something like a tram (a kind of cross between a bus and a train).

That leaves "brick-and-hoagie", which is describing the type of town. I'm not 100% certain what the author has in mind, but to me it conjures up an image of a working-class town. I'm assuming that this is set in America, so an American contributor here might have a better idea about this.

RayH · Answer

Mr Wordyconjures up an image of a working-class town.

I've never heard the term but I would agree with your speculation.

Angliholic · Answer

Thanks, Mr. Wordy and RayH.

I think your speculation makes great sense to me, but how do you get the working-class town from "brick and hoagie?" Maybe there are some cultural backgrounds that we miss.

Mr Wordy · Answer

Angliholichow do you get the working-class town from "brick and hoagie?"

I find that hard to explain. I guess that brick seems like the sort of prosaic building material that might typically be used for older industrial facilities and/or modest dwellings (albeit there are some very posh and fancy brick buildings too, at least in my part of the world). We don't use the word "hoagie" in the UK, but I'm vaguely familiar with it and I understand it to be unremarkable, everyday fare, popular with the masses.

Again, you might get a more relevant/accurate answer from an American.

One of the new litter of boys tossed up by this brick-and-hoagie tow ten miles by trolley from a city of one million

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