The following version of this book was used to used to create the guide: Cole, Lee. Groundskeeping. Penguin Random House LLC, 2022.

Lee Cole's novel Groundskeeping is written from the main character Owen's first person point of view and in the past tense. The novel follows a largely linear plot trajectory, yet takes liberties with temporal structure and form. The following summary employs the past tense and adheres to a linear plot model.

A few weeks after Owen's life fell apart in Colorado, he moved back to his home state of Kentucky. Reluctant to move back in with either of his divorced parents and their new spouses, Owen took up residence in his grandfather Pop's basement. He was living in a familiar town and with family, but immediately felt dislocated and lost.

In order to attempt restarting his life, Owen took a job as a groundskeeper on the local Ashby College campus. Anyone employed by the college could enroll in one course for free. Owen thus signed up for a creative writing workshop which he later discovered was called Jungle Narratives and led by a professor named Tony.

One night, Owen attended a party for incoming and returning graduate students. At the party he met the visiting writer, an enigmatic and attractive young woman named Alma. In the days following their meeting, Owen longed to see Alma again. He was conflicted, however, because Alma told him she was already seeing someone. When Owen discovered that her boyfriend was one of his workshop classmates Casey, he felt frustrated and jealous.

Despite Alma's involvement with Casey, she and Owen started spending time together. These outings deepened Owen's interest in Alma. Meanwhile, his creative writing classes fostered his newfound love for and investment in reading and writing. Translating his experiences with Alma into fiction granted him a new sense of perspective and possibility.

When Casey attacked Owen's coworker James for talking to Alma at a gathering one night, Owen got involved. The entanglement turned rowdy and led to the end of Alma and Casey's relationship.

In the days and weeks following her breakup, Alma eventually decided to start dating Owen. She was unable to imagine their future together, but Owen encouraged her to at least try. For the next months, the new couple became increasingly close. They took long drives, read together, and even visited one another's families. Owen wanted Alma to meet his family, but realized that his parents’ and stepparents’ conservative views were slanting their perceptions of Alma, the daughter of Bosnian immigrants and a Muslim. Alma was also eager for Owen to meet her family. Though her parents were kind to Owen, Owen believed they disapproved of him. Alma had recently decided to accept a tenure-track position at Ashby, and Owen believed her parents blamed him for taking their daughter away from them.

Rather than solidifying their connection, Owen and Alma’s experiences together gradually began to trouble Owen's evolving sense of self. He could only see the world and himself the way Alma perceived his character and life. Though they knew Owen loved Alma, Pop and James encouraged Owen to pursue his dreams independently. If the relationship was meant to last, it would.

After Owen was accepted into a fellowship program in Florida, he realized his grandfather and friend were right. He decided that in order to become the person he wanted to be, he would have to leave Alma and Kentucky indefinitely. When Alma dropped him off at the airport, Owen considered abandoning the flight and running after her. Because it was time for him to take control of his life, he boarded the plane and let Alma go.