Kristin

This book really wonderfully written and wonderfully narrated. It's a book about ordinary, although very specific, individuals living in an ordinary setting of contemporary life. The main character thinks a lot, is obsessive, and we listen to his mind ruminating for most of the book. It's serious and believable and the characters in the book are really having fun for a while, although it's really a story of isolation, consequences and quite a bit of superstition. I liked it a lot. If you like novels that offer insight on the human condition, you will love this book.

I'd listen to this book when my lover wasn't home because I didn't want him to get depressed. I like the book because I'm interested in the conflicts that happen when people pretend to be optimistic. It's really dark and claustrophobic. The father is a horrible, twisted monster of a man who prides himself on being good. It's hard to listen to the derisive nicknames and insults cloaked as baby-talk that he spews. It's a book about denial and shame. I thought it was amazing, but I like this kind of book.

This is a GREAT BOOK! Towards the middle, the reader discovers the secret to the American spirit and why we're now in a pickle. This book is packed with interesting information and deep characterization, many stories folding into profound realization... Great narrator too - a must read/listen! It was recommended by a guest on Ian Masters' Background Briefing.

The protagonist is vile, but the prose is beautiful. Throughout the story, I identified with this disgusting man - which I would normally never do - and I found it thoroughly enjoyable. There were moments I almost had to pause the book because I was so overwhelmed by the writer's creative and machine gun-like use of language. Also, the narrator is fantastic - REALLY fantastic.