The Family Fang

By: Kevin Wilson

Narrated by: Therese Plummer

Length: 10 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

Mr. and Mrs. Fang called it art. Their children called it mischief.

Performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang dedicated themselves to making great art. But when an artist's work lies in subverting normality, it can be difficult to raise well-adjusted children. Just ask Buster and Annie Fang. For as long as they can remember, they starred (unwillingly) in their parents' madcap pieces. But now that they are grown up, the chaos of their childhood has made it difficult to cope with life outside the fishbowl of their parents' strange world.

When the lives they've built come crashing down, brother and sister have nowhere to go but home, where they discover that Caleb and Camille are planning one last performance - their magnum opus - whether the kids agree to participate or not. Soon, ambition breeds conflict, bringing the Fangs to face the difficult decision about what's ultimately more important: their family or their art.

Filled with Kevin Wilson's endless creativity, vibrant prose, sharp humor, and keen sense of the complex performances that unfold in the relationships of people who love one another, The Family Fang is a masterfully executed tale that is as bizarre as it is touching.

©2011 Kevin Wilson (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The Family Fang sparkles with Kevin Wilson’s inventive dialogue and wonderfully rendered set-pieces that capture the surreal charm of the Fang’s most notable work. With this brilliant novel, the family Fang is destined to join the families Tenenbaum and Bluth as paragons of high dysfunction." (Amazon.com review; Amazon Best Books of the Month, August 2011)

Almost as crazy as my family

The family Fang is not my usual genre. But I was enthralled by the characters. I enjoyed every bit of it… even their crazy parents.

Loved it!

I knew nothing about this book when I bought it--I was attracted to the title. I love vampire books, however, this is NOT one. It is a family story about a crazier-than-usual family. I don't want to give anything away, but nothing is quite as it seems over and over. The reader is terrific. I laughed, smiled, cried, and all around enjoyed The Family Fang. Kevin Wilson is funny and profound.

One strange tale

What did you love best about The Family Fang?

Quite an innovative story. I was left wanting more at the end. The ultimate tale of parents' that loved making art more than they loved their offspring. An odd form of art also!

What other book might you compare The Family Fang to and why?

Not many like these

Have you listened to any of Therese Plummer’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Made me think.

Fantastic - get this one right now!

Would you listen to The Family Fang again? Why?

Yes, I think I would, and that's saying a lot because I almost never listen to or read books a second time.

What other book might you compare The Family Fang to and why?

It's actually quite unique. On the one hand it is obviously absurd, but it never leaves the realm of the just-barely-possible. You are constantly thinking - yes, there ARE people like this, and they MIGHT do things like this. It's not like someone waking up as a cockroach...And, despite their overall weirdness, you grow to like and care about each of the characters.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

What I actually liked best was that there were several instances where I thought I had reached the end of the book - only to discover that it was another plot turn and the story continued to yet another fabulous entertaining chapter.

Any additional comments?

I almost didn't buy this book because it sounded too weird. What a mistake that would have been. This is definitely one of the best books I have ever read, EVER. You can read it on many levels, think about it - or not - be surprised and entertained and moved. Trust me. Get this one.

A story that stays with you

I listened to this book over 6 months ago and I'm still thinking about it. I didn't want to write a review right away because I felt I was not able to do this book justice until I thought about it for a while.
At first, I didn't think I liked this book at all because, to be honest, the characters are not easy to initially relate to. Buster and Annie are the adult children of performance artists. Over the years, they have had to partake in many performances (many against their will). They have tried to distance themselves from their parents and make their own way (Annie as an actress and Buster as a writer), but recent troubles have found them living back at home again. Something mysterious and strange occurs that brings Annie and Buster together, causing them to relive many of their childhood memories.
All I can say is that by the end of the book, I felt like I knew Annie and Buster. I think that is the beauty of Kevin Wilson's story is that I can't pinpoint when I fell in love with these characters, but it happened.
I would re-listen to this book gladly. I hope Kevin Wilson writes another book soon that is equally as endearing as the The Family Fang. This was easily one of my best Audible purchases.

Dysfunctional with a capital D

Where does The Family Fang rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very original, bizarre and disturbing. The humour, often black and very quirky, offered some reprieve from an otherwise depressing story. Two egocentric parents who I ended up disliking intensely and 2 children who were used and abused by their manipulative parents does not make for entertainment. The only endearing part of the whole story was the bond between the broken and damaged siblings as they struggled to overcome their past. Maybe the screenplay will be a better version, but I found it a hard read and asked myself a couple times why I was reading a story about such a f*&cked up family!

The Family Fang - A Review

This is a story that had to grow on me. At first, I did not like it very much. I was reminded of Swamplandia by Karen Russell, in which all of the characters are eccentrics. I want a character or two to have traits and habits that are conventional. I guess about halfway through this novel, I became more interested, and that may be because a mystery surfaced. The resolution was on one hand surprising (related to Fang parents) and anticlimactic (related to children A and B).

Therese Plummer is an amazing reader. I am impressed with her range of voices, especially male voices. I will look for other books read by her.

This family should watch Candid Camera

It was engaging enough with some humor tossed in to be an interesting listen, but I kept thinking they must never had heard of Candid Camera - creating chaos with an unexpected happening then filming the result.

Glad to have found this one.

This book was a suggested title after I made a purchase and I gave it a try. Glad I did because it was thoroughly enjoyable.

A true Fang Experience

Would you listen to The Family Fang again? Why?

Yes. Excellent performance and great writing. Wonderful story

What did you like best about this story?

Made my childhood seem completely "normal".

Which scene was your favorite?

Buster getting shot by the potato

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I wanted it to last.