Haslett is one of the country's most talented writers, equipped with a sixth
sense for characterization and a limber, unpretentious style. Perhaps his
rarest gift is the apprehension of the invisible connections that tie people
together... The chapters seamlessly negotiate the passage of time...[Oldest
son] Michael comes to dominate the narrative, and Haslett perfectly captures
the qualities that make him both seductive and infuriating. He is a motormouth
with a fitful imagination and a wicked sense of humor; his nervous energy and
'ceaseless brain' are the battery power on which the whole family runs ...
Haslett is alert to the reality of others, and the insinuating power of this
novel comes from its framing of mental illness as a family affair. Michael's
siblings are both wholly convincing characters, shaped by the abiding question
of how much, or how little, they are meant to act as their brother's keepers
... Most affecting of all is Margaret, who is treated with impatience by her
children but possesses a capacious understanding...'What do you fear when you
fear everything?' Michael wonders. 'Time passing and not passing. Death and
life....This being the condition itself: the relentless need to escape a
moment that never ends.' That condition, Haslett's superb novel shows, is an
irreducible part of the fabric of Michael's family, as true and defining as
the love that binds them. ( Sam Sacks , Wall Street Journal)
Haslett is one of the country's most talented writers, equipped with a sixth
sense for characterization and a limber, unpretentious style. Perhaps his
rarest gift is the apprehension of the invisible connections that tie people
together... The chapters seamlessly negotiate the passage of time...[Oldest
son] Michael comes to dominate the narrative, and Haslett perfectly captures
the qualities that make him both seductive and infuriating. He is a motormouth
with a fitful imagination and a wicked sense of humor; his nervous energy and
'ceaseless brain' are the battery power on which the whole family runs ...
Haslett is alert to the reality of others, and the insinuating power of this
novel comes from its framing of mental illness as a family affair. Michael's
siblings are both wholly convincing characters, shaped by the abiding question
of how much, or how little, they are meant to act as their brother's keepers
... Most affecting of all is Margaret, who is treated with impatience by her
children but possesses a capacious understanding...'What do you fear when you
fear everything?' Michael wonders. 'Time passing and not passing. Death and
life....This being the condition itself: the relentless need to escape a
moment that never ends.' That condition, Haslett's superb novel shows, is an
irreducible part of the fabric of Michael's family, as true and defining as
the love that binds them. ( Sam Sacks , Wall Street Journal)
