I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this book, but it still disappointed me. If you read books for plot lines, then this probably isn't for you. If you read for the beauty of the written word, then you will probably enjoy the book. I fall into the former category and found the style to be frustrating. The story lines jumped back and forth between father and son without much of a connecting thread and often the writer would create verbose self-indulgent passages that didn't further the story. I did not find myself caring about the characters and when I reached the end all I could think was, "what was the point?"