I was unsure about this book when we received it from BookMovement.com, but after the last page, I was very glad to have read it.

The character developement and seeing the events unfold from each individual's point of view was very enlightening. It made me want to know these people better... to read more about their thoughts and get into their lives.

I would recommend this one for any book club discussion.

Life and how it is handled by family and friends. Gary, Gary Paul, and Kevin all have the strongest issues to work out. Hardship is an every day way of life for people. A question was raised as to whether we saw the father, Gary, as a Messiah figure. Definitely not for me. If any one a Messiah figure, it was Gary David, even in going so far at the end of being stripped of his clothes as Christ was. Even after Gary David's tragic death, life goes on.

There was a lot to discuss in this book. We appreciated the questions published by Book Movement. Interview with the author on www.npr.org.

thought-provoking; held my interest; presents numerous areas for discussion; good discussion at book club.
thank you for this book!

It took me a while to get to this book after Book Movement sent me the Advance Reader edition, but I rather enjoyed it. Very well written. Gary Hazen is an ass. Even though (no spoiler) negative events happen late in the book, he's still an ass. He's so stuck on how his vision of life is the only right one that he severely damages his relationships with his sons. It takes a good writer for me to be this annoyed by a character -- if he didn't write so well, I wouldn't care enough to be annoyed.

I read this just after 'The Bright forever' and it was similar in that right at the start it was clear one of the Hazen men was doomed and it was the long trawl through to find out which one and why. Part of me hates these books and the writerly way I am made to care about each character knowing one or more will die. That said it was well done and I was drawn in inexorably.

Definately worth a read but have a fluffy book for light relief after it!!!

While I enjoyed it from a distance, it was hard to believe at the core.

The ending seemed unrealistic to me. That being said, I enjoyed the book as a whole and it had some very good discussion topics.

Tom was at our book club for this and I was told to, "be nice," by the other club members. I could not hide my dislike of this book. Just felt like it was a long book that could have been written in a few pages. Also there were no strong female characters.