Rating: 
Summary: Good... Definitely not "a masterpiece"
Review: I read this book a week ago and, while I enjoyed the general premise of the story, was quite disappointed. Simply put, there was just too much going on. Lamb could have easily left half the pages out and still come to the same conclusion. Toward the middle of the book I started to become very frustrated with the repetitiveness of the situations (i.e. Dominick going to one doctor: "I want my brother out of Hatch!"; Dominick going to another Doctor: "I want my brother out of Hatch!", on and on ad infinitum). I found the ending more than a tad bit forced, at least on the "new family, sudden wealth" level (I could believe the Dessa part). And what about that character, Joy... now was THAT really necessary (the Thad situation, I mean)? I lost count of the times Dominick made a point of telling the reader that things were "okay" with Joy, but "not great"... it seemed as though just about every chapter for the first half of the book contained some sort of reference to the fact that they lived together, as well as a state of the union update (all told as though the reader was previously unaware of this particular situation). The main disappointment, however, was the grandfather's story. This was nothing more than mere filler and had next to nothing to do with anything else happening in the book. Granted it related to the characters in the sense that yes, he was a relative, but other than that it really had nothing to do with Thomas' condition, Dominick's failed marriage/relationship with Joy, Dominick's anger or his mother's partiality. It was just a story about a rotten man making penance and really had no place in the story at hand. I'm giving this book three stars rather than two because of the fact that Thomas was beautifully written... his paranoia was believable, his dialogue sharp. It's as though the reader is actually listening to him speak, can picture the expression on his face.One more thing... what, exactly, is Lamb's obsession with MONKEYS all about?????????? Dominick is a "little monkey"; Dominico kills his brother's monkey; the little girl in the dance class wears a leotard printed with monkeys, etc. Not to mention Dominick's monkey dreams. ENOUGH WITH THE MONKEYS ALREADY!!!!! I majored in English/literature and even that didn't help me figure that one out. Overall, an unnecessarily lengthy book that by the middle has covered no new ground and through which the reader plods to find a disappointing end.
Rating: 
Summary: Touchs the Heart
Review: This book was excellent. I have read Wally Lambs other book She's Come Undone as well. I like them both. I have twins myself so found this book very interesting. It had such depth and so much feeling. I could feel myself in the characters.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, puts you in a trance
Review: I had already read Wally Lamb's previous "She's Come Undone." This book, as that one, is amazing. Mr. Lamb has such strong, developed characters and puts them in the many situations of life that test us. This book reminded me occasionly of "Prince of Tides," although this is better played out. I would definately advise buying it - as I would all of his books.
Rating: 
Summary: #1 New York Times?
Review: I cannot believe this book made the NYT's Best Seller List. Furthermore, I cannot believe it has a rating of 4 1/2 stars. This is one of the most disturbing books I have ever read. It has everything from psychosis, child abuse, murder, and vulgarity.
Rating:
Summary: when serious drama turns melodramatic..
Review: Oh dear! I am about to write a rather unpleasent review of a book which has received over 1000 (mostly) positive amazon.com reviews to date. Could these people be wrong and I'm right??? Read on. Based on all the glowing reviews I purchased 'I Know This Much Is True' with great anticipation. And for the first 300 pages the book was terrific. It was a serious, humane look at the relationship between a mentally-disturbed young man and his frazzled twin brother. But then the author unwisely expands the scope of the story to include all the incredible (read: unbelievable) travails of the healthy twin brother. So the reader is subjected to innumerable little plot twists which include: homosexuality, child abuse, racial discrimination, etc. By page 500 the main theme of the story has been so diluted with this other nonsense that I was really getting frustrated. Beyond this, the author uses cheap tricks to ensure the reader is emotionally in tune with this soap opera. Every male character seems to break down into tears after every few pages (..the women shed copious tears as well). Now I am not some SUPER MACHO guy; I love such weepies as The Mill on the Floss, Jane Eyre, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. These books extracted emotion from the reader without having to endure 'close-ups' of wimpy, blubbering adult male characters. 'I Know This Much Is True' is WAY over the top in this respect. But Wally Lamb is a good writer. The book's structure and its prose are wonderful. I would certainly consider reading other material by him. Bottom line: a great book that goes bad long before the end. Yet Wally Lamb is a good writer. Even after its credibility is completely lost one still feels compelled to read all 900 pages; the prose hums along very well.
Rating:
Summary: Well done.
Review: I highly recommend this book. Not only is it a good read, it also effectively discusses an important issue : the impact of family on the individual, and how inadequately society deals with mental illness. The story line deals with family relations over 3, even 4, generations and is quite realistic: an ordinary 40-year-old worker discovers that his grandfather was profoundly egocentric and sadistic, his mother a stronger and more mysterious figure than he realized, while also dealing with a mentally ill brother he cares deeply about. The book discusses mental illness as a social issue, showing why some are more vulnerable than others. It demonstrates how the mentally ill are criminalized, that they have highly lucid moments which are ignored. This complex subject is rarely tackled in novels. The author has done extensive research, he does a superb job of depicting the tribulations faced by one man coming to terms with his own family constellation. The resulting product is gripping.
Rating:
Summary: one of my favorites
Review: This book instantly became one of my all time favorites. The plot was so fresh and unlike anything I've ever read. Dominick goes through some unbelievably rough times, but the emotions are so raw, they make him believable. The jumping between the present and past was relevant to the plot and not at all confusing. I especially liked the family history interwoven at the end. It can be depressing at times, so I wouldn't recommend it to someone looking for a light read. If you've had a bad childhood or even adulthood, though, you can relate to this and be uplifted by its theme.
Rating:
Summary: The Great American Novel?
Review: This was one of the most fantastic novels I have ever read. I love Wally Lamb's writing style ... the way he allows the characters to take you on an unforgettable ride. The story of Dominick Birdsey is one of the most touching, epic journeys I have taken in my short 21 year life. I am an avid reader, authors like King, Cormac McCarthy, and Robert McCammon. I usually find myself caught up in books that are fantastic in nature and evil to the core. This book was a refreshing change, dotted with enough humor and tragedy to keep most people laughing and crying with the characters. Dominick is the perfect anti-hero ... I absolutely loved this book. If you love good writing, even if this genre isn't your cup of tea, the supurb writing is enough to take your breath away, and keep the pages turning. Hats off to Wally Lamb ... this is a write in for the "great american novel"!
Rating:
Summary: Lamb is an Absolute Genuis!
Review: While I haven't been a fan of every "Oprah Book Club" selection I continue to read many of the queen of talk show's recommendations for one reason: She led me to Wally Lamb. I have read at least three books (often more) a week since I was five and in my 20-odd years as a reader I have found just a handful of authors I love so much I'd read the back of a cereal box if they wrote it. Wally Lamb is one of those authors. I started his first novel, "She's Come Undone," on a plane and was so engrossed that I couldn't stop reading even when I'd reached my destination. I literally walked through the airport reading this book and didn't stop until I got to the end (I was safely in my hotel room by that time). It's been several years now since I've read the book, but it still sticks with me. (With many titles, you could ask me next week and I wouldn't even remember the main character's name.) Lamb so nailed the uniquely feminine struggle with beauty, weight and acceptance I was certain Mr. Lamb was a she. So, well before Oprah put her stamp of approval on Lamb's second novel, "I Know This Much Is True," I was dying to read it. My first shock was the author photo--Wally Lamb was obviously a man. The second was how totally different, yet equally compelling this book was when compared to "She's Come Undone." The fact that this novel was amazingly well written and deals with an incredibly emotional subject are basically the only similarities between the books. Their pace, tone and style are so completely different I could have never guessed that they were written by the same person. "I Know This Much Is True" asks an intriguing question: How can family members be so different and how strong are the ties of blood. This is the story of identical twins, one normal, one a paranoid schizophrenic. This book grabs you on the first page and never lets go, twisting your emotions this way and that throughout the story and making you question just about every hardcore belief you've ever had. Lamb is such a good writer you tend to feel emotionally drained after reading one of his novels--that's how real his characters are. Lamb is a genius; no question about it.
Rating:
Summary: The insight and poignancy will stay with you.....
Review: I finished reading "I Know This Much Is True" yesterday and I have to say it has been on my mind ever since. Never had I read a book so close to home that I could entirely see myself, and the people I love, in the extraordinarily well-developed characters. The novel stresses you will never find happiness and be at peace, until you find the strength to face your demons, reflect upon them, LEARN from them, and then most of all....find the strenght to forgive. We all have demons, some of them brewing long before our birth, and all though we have no control over the fact we may be affected by those demons, we don't have to carry them with us. The main character, Dominick, will show you he is a "survivor" using his defense mechanisms against those demons, that he is not lost like his schizophrenic brother, Thomas. But unti1 he lets go of his anger, until he able to forgive, he will find he was as lost, if not more, than his brother.
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