I Know This Much Is True

Rating:
Summary: One of the better books I've read!
Review: I have read many of Oprah's recommendations and I have to say that this was one of the better ones. The metaphors used throughout the book will make for many thought provoking evenings. It took me 5 straight days of reading (I had to sneak a lot of time from work) to finish, but I didn't want to put it down. I am definitely adding it to my top 100 list and will tell all my friends and family to make sure they take the time to read this. I am anxiously awaiting Wally Lamb's next novel.

Rating:
Summary: A powerful read, will impact your life.
Review: The first aspect of this book to grab me was the pain of the protagonist vs. his detached humor. Dominick is someone I would know and pity, and probably avoid. He hides his shame, pain & terrible secrets behind anger and an I-don't-give-a-s**t attitude. His character and that of Dessa, Ray, Leo and Joy embody perfectly a myriad of folks I have known personally. Being from Connecticut and very familiar with the Norwich area, that tie drew me closer still into the story. Dominick's story and that of his family has impacted my life, allowing me a greater vision of my own life. I feel SO lucky in comparison! Don't miss this read.

Rating:
Summary: A slow start to a great novel
Review: When I first started reading I Know This Much is True, I wasn't sure how I would make it through the 900+ pages. However, perserverance paid off! When the plot really gets going, it's hard to put this one down. Lamb does an excellent job of building his characters and weaving a detailed plot. I Know This Much is True is a realistic look at modern family life and the struggles between siblings.

Rating:
Summary: It really was as good as everyone said!
Review: I read alot of the reviews before starting this book, trying to decide whether I should attempt such a long story. I needed a book that I could totally get lost in and this book was it! Even after 900 pages, I wanted more. I spent every moment engrossed in it and I don't consider myself an avid reader. I just finished the book and I already miss all of the characters. If your looking for a great read by the fire on a rainy Fall day, this book is for you!

Rating:
Summary: A book of duality, of rivers, and truth
Review: I have enjoyed most of the reviews of this book and agree with them wholeheartedly. This is a splendid book, indeed. I finished it 2 wks ago and have read 2 books since, but I still carry Dominick in my mind and heart. I was particularly impressed and entertained by the use of symbols. First the rivers--Three Rivers to be precise. Was this the past, present, and future? Was it memory, understanding, and forgiveness? Then the other rivers--Ignacia and the unbaptized babies calling from the river, and so much more. Finally some peace and understanding from Ray at the crest of the river (the nursing home) Falling--from the falls like Thomas, falling from grace-Wow! this was my favorite page. Dominick is injured, drugged out, has ignored Rood over and over. But today, the day he needs to rest and prepare for Thomas' hearing, he decides to work on Rood's house. Maybe he didn't really even want to go to the hearing. Up the ladder, up to the rood steeple. Did Dominick (our Lord and savior) need to fall? And did he realize this? The bat staring at him. What was the bat anyway? When he saw his own reflection in Rood's eyes, I gasped. Then he fell. Oh, how he fell! Then the dog barking. I really liked that. Somehow I connected onto the dog really fast. Then the archangel Miguel who used to be a bad hombre and run with the dogs. Here Dominck sinks to his lowest point. The hounds of hell are baying. The parable, allegory, story within a story--that worked very well. And didn't Domenico, the great, the humble, have something to teach Italian youth after all? The dead rabbit--cut in two and then two live rabbits. Everything split (schizophrenic) and needing to be put back together. But first comes amputation. You must do as Shiva says--destroy in order to build. Dominick had to find all the parts and then try to rebuild. First he was a tempest; then a bird; then an Indian Drinkwater (remember when the history monster called Ralph "Go Drink Water"? Then Thomas begged to go drink water before talking to Ray. The cedar tree, then the other tree that Dominck hit. He had just learned from Joy (Joy?) that she was pregnant but not with his sperm. It was Halloween and pumpkin seeds and egg on the windshield (nasty trick or treaters!) causing him to be unable to see. But he didn't want to see. Then the accident, the hand through the windshield, the tree. The mist lifted and everything became clear. Oh, what about Nardo? First we had fire and sulfur in Sicily. Then where was the brimstone? Oh, yeah, the stonemason Nardo. Wasn't he the one who marked Domenico? Why was there the plural of Nardo? Angelo (more angels) Nardi? He might have been Dominick's father. Tempest, fire, hurricane. All the elements at their most forceful and violent. I loved when Dominick climbed back up from his fall--up those stairs to Dr Patel's office. What an interesting noncharacter Dr Patel is. Smith, a grandmother, good, kind, or just doing her job? a perfect therapist. Diogenes the cynic. And what a terrific character Leo is. He seems to be the complete synthesis of good, bad, and ugly. He used to be a fat kid. I would love to hear the author talk more about this book. What I saw on Oprah (that was a nice thank you he tossed her--when Ray was running through the channels and the TV stopped on Oprah) made me wish he would hold a whole day seminar. I'm a psychiatric social worker at a mental health center. At work, we've all been passing the book around. This much I know is true, Mr.Lamb, you've written a terrific book.

Rating:
Summary: A must read!
Review: I would highly recommend this book. I read it in about five days -- just couldn't put it down.

Rating:
Summary: This was a very good book!
Review: I ordered this book in audio form as I spend a great deal of time in the car. I spent the last 30 minutes literally sitting in front of Subway listening to the end. A very thoughtful book!

Rating:
Summary: Unbelievable
Review: I now feel like I understand life, not all of it of course, no one has all the answers. But, I have a much deeper understanding of what is important and what isn't. Thank you Wally Lamb. I have never been so compelled to read a book to it's finish. It was a marathon and I feel like I've won.

Rating:
Summary: Truly speaks to what a family of mental illness deals with!
Review: I have watched families over the past four years deal with the pain of mental illness. This book captures the reality of mental illness from the family perspective. Whether you are a twin or not a family member becomes so caught up in the care of the one with mental illness without even realizing what toll it is taking on their lives. Mental health is not just the well-being of the person suffering from mental illness but well-being of the family member is often lost without anyone realizing it. We sometimes lose ourselves in someone elses illness and begin to feel their pain and suffer their losses. No one can quite understand the inability to control the outcome and the hopelessness. This book helped to acknowledge the suffering of both twins and the freedom they both found, one in sadness and one in happiness.

Rating:
Summary: A fascinating journey into the complicated twin relationship
Review: Wally Lamb convinced me in his "She's Come Undone" that he has the ability to get inside a character and articulate that character's experience, male or female. He is not afraid to go to the dark places in all of us. He has proven this again in "This Much I Know is True." Mr. Lamb's "Dominick" is forced to face those dark places in himself. He hates his grandfather only to find he has become like him, and through his grandfather's story, finds the gifts of forgiveness and healing in his own life. His relationship with his twin brother is unrelentingly honest; Mr. Lamb reveals the shadow side of sibling relationships. In all his characters, Mr. Lamb refuses to let us turn away. We may be offended by the angry, abusive Ray and the sexually wounded Joy. But he brings us, as he brings Dominick, to an understanding and empathy for them, and therefore, for ourselves. In making us look, he challenges us to see our own imperfections, judgements and intolerance, challenges us to consider our own potential to forgive and heal. I highly recommend both his books.