Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant. Funny. Heartbreaking.
Review: This is the first Rick Moody book I have ever read, and based on what I'd heard about his style, I was prepared for some unconventional narrative structure. As it turns out, the only thing that's unconventional in this book is the lack of quotation marks around dialogue. Otherwise, this is some exceptionally strong story telling, employing all of the components of satisfying literature (conflict, crisis, resolution, character transformation) and some really creative, insightful writing. Moody has a unique narrative voice, to be sure, but it's far from being obtuse or inaccessible; it's more like painful interior dialogue, rendered in emotions and impressions that are simultaneously universal and foreign.There are two thematic backdrops that reinforce what is basically a story about disintegration: nuclear crisis (as experienced by the main character's deceased father and present day stepfather) and degenerative disease (as experienced by the main character's mother). Hex Raitliffe, the troubled, stuttering son summoned home to "assist" his mother, is in a degenerative state himself, and in the course of a day (the time period covered in the book) manages to bed his childhood crush, confront his runaway stepfather, get into a fistfight, blow up his rental car, and kill his mother -- or maybe he doesn't. I don't want to give away the last act. Tortured though he is, there is something positive and redeeming in Hex Raitliffe, and he manages eventually to bring out the best in almost everyone he encounters. I found all of the characters believable, but especially Hex, who Moody brings to exquisite and poignant life. His crises are ours, and in the end he reaches a conclusion most any of us would, even if we wouldn't necessarily follow the same path to get there. What made this book work for me was the vicarious adventure I experienced following his path.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant. Funny. Heartbreaking.
Review: This is the most complete, nuanced, and beautiful work I've read by Rick Moody. It's jammed with his witty observations, scathing cynicism, and ironic beauty, and it's a great introduction to his memorable character development and unique writing style.
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