Critical Praise

"A strange, bumpy, and memorable trip through small town USA--a compelling journey into the heart of American life. "

———Redbook

"Deft, touching, and humorous. In the tradition of Richard Ford, Raymond Carver, and Anne Tyler. "

———The Christian Science Monitor

"McNeal is aware that many more of us will accept the sadness we know than venture out in search of a possibly painful unknown--and he renders such decisions in language whose very plainess feels musical. "

———The New York Times

"A vivid, tender and thoughtful portrait of a great plains farm town. These sad, secret stories bring out the best of McNeal's writing, and are his finest and most lasting gifts to the reader. "

———Los Angeles Times

"Completely compelling. A beautifully drawn portrait of a town that at once combines and cradles the people who grow up in it. "

———National Public Radio

"What a remarkable debut!... A small town that is as vivid and alive as Sinclair Lewis's Zenith, Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio, and Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon. "

———The Denver Post

"You'll want...to buy copies for all your reading friends--flawless. "

———San Francisco Chronicle