Home Repair

Picked up Home Repair while waiting on line at my local bookstore and couldn't put it down. I kept letting people go ahead of me until finally I crept over to the coffee area. I read about 50 pages when my phone vibrated in my pocket and my wife asked me what was going on. (She loved it too.) Smart, funny, beautifully written and full of surprises. Best Book I've read this year.

At first, I wanted to skim Liz Rosenberg's book; but as I read, it became impossible for me to skip ahead. I was drawn into every sentence. Eve's grandmother and her daughter are wonderfully painted, with distinct and lovable qualities and I hated to come to the end of the novel. The story has humor, anguish, and tension -- a combination that doesn't often occur successfully in modern literature.

I had a friend recommend this book to me, so I looked into it as I usually read a book a week while on the train to and from work. It was really entertaining! I actually kept reading it even after getting home, which I rarely do since I read to keep my self entertained on the train and thus try to save the book for that time. I really couldn't put this down though. I'd recommend it to someone who wants a good story that brings them through the everyday mind spinning chaos of life, but at the end leaves them feeling good about being alive and being human (with all our of our own deficiencies and beauty) in this world. I really enjoyed this and would definitely say it's worth checking out.

This is one of those that just draw you in and you can't put it down. The style: the way it flows, how care is taken to capture the nuances and closeness of the family - their talk, the way they listen and generally respond to one another - in this way it reminded me of Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger. It's an animal of its own though, a little wild in that you don't know which way its going to go next. And it does not disappoint. I would recommend this book to anyone that has been waiting for a fresh, readable and unpredictable story.

An outstanding book from one of my favorite poets, and Liz Rosenberg's talents in poetry are evident in her fiction as well. The book has an engaging story, but one of the things that sets this novel apart are the characters, which are both imperfect and sympathetic-- drawing what they need from one another and giving gifts in return that they don't realize they even have to give. The dialogue feels genuine and artful. The voices of Marcus and Mrs. Dunrea are particularly strong, but neither would be fully realized without the interactions with the narrator and the other unique characters Rosenberg has created. There is an honesty in the storytelling that is unusual and moving; there are no easy answers for these characters, and every one of their triumphs is hard won. The novel is accomplished and beautiful-- a wonderful read.