The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint

It's been awhile since I've found fiction that could really suck me in- the kind of fiction where I ignore my kids, chores, invitations to go out... This is one of those books. Nothing terribly 'big' happens... but something is happening all the time. The writing is so engaging, the protagonist so unstoppable... I couldn't put this book down. I went right onto read the Lonely Polygamist, which is also great.

I really loved this story. It really pulled on the old heart strings and could make you laugh or wanna cry all that the same time.

A heartbreaking but ultimately triumphant work of incredible genius. There were times, while reading this book that I could simply not bear to go any further. I was filled with rage at the writer who could allow his own 'son', so to speak, be made to endure such incredible cruelty and violence. I guess I just went on because it would have felt like not completing the book would have been almost like abandoning this child. Edgar is brave, lovable, loyal and heroic without having the slightest clue that he is anything of the sort. Read this book. It's one of those where you can't wait to find out what happens at the end, while simultaneously rationing your reading so the book doesn't end too soon. This is definitely a book you will find yourself recommending to everyone you know who reads at all - a book that has the ability to make you cry and laugh out loud often on the same page.

Much is made of this book's wonderful first paragraph. But more should be said about its dark, laugh-out-loud first chapter. Populated with interesting characters placed in vibrant settings, Edgar Mint is the best book I read this year. Brady Udall writes with simple, elegant, often hilarious prose that allows his story and people to emerge, making this that rare effort that is both thoughtfully literary and highly readable.

(...)Should you enter a large bookstore you won't find it on the "hot picks" shelf or in the "best sellers" section either. The reasons that so many great books don't surface to the top are many and why so many gifted authors have day jobs as well. It is a shame that literary accomplishments like The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint by Brady Udall don't get the mass recognition they deserve because the marketing wasn't there or the promotional process was limited or the author had no previous best sellers. This is a wonderful and unforgettable book about a wonderful and unforgettable character. From the moment in the early pages when young Edgar is run over by the mailman, as event after event in Edgar's miraculous life unfolds and through to the closing chapters, you are in for a an inspiring reading experience that will at different times leave you utterly joyous, emotional, in disbelief, and everywhere in between. Udall's writing style is simple yet his words on paper are like colors on a canvas, he is a master storyteller. The only disappointing moment is in the closing pages when the last words are read because one wishes there had been another 400 pages more to enjoy.

This is the kind of book Irving USED to write. It's touching, funny, tender, shattering and at the most unexpected moments, beautiful. I still haven't caught my breath after reading it. You will never meet another character like Edgar, I promise you, and you will never regret meeting him, though he will certainly break your heart.