Well written but badly described on the cover - led me to believe I'd be engaging with Ethiopia - but actually it's more of a literary North American angst - so I was disappointed. Still enjoyed it however, up to a point. ( )

Despite lukewarm reviews in both the New York Times and the Guardian, I really liked this book. To be fair, the reviews did not pan the book but point to flaws in long awkward phrases that obscure the important bits, and odd word choices; but the reviewers look to more works from this very young and talented author.

Like the reviewers, or maybe more than them, I found much to be admired in this ambitious novel. The storytelling is very creative, yet still grounded in plausibility of the trials and struggles of the protagonists parents. Jonas grows to finish college with a degree in English and a storytelling gift of his own. In fact, he builds much of his relationships on telling stories (read here - untruths). It is as if he is trying to fade away to obscurity as much as it was his mother's wish for herself. Yet, the more he distances himself from his family, friends and colleagues, the more he returns to the truth that he always will carry them with him - the parting truth of the book. ( )

Beautifully written yet unconvincing. We never deeply understand the motivations of the four main characters. Lot's of poetic writing but very little true emotion. The New Yorker short story extracted from the book (in the 20 under 40 series) was strangely powerful. The same story, diffused here through several chapters, seems empty and almost fake. The same can be said for the book as a whole, Nonetheless Mengetsu is a highly talented writer and no doubt better things will come. ( )

The story of Jonas, the son of Ethiopian immigrants to the Midwest, is told in several threads, his marriage, his relationship with his parents, and his parents life in the Midwest. Mengetsu’s approach to telling this story is original and interesting. ( )

I don't usually require a lot of action in a novel for me to enjoy it, but this book was far too slow. Nothing happened. I was bored the entire time. The writing was overly introspective. Every action each character takes is followed by a long explanation of why they are taking that action. Despite all all the descriptions, I rarely understood or empathized with any of the characters. ( )