I really liked the more recently written, "We Must be Brave", so tracked this out of print debut novel down, but not so much with this one. I'm not keen on dysfunctional families or alcoholics, or stories that romanticize these things. Then, maybe it was the desire for authenticity of a child's thoughts, but I was frequently aggravated by a feeling of being completely at a loss as to what was being referred to. The second character, an adult, was perfectly coherent though. ( )