Gone

This is the type of book that gets better after a second or even a third read. Not that it would be a good idea to rush into these other reads, but it is the sort of book that, at least for me, the first time I read it, I was a little frustrated at the plot's pace, but captivated by the strong characters (particularly the letters of Aunt Judith).

This book is like a jigsaw puzzle with no picture on the box to help you along. In fact, it might be a puzzle for which the box is gone, and you don't even know if you have all the pieces, and the pieces are printed on both sides.

A friend recently gave me this book, saying that he couldn't find anything to say about it; not that he didn't like it, it just left him speechless. This made me curious, because ordinarily my friend is quite voluble and will go on for hours about the books he enjoys, especially "experimental" fiction and why they are superior to the books he calls "middlebrow.