Title: Beautifully written, but wrapped up too abruptly
Review: Begley writes beautifully; his prose is seemingly effortless, although I'm sure it took many drafts to make it seem that way. Schmidt is a compelling protagonist, and his story is artfully told -- at least until the final fifty pages or so. The ending is far too abrupt, and the loose ends are tied up so neatly (and so much in Schmidt's favor) as to be unbelievable. It's not simply a compliment to Begley's writing style to say I wanted the book to go on longer; the story itself demanded to be longer. A more
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