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Title: Impressive debut
Review: An impressive debut for this novelist. The book is populated with real people, driven by drama, and adorned with the occasional inspired phrase or image (I especially liked the prologue's reference to "the kind of factory-farm operation that could still squeeze a profit out of teats").As a pastor, I was also grateful for Glass's portrayal of spiritual work in the story; I read repeatedly the characterization in chapter seventeen: "Spiritual work was frustrating. No way to measure whether or not you were doing any real good....Maybe the only time he accomplished anything was when people's lives began to fall apart" (p. 161). Such hardscrabble realism shows the insight and honesty of the author and the depth and breadth of the characters.The story of truck driver Ross Martin is an American story, and a universal one. It is worth buying, worth reading, and worth learning from...especially if the success of this novel encourages the author to keep writing.
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