Novels
The Salt Point (1990)
Boys of Life (1991)
Sea of Tranquility (1994)
The Coming Storm (1999)
War Against the Animals (2003)
Boys of Life (1991)
Sea of Tranquility (1994)
The Coming Storm (1999)
War Against the Animals (2003)
Paul Elliott Russell recommends
Eli Harpo's Adventure to the Afterlife (2024)
Eric Schlich
"Moving skillfully between farce and pathos, this tale of entangled allegiances keeps raising its stakes in surprisingly affecting ways. What initially appears to be a deliciously comic takedown of a clueless family of religious nitwits (or are they actually canny grifters?) quickly turns into something messier, more complicated - an empathetic and tender look at an all-too-believably human cast of characters in deep trouble and coming apart at the seams . . . and that's before things get really bad, as young Eli, the Harpo family's golden ticket, begins to realize that essential parts of himself don't conform to the script he's supposed to follow. Without ever forfeiting its deft satire, Eli Harpo's Adventure to the Afterlife plumbs unexpectedly moving emotional depths. The result is a big-hearted, wistfully funny, and bracingly wise account of the always painful journey toward self-discovery."
