Reviews
"Powerful and darkly humorous . . . Thompson's characters are sharply drawn and deeply familiar. Her dialogue is pitch-perfect." Laurie Hertzel, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 'One of our most astute diagnosticians of contemporary experience, conflict, unhappiness, and regret.' Bruce Allen, The Boston Globe, " The Year We Left Home plumbs the American heart with rigor and intensity, seamlessly connecting one family's fortunes to those of the larger national community." Liza Nelson, O: The Oprah Magazine, âLovely . . . Told with extraordinary grace . . . The clan at the center of Jean Thompsonâs spare, startlingly resonant new novel remain inextricably linked to the place that made them, even as they reach for lives richer in both geography and purpose. But even minor characters receive the full attention of the authorâs prodigious talents; each one is drawn so vividly that they never feel less than utterly real.â Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly, 'Superb . . . Finely crafted . . . Thompson's pithy humor, redolent details, and knowing compassion have never been sharper or more resounding as her characters' follies and struggles reveal depthless truths about men and women, families and vocations, the lure of away and the gravitational pull of home.' Booklist (starred review), "Wise and Absorbing, this Is One Not to Miss." People, âJean Thompson writes with both sensitivity and intelligence, from a place of deep compassion for her characters and the world in which they live.â Pam Houston, O, The Oprah Magazine, âBleak, wry, and tender . . . Syntax and sense are so perfectly melded, the reader steps through the looking glass and lives in the world the words conjure. . . . Such is Thompsonâs artistry that moments of everyday sorrow and nobility made me weep.â John Repp, Cleveland Plain Dealer, âOne of our most astute diagnosticians of contemporary experience, conflict, unhappiness, and regret.â Bruce Allen, The Boston Globe, â[A] rich, detailed, resonant, emotionally spot-on novel . . . Thompson has a light, exquisite touch. The Year We Left Home feels weightless as a result. By the end of the novel, the reader knows more about the Ericksons than even the Ericksons. The effect is enormously satisfying, allowing the reader not only to connect the dots but to fill in the blanks the author shrewdly leaves wide open.â Bill Eichenberger, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "An extraordinarily warm-hearted novel whose impressive humanity and lightness of touch refresh some narrative elements so abundantly precedented that most fiction writers would have been afraid to go near them." Jonathan Dee, The New York Times Book Review, 'Dazzling . . . Unforgettable . . . A masterful wide-angle portrait of an Iowa family over three decades. . . . Thompson's ability to put these characters empathically on the page, in their special setting, over an extended period of years, with just the right dose of dark humor, rivals Richard Russo's. . . . The novel is a powerful reflection on middle American lifeon the changes wrought by the passing years and the values that endure.' Kirkus Reviews (starred review), "Fantastic . . . Enormously satisfying . . . Thompson has a light, exquisite touch. . . . Rich, detailed, resonant, emotionally spot-on." Bill Eichenberger, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Enlightening and quietly brilliant . . . Thompson is a master at mining the most ridiculous of human foibles while never losing compassion for her flawed characters." Connie Ogle, The Miami Herald, "Wry and tender . . . Such is Thompson's artistry that moments of everyday sorrow and nobility made me weep." John Repp, Cleveland Plain Dealer, âDazzling . . . Unforgettable . . . A masterful wide-angle portrait of an Iowa family over three decades. . . . Thompsonâs ability to put these characters empathically on the page, in their special setting, over an extended period of years, with just the right dose of dark humor, rivals Richard Russoâs. . . . The novel is a powerful reflection on middle American lifeon the changes wrought by the passing years and the values that endure.â Kirkus Reviews (starred review), 'Lovely . . . Told with extraordinary grace . . . The clan at the center of Jean Thompson's spare, startlingly resonant new novel remain inextricably linked to the place that made them, even as they reach for lives richer in both geography and purpose. But even minor characters receive the full attention of the author's prodigious talents; each one is drawn so vividly that they never feel less than utterly real.' Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly, âSuperb . . . Finely crafted . . . Thompsonâs pithy humor, redolent details, and knowing compassion have never been sharper or more resounding as her charactersâ follies and struggles reveal depthless truths about men and women, families and vocations, the lure of away and the gravitational pull of home.â Booklist (starred review), ÂWise and Absorbing, this Is One Not to Miss. People, '[A] rich, detailed, resonant, emotionally spot-on novel . . . Thompson has a light, exquisite touch. The Year We Left Home feels weightless as a result. By the end of the novel, the reader knows more about the Ericksons than even the Ericksons. The effect is enormously satisfying, allowing the reader not only to connect the dots but to fill in the blanks the author shrewdly leaves wide open.' Bill Eichenberger, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 'Startlingly good . . . You may forget that the characters don't really exist, that the Iowa farm family so expertly drawn by the author never drew breath themselves, that most of the events that transpire across the book's three-decade span aren't part of the historical record.' Julia Keller, Chicago Tribune, âStartlingly good . . . You may forget that the characters donât really exist, that the Iowa farm family so expertly drawn by the author never drew breath themselves, that most of the events that transpire across the bookâs three-decade span arenât part of the historical record.â Julia Keller, Chicago Tribune, 'Jean Thompson writes with both sensitivity and intelligence, from a place of deep compassion for her characters and the world in which they live.' Pam Houston, O, The Oprah Magazine, âPrecisely the kind of beautifully crafted, intelligent, imaginative writing that serious readers crave. . . . Each sentence deserves to be appreciated.â Deirdre Donahue, USA Today, âAn extraordinarily warm-hearted novel whose impressive humanity and lightness of touch refresh some narrative elements so abundantly precedented that most fiction writers would have been afraid to go near them.â Jonathan Dee, The New York Times Book Review, 'Few fiction writers working today have more successfully rendered the sensation of solid ground suddenly melting away, pinpointing that instant when the familiar present is swallowed up by an always encroaching past or voided future.' Katherine Dieckmann, The New York Times Book Review, "Bleak, wry, and tender . . . Syntax and sense are so perfectly melded, the reader steps through the looking glass and lives in the world the words conjure. . . . Such is Thompson's artistry that moments of everyday sorrow and nobility made me weep." John Repp, Cleveland Plain Dealer, âPowerful and darkly humorous&Thompson's characters are sharply drawn and deeply familiar. Her dialogue is pitch-perfect.â Laurie Hertzel, Minneapolis Star Tribune, "Told with extraordinary grace . . . The clan at the center of Jean Thompson's spare, startlingly resonant new novel remain inextricably linked to the place that made them, even as they reach for lives richer in both geography and purpose." Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly, âFew fiction writers working today have more successfully rendered the sensation of solid ground suddenly melting away, pinpointing that instant when the familiar present is swallowed up by an always encroaching past or voided future.â Katherine Dieckmann, The New York Times Book Review, 'Powerful and darkly humorous&Thompson's characters are sharply drawn and deeply familiar. Her dialogue is pitch-perfect.' Laurie Hertzel, Minneapolis Star Tribune, "Powerful and darkly humorousâŠThompson's characters are sharply drawn and deeply familiar. Her dialogue is pitch-perfect." Laurie Hertzel, Minneapolis Star Tribune, "Powerful and darkly humorous'ŠThompson's characters are sharply drawn and deeply familiar. Her dialogue is pitch-perfect." Laurie Hertzel, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 'Precisely the kind of beautifully crafted, intelligent, imaginative writing that serious readers crave. . . . Each sentence deserves to be appreciated.' Deirdre Donahue, USA Today, "An Extraordinarily Warm-Hearted Novel." Jonathan Dee, the New York Times Book Review, "A Smart, Resonant Novel." Boston Globe
