PositiveLibrary Journal... a love letter to the weirdness and difficulties of children and of parenting, with or without spontaneous human combustion. The fire is a lovely and flexible metaphor for childhood—the pain, joy, and mania of it—as vital, beautiful, and terrifying as kids themselves can be. Lillian tells the story in an easy, engaging voice, cynical and funny without being caustic. Like the author’s The Family Fang, this is another story of a family that is as delightfully bizarre as it is heartfelt and true ... Wilson further cements himself as a chronicler of peculiar families while reminding us that, then again, aren’t they all?
Meghan Kenny
RaveShelf AwarenessKenny's prose is quiet and lovely ... The plot doesn't propel the narrative. Instead, the book sits quietly, like summer heat, amid unanswerable questions about things beyond our control. It's a coming-of-age story that could be published as YA, and lends itself to crossover readership.
