RaveThe New York Times Book ReviewAn exceptionally touching novel in multiple ways ... . The novel carefully shows the way the child’s very existence changes each of the other characters’ lives, all while perfectly encapsulating the frustration, boredom, anxiety and tremendous bursts of tenderness that come from raising a young one ... I’ll take a moment here to applaud Lamont’s human, heartfelt and nonjudgmental portrait of depression and suicide ... Made me cry on more than one occasion, and laugh out loud many more times. It’s a terrific reminder that what binds us to our loved ones isn’t blood but the care we take to keep them close, and our ability to show up for them when we screw it up on the first go-round.
Andre Dubus
PositiveThe New York Times Book ReviewMuch like Tom, the first half of this novel is hard. Not hard to read, mind you. Dubus...is at the top of his game here, masterfully carrying the reader from the present action to Tom’s memories and dreams without confusion. The writing and the structure are clean and seamless ... In Such Kindness we remain squarely in Tom’s head, and Tom’s head is not an easy place to be. He’s a bit of a bummer to hang with, which he himself would almost eagerly admit. Still, every gritty, well-written disaster in the first half of this book is balanced by the transcendence of the novel’s ending ... At its core, this book is a hero’s journey, but not one where the hero ends up somewhere wildly different from where he starts. This is a story of acceptance. Hard-won, beautiful, life-changing acceptance.
