O'Dell's story captures all the facets of an extremely dysfunctional family with raw, shocking realism - outright physical and verbal abuse, insinuated sexual abuse, incest and murder. As the novel unfolds, it becomes obvious that the male narrator is mentally disturbed but it's nearly impossible not to sympathize with his situation. O'Dell also does an excellent job of portraying his sexual frustrations, not to mention the overall confusion and desperation of a young man who has had too much responsibility thrust upon him. I highly recommend this novel. It is compulsively readable and well written.

Amazingly written book with well developed charaters. Although dark, O'Dell makes the disfunction heartwarming. I couldn't put this book down once I started.

I felt so much sadness for the main character of this book. I wanted him to get a break somewhere along the line and find some happiness but it was just not meant to be. I would love to see this turned into a movie.

The twisted storyline in this book threw me for a bit of a loop, and the intensity of the characters is riveting. I couldn't put it down. It's a very quick read - esp for the length of it. I was left feeling a bit shocked by the graphic details and twisted thoughts/actions, but in a good way. It's amazing when a book can get under your skin and creep you out a bit, but draw you in to wonder about a world in which such things can exist so easily. I would definitely recommend this book.