3.85 avg rating — 197,430 ratings

"The last great American novel before 9/11 changed everything. It's a timely snapshot of how things used to be, while also remaining pertinent to the everyday problems facing families in America."

4.22 avg rating — 48,366 ratings

"A constant theme that stuck out to me throughout the novel is concealment, whether through the history of certain main characters, a beautiful part (my favorite in the novel) comparing written works to a forest, or the overly-detailed, uncomfortable crimes(based on true crimes, sadly), etc.

It was worth the pain and suffering of getting through the long novel. "