I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb, , 0061097640 Search discount cheap book, Compare Book prices, Find Lowest Price
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I Know This Much Is True, cheap new, used books  I Know This Much Is True
Author: Wally Lamb  
ISBN: 0061097640   /   Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Harper   /   2003-11-06
List Price: CDN$10.99
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Editorial Reviews:
Oprah Book Club® Selection, June 1998: What if you were a 40-year-old housepainter, horrifically abused, emotionally unavailable, and your identical twin was a paranoid schizophrenic who believed in public self-mutilation? You'd either be a guest on the Jerry Springer Show or Dominick Birdsey, the antihero, narrator, and bad-juju magnet of I Know This Much Is True. Somewhere in the recesses of this hefty 912-page tome lurks an honest, moving account of one man's search, denial, and acceptance of self. This is no easy feat considering his grandfather seemed to take parenting tips from the SS and his grandmother was a possible teenage murderess, his stepfather a latent sadist, and his brother, Thomas, a politically motivated psychopath. Not one to break with tradition, Dominick continues the dysfunctional legacy with rape, a failed marriage, a nervous breakdown, SIDS, a car crash, and a racist conspiracy against a coworker--just to name a few.

A stretch, both literally and figuratively from his Oprah-christened bestseller, She's Come Undone, Lamb's book ventures outside the confines of the tightly bound beach read and marathons through a detailed, neatly cataloged account of every familial travesty and personal failure one can endure. At its heart lies Freud's "return of the repressed": the more we try to deny who we are, the more we become what we fear. Lamb takes Freud's psychological abstraction to the realm of everyday living, packing his novel with tender, believable dialogue and thoughtful observation. --Rebekah Warren


Customer Reviews:
A Complicated Life?     
Whose isn't? But then, Lamb has a knack for really telling it like it is. This books gives us the story of a messed-up life of forty-something Dominick Birdsey. His twin brother, Thomas, is a paranoid schizophrenic who believes he is God' messenger and that various government agencies are out to get him. Sound like your next door neighbor? Sounds like mine. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Dominick's and Thomas's stepfather is practicing the not-so-subtle art of hate, abuse, and sadism--this, a continuation from what he did to the boys in childhood. As the novel unfolds, more screwed up characters get into the act and Lamb somehow manages to get us to read about them, eventhough they seem unrealistic at times. This book was extremely hard to put down--like watching a bad traffic accident in which you want to look away, but can't. If you like this book, then you'll enjoy another I recently read called THE BARK OF THE DOGWOOD. Also about family dysfunctions and over-coming hardships but VERY funny and also very dark. Great writing, both the Lamb and the Dogwood book.
Worth While Read     
Yes, I must admit, I almost dropped this book. I found the first 200 pages of it very depressing. I had difficulty picking it up every day and reading the thoughts, feelings, and doings of a character that I didn't like, didn't understand, and most importantly could not relate to. After the 200 pages things took a turn...and I could not put the book down, the last and final chapter seemed to be what I was waiting and hungry for and I was so glad I made it. Looking back at it, I must say that, the book was incredible. A character who I never would be friend's with, did not understand, and could not relate to, became someone I could look up to, love, and admire.
I know this book is good     
I recently read this, along with Lamb's other book, SHE'S COME UNDONE and loved them both. Do not be turned away from this book because of its size. After reading only the first couple pages i couldn't put it down! This book is about a man named Dominick and his schizophrenic twin brother. Living in a family and a life that is on the edge of falling apart, this novel will lead your through the memories and tragedies of Dominicks journey from childhood into adulthood. Dominick struggles to find his own identity. The main theme of this book is that life is full of tears and laughter, loss and gain, joy and sorrow. Wally captivates the reader through the emotions and compelling life that this family endured. You have GOT to read another book I just picked up called -----KATZENJAMMER by Jackson McCrae-----simply fantastic. Great stuff.
What a story     
I Know This Much Is True is an amazing book that can't really be described in words. At best, I can only say that the story is about twins- one of the twins is afflicted by schizophrenia and the other who is a healthy boy. But the healthy brother seemingly wants to be like his sick brother and does everything possible to make himself mental like his twin brother, a process that is pursued with deliberate actions of madness that affects all around him. Why? We may ask. Simply, the healthy brother is obsessed with guilt and responsibility for the state of his sick brother

This book is just overwhelming. This hair-spinning story will make you laugh, cry, smile gasp, and sigh until the very end. It is so fulfilling. You will be doing yourself an advantage by reading this book. It says a lot that you never knew about.Triple Agent Double Cross, Disciples of Fortune, Black and Blue, While I Was Gone are other novels with ingenious characters and an inspiring hero.

dull, dull and more dull     
I quite liked his first book and expected more from this. Instead, I got a 700 page after school special of cliched sentimentality and a paint by numbers protagonist.
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