THE GARDEN OF LAST DAYS (Andre Dubus III) - September 1/08

This incredibly long novel does feature some very vivid characters yet it's impossible not to think that the whole thing would've worked better at half the length. The separate storylines - including stripper April, hijacker Bassam, and inadvertent kidnapper AJ - are generally interesting enough, though the book often dwells in the backgrounds and most minute details of its characters' lives. **1/2 out of ****