But the introduction to an unreliable narrator and the concept of verisimilitude -- the blurry line between truth and fiction, whatever fiction may be -- as well as a revelation on the craft of writing, make Atonement a breathtaking read.
But the sense of immediacy Mark Mills brings to THE INFORMATION OFFICER (Random House, $25) is so intense that this breathtaking novel reads more like a memoir than a wartime thriller.
It is not only breathtaking to read this all in a work the likes of which so many Americans long to have written about our own gay history, but when one finishes reading it, one utters an audible huge sigh of relief.
"Everybody has read this breathtaking piece.
("Even in the pantsuit she's breathtaking," the pilot script reads).
We still read the breathtaking statistics: 18 billion taxpayer dollars were spent on immigration enforcement in FY2012, more than all other federal criminal law enforcement agencies combined.
"The sweet surrender as they looked into my eyes," the note read, "It was breathtaking".
Likewise, the ways in which Lili and Einar change places in the world are sometimes breathtaking in passages worth re-reading and even sharing aloud with someone you love.
Otherwise, I'm sure most writers would spend an awful lot of time cranking out reviews of their own books — "breathtaking… beautifully wrought… a must-read… an astonishing accomplishment" — in other words, Winder-style happy news.
Otherwise, I'm sure most writers would spend an awful lot of time cranking out reviews of their own books—"breathtaking… beautifully wrought… a must-read… an astonishing accomplishment"—in other words, Winder-style happy news.
