Shep Knacker's life hasn't turned out as he planned. He spent his life saving for an early retirement in a remote location, selling his firm to a jerk who he now works for. He has the money to leave but his wife has just been diagnosed with an aggressive cancer. He has a sister who thinks he's a piggybank, a father who is failing and needs care, a grown daughter who still needs help with her rent and a teenage son who lives in his bedroom and rarely emerges.
His best friend has a failing marriage and a teenage daughter who won't live to be an adult as she has a rare neurological disease. Jackson rails against the world constantly, sure that there is a conspiracy to keep them all enslaved to the government and big business. His last ditch effort to save his marriage is a medical disaster.
This novel explores the issue of long-term disability and terminal diseases. It is not a cheery read but it points out some of the more pressing issues of medical care and how it can impoverish a family facing a serious illness and how we are dependent on health insurance often at odds with our wishes. Although an English author, Lionel Shriver gets the American health care industry and its intrusions on our lives. She is known for writing novels that explore various social issues and this one is successful on that score. This novel is recommended for readers of literary fiction.
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