A charming whopper of a tale. -The San Diego Union-Tribune
In his prime, Edward Bloom was an extraordinary man. He could outrun anybody. He never missed a day of school. He saved lives and tamed giants. Animals loved him, people loved him, women loved him. He knew more jokes than any man alive. At least that´s what he told his son, William. But now Edward Bloom is dying, and William wants desperately to know the truth about his elusive father-this indefatigable teller of tall tales-before it´s too late. So, using the few facts he knows, William re-creates Edward´s life in a series of legends and myths, through which he begins to understand his father´s great feats, and his great failings. The result is hilarious and wrenching, tender and outrageous.
Refreshing, original . . . Wallace mixes the mundane and the mythical. His chapters have the transformative quality of fable and fairy tale. -Publishers Weekly, starred review
A comic novel about death, about the mysteries of parents and the redemptive power of storytelling. -USA Today
Highly original . . . An imaginative, and moving, record of a son´s love for a charming, unknowable father. -Kirkus Reviews