Wonderful, real, unshowy writing, which packs such a punch overall. ( )

I have been blown away by both of the Smiley books I've read. I may have to make a point of reading everything she has written. This one is two novellas, one, a mother and grown children in Wisconsin coming to terms with the divorce that happened many years earlier. The second a couple with one son homesteading in rural Pennsylvania. Both are exceptional, but "Good Will" struck very close to home since we spent about 5 years trying to live the lifestyle described. Smiley has a great way of making me feel like I am living with her characters which helps to get me very involved with the story. ( )

Two long short stories, or short novels, by Jane Smiley
This is the place to see how Jane Smiley crafts her fiction. Plain sentences. Grounded details. And waiting in the wings, horrible surprises, which the characters have earned through a long series of confident, well-meaning, subtly bad choices. ( )