The Wasp Eater

William Lychack

This is Lychack's first novel and my overwhelming impression of his writing is that he's a stylist if not necessarily a storyteller. In lyrical and descriptive prose ("An airplane unzippered the sky.."; "The sparkler sound of applause"...) Lychack tells the story of a young boy who is hoping that his mother will find a way to forgive his father for betraying her. I thought this book had a lot of potential but despite Lychack's talent at beautifully putting words together, he seems to run out of things to say. It's a story about loss and a young boy's journey toward understanding but it never really captured my interest.