HEATHER, THE TOTALITY

Author and narrator Matthew Weiner is the most obvious choice to bring this narrative experiment to life. His dry, urbane point of view was most evident in his TV creation, "Mad Men." Here he mines the same depths of malignant personalities in Mark and Karen Breakstone, a mismatched couple who produce the almost magical Heather. The existential threat to Heather is Bobby Klasky, a violent sociopath whose interest in the girl drives the story to its shocking climax. Weiner affects no actor's mannerisms in his delivery, letting the work itself lead the listener through the sometimes outrageous and occasionally baffling twists. Because Weiner doesn't allow the characters to speak for themselves, the audiobook version is especially effective as it helps listeners to note revealing nuances in the narrative. R.O. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2018]