The Laments Book

Constantly moving - from South Africa to the Persian Gulf to Rhodesia to England, and ultimately to suburban New Jersey - the Laments are a quirky and lovable family who live by the motto "anywhere but here." The main character, Will Lament, whom the Laments take home from the hospital as a result of a bizarre mix-up in a hospital, grows up feeling that he doesn't belong. For after all, there is his father, an idealistic engineer; his mother, a woman of indomitable spirit with a passion for Shakespeare; and his twin brothers Marcus and Julius who are nothing but trouble. What makes this quirky family so universal is Will's search for identity and the Laments' unwieldy love for one another - even in the most difficult of times.

The New York Times

Mr. Hagen has shaped an affectionate family portrait in which the characters come vividly to life, no matter how adrift they may be. The Lament parents are especially memorable, Julia for her sense of lost opportunity and Howard for his gradual way of losing heart...Each of them sees new opportunity eternally on the horizon in ways that have the potential to make this a story of crushing disappointment. But Mr. Hagen somehow endows it with brightness and finds a universality here, too.—Janet Maslin