Trees

It's a satire about racists, brutal killings, and justice ... so although it's humorous, it's also thorny and unsettling -- but Everett makes it work. About 2/3 of the way through, it kicks into a higher gear and delivers a powerful punch. I have to admit, it did my heart good to read those scenes where racists were made the butt of so many jokes. It also succeeds as a mystery/thriller; I was anxious to find out how it was going to end. It's a fast read, with short chapters and a lot of dialogue. One odd thing: in Chapter 50, there's a character whose name changes inexplicably. I thought maybe I had missed something, but then I saw some other people discussing it on Goodreads. I guess it was an editing error.

is it a spoiler to say the ending was a disappointment? Luckily the writing is so awesome I'm going to give it a reread soon so maybe the ending will grow on me. A book about death, lynching and racism that makes you laugh out loud, that's a tall order but The Trees manages this. Read it. I'm going to work my way through the rest of the vast body of work of this author hoping for equally compelling reads