How to Read an Unwritten Language

Evocative, lyrical prose and a keen eye for unexpected detail hold the reader spellbound through this odd, poignant tale of a sensitive man's quest to understand himself and his loved ones by cracking the code of their lives' elusive symbolism. When Michael Kirby is 11, his bored, emotionally unstable mother begins adopting imaginary personalities in front of her children, forcing them to play along and reverting to herself only when their father returns home from work. Michael, the eldest of the three children, becomes adept at identifying his mother's ``thicket of selves'' and at helping his unsettled siblings through her increasingly bizarre and dangerous charades. ``In this way I grew up bilingually--learning both the... rules of English grammar at school and Mother's secret, impersonating gestures at home. My first language helped me make my way through the world; my second language helped me see through it.'' After his mother's breakdown and death, Michael continues to apply his exegetical skills more and more: to his cold, stoic father; to his sister Laurie, who becomes an actress as a means of controlling her mother's legacy; to his first wife, Kate, a talented artist afraid of revealing her inner self and of drawing people; to his new love, Sylvia, a meteorologist disillusioned with her profession and with life in general; and to himself and the collection of cast-off objects he collects at auctions and yard sales along with their unique stories. Through Michael's gentle voice, first-novelist Graham (author of a short-story collection, The Art of the Knock, and two other books) fashions a resonant narrative that explores the value of storytelling to make life bearable and the unending struggle to make sense of those closest to us. (Oct.)