Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

The return of Oprah's prodigal son is an event truly worth celebrating, as something interesting, often engrossing, happens on almost every page of Jonathan Franzen's Freedom. Each character in Freedom is broken right down to the core, which could make for some very depressing reading. But Franzen digs deeper and deeper into the broken cracks until he finds the place in the wound where healing might enter.

As long as there have been people we have been telling stories to make things alright. Never have we needed our storytellers more. The hope that emerges from Freedom's tattered landscape is the message that "all manner of things shall be well." Amen, Jonathan Franzen.