Poetic, gently eccentric and deeply poignant * * The Times * * [His] most substantial novel . . . Brautigan is especially adept at evoking the everyday magic of childhood * * Times Literary Supplement * * The verbal humour and zany charm of the book remain quite irresistible * * Daily Telegraph * * Strikingly original . . . [Brautigan] is the lone eccentric on the busy city intersection staring at the sky and finding patterns in the clouds, while everyone else shuffles along staring at the ground * * Guardian * * Brautigan gets you drunk on similes, knocks you out with exquisite turns of phrase . . . Amazing * * Uncut * *