Two families. Two faces of America. An act of violence with far-reaching consequences. A heart-rending reckoning with some of the complex issues that divide America in our troubled times - religious extremism; a woman's rights over her body; gun violence; capital punishment - this is a novel Joyce Carol Oates was born to write. To read it is to encounter the full spectrum of humanity - its ugliness, misery, beauty and hope. Timely depiction of an issue hotly debated on a national stage.