The Flying Troutmans - Miriam Toews

In The Flying Troutmans (Counterpoint, $24) Miriam Toews introduces one of the most appealing and irrepressible characters in recent memory: Thebes, short for Theodora.  When her mother sinks into chronic depression, Thebes calls her Aunt Hattie in Paris, begging her to come home and help her family.  What follows is one of the most heartfelt, humorous, and insightful road trips in recent memory as Thebes, her older brother Logan, and Hattie commandeer a van and search for the kids’ father, rumored to be running an art gallery somewhere in South Dakota.  These are characters that get way under your skin, and a book that keeps you smiling from start to finish.