This Way Madness Lies [Hardcover]

Thomas William Simpson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1992

A brilliantly imaginative and inventive debut by a sparkling literary talent. After falling down the stairs, "Wild Bill" Winslow summons his wayward children to his New Jersey home for a bizarre family reunion. The result is an entertaining blitz through the family's notorious history, featuring an unforgettable cast of characters.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The history of the Winslow clan, a not-so-average dysfunctional upper-crust American family, is chronicled by first novelist Simpson with dramatic power and ironic humor, but with contrived fatalism.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

First-novelist Simpson uses here the fictional Dear Reader confidential asides, popular a century or two ago and revived by the English satirical novelist Fay Weldon. Weldon, however, grinds some social axes, while Simpson is content to spin a pleasant, popular family-dynasty tale with a Just Deserts close. The story takes place here and there, now and then, but mainly in contemporary New Jersey during a week in June. William ``Wild Bill'' Winslow, 70--indifferent patriarch, tyrant, and a bust as a father--has just taken a header down the stairs in his Far Hills, N.J., ancestral mansion. Now, hospital- bound, he directs young Evangeline--sort of a housekeeper, his lover, and the mother of his two young boys--to gather his eight adult children and even his rotten second wife, Bettina the Greedy. Among the offspring: two failed actresses who wanted to make Daddy's dream of siring a Shakespearean actress come true; a fire- station worker who took the identity of his identical twin, killed in Vietnam; a drug-and-sex hotshot in Aspen; an artist who never found his medium; an unstable son, rapidly going crackers, who's out with a gun in the woods; and a quiet lass living in England who has conversations with ghostly ancestors in New Jersey and the Old Country. We also learn about tragedies in Wild Bill's life and hear the story of his grandfather, Crazy Legs. Most of the children are married, some have offspring--and all gather at Far Hills. Before the hug-all close, there'll be a fire, some scary sighting of the son-with-the-gun, and sibling rebonding. There's nothing too unusual or wild about Wild Bill (the rich, macho, roaring elder is a popular staple), but the tales of the children as they pop up here, one by one, are mildly diverting, and the confidential asides offer some variety. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 388 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books; First Edition edition (January 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446516120
• ISBN-13: 978-0446516129
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #647,326 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reading this author is as if you're watching a movie!, May 15, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: This Way Madness Lies (Hardcover)

Nobody in a long time has written so obviously with the reader in mind. Each character and scene creates an incredible sequence of events. Simpson is definitely unique as a storyteller. Highly recommended reading.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars John Cheever meets Harold Robbins, February 20, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: This Way Madness Lies (Hardcover)

An engaging look into the landed Protestant gentry of New Jersey horse country and their struggle to find meaning in the post-Vietnam era. The characters are lively and Simpson's writing style is reminiscent of John O'Hara at his early best. Understated melodrama and an eye for detail in the dissolving world of WASP culture make this novel a must read for anyone interested in the fading of America's humble aristocracy.