Seabrook's survey of Brown's work is exhaustive--and exhausting. He basically summarizes the plot of everything Brown wrote, including his poetry! Obviously, this means lots of spoilers if you haven't read the works in question. If you're like me, you'll probably forget which work was which and it won't matter. He provides biographical information where it is available, often from an unpublished book by Brown's second wife. Overall, this book is rather tedious, though Seabrook is to be credited, apparently, with spurring a revival of interest in this worthy writer. Many of the books Seabrook cites as out of print have now returned to print, as eBooks at least. Throughout, Seabrook offers his own critical judgment--which is rather suspect--of Brown's various works, and he cites other critics when the works were reviewed (whose reviews are widely divergent). In any case, this did encourage me to seek out some of Brown's works that I haven't read yet, including his only "straight" novel, The Office. Seabrook has done a service to all readers--but he hasn't done it with the style of his subject. ( )