I often think of books like onions, with layer after layer peeled away to reveal a core emotional truth. "Lucid Stars" is the reverse of that: Barrett adds layers of characters and complexity to and initially bare story to reveal those same kinds of resonant universal truths that mark good storytelling. In this case, she uses the story of one family in all its complicated pieces and iterations to comment on notions of family, a particular time and place in modern American history, the role of women, and our individual capacity to shape our own lives. These interwoven stories focus on individuals, but also on their connections to each other, the choices they make for themselves, and also the unforeseen consequences those actions have for the people around them. ( )

http://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2006/06/66-lucid-stars-andrea-barrett.html ( )