Emergingwriters.com By Dan Wickett I Smile Back Amy Koppelman (Two Dollar Radio, $15)

Having loved Amy Koppelman's debut, A Mouthful of Air, a few years back, I'd been looking forward to this novel. Though I must admit, looking forward might be a bit of a stretch when it comes to Amy's work. She's a fearless writer, willing to take on topics that will make her readers at least a tad uncomfortable. Her debut's protagonist was a mother suffering from post-partum depression. This time around she gives us Laney Brooks, truly a difficult woman to care about from beginning all the way to the end. She's suffering but isn't completely willing to admit this to herself. She's constantly worried about her appearance, about what others are thinking about her, and most of all, how she is fucking up the future lives of her children. While it's hard to like and/or root for Laney, Koppelman makes it all but impossible to not pay attention to her. She's given us a perfect mix of the seemingly fully in control exterior and completely messed up interior, with perhaps the only misstep being a reliance on giving Laney a semblance of a reason for her actions - the bailing out on her own family by her father when she was growing up. It's not introduced right away, and by the time it is, I'd already been convinced of Laney's issues, and didn't need a hard line reason for her actions. That said, her actions, drugs, sleeping around, coming and going as she pleases, horrible comments about her husband in front of his work associates or clients, are where Koppelman's writing shines. The internal conflict Laney goes through while acting in this manner is written perfectly. Koppelman seems to be content to challenge her readers, and those that are up for the ride will be treated very well.

4.5 stars

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