I received a digital NetGalley ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Joshua Wheeler and Graywolf Press for the opportunity!

This book reads like both a twisted celebration and a social commentary on the obsession the world, but especially the United States, has with the idea of space travel. From UFO cults to the moon landings and all of the ordinary people caught in the crossfire, to the impact all of this chaos has on a young girl trying to restart her life after having escaped from it all. This book was surreal and engaging, and I never quite knew what the next turn was going to bring.

Thanks to Graywolf Press and NetGalley for this ARC of Joshua Wheeler's 'The High Heaven.'

I really enjoyed this trip through the outer edges of America's space and lunar mythology crossed and fundamentalist cults and the fringes of late 20th century and early 21st century American society.

The core and pseudo Zelig-like character running through the entirety of 'The High Heaven' is Izzy. A young girl, a survivor from a cult raid in New Mexico and whose life takes a twisting and turning route through childhood, adolescence, middle- and old-age.

She's a wonderful character and the people with whom she interacts - from the ostensible goodies to the ostensible baddies - are all really well-drawn and influence and haunt her mind and existence throughout her life.

Weaving Izzy's life events around real world events that she either experienced or missed, this is a feelgood novel in the weirdest way.

Having run at a really good clip for much of the book I thought it lagged towards the end and the whole 'moonless' phase but still a wonderful story nonetheless. I smiled a lot.

The plot description for this one sucked me in, though I don't usually read literary fiction these days. I wasn't disappointed--it was decidedly the absurdist, historically sweeping tableau that the description promised.