By Jonathan Safran Foer
368 pages; Mariner Books

Foer's second novel, after Everything Is Illuminated, is about a boy whose father died on 9/11 and who has just found a strange key. He sets out to figure out where it fits and what's going on. You join him on the search, which includes finding out more about his father and about his own identity. Some of the hints you're given are visual; there are blank pages and photographs, for instance. And these page breaks and images force you to think in a different way. You find that you're on an adventure, going into a realm of thought and texture and feeling and emotion that is very specific to this boy. Your senses will be awakened.

— Laura Linney