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The Ha-Ha
A Novel
by Dave King
Dave King's debut novel tells the story of a man who has not spoken or written since an injury sustained while fighting in Vietnam 30 years ago, who finds himself emerging from his shell when suddenly forced to care for a 9-year-old boy.
Little, Brown, 352 pages
01/11/2005
$23.95
ISBN: 0316156108
Fiction
General Literature & Fiction
All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...
Chicago Tribune John McNally
The morals that lie at the heart of this novel are subtle and complex. King has also achieved the nearly impossible by writing about grim circumstances without writing a grim book. [9 Jan 2005, p.C4]
Los Angeles Times Mark Rozzo
The disconnect between Howard's flair for observation and his difficulty in expressing himself generates no end of heartbreak and beauty. [9 Jan 2005, p.R10]
Boston Globe Caroline Leavitt
There may not be surprises in the plot, and there is one clunky subplot about a crazy homeless vet that seems unnecessary, but these small quibbles don't really mar the absolute power of The Ha-Ha.
Library Journal Jim Coan
A plot summary of this vibrant first novel may sound depressing, but King handles the story with honesty, skill, and humor. [1 Nov 2004, p.75]
The New York Times Book Review Mark Kamine
King's writerly restraint serves his story well. His novel is unflaggingly believable. Neither showy nor histrionic, The Ha-Ha is full of emotional truth and establishes King as a writer of consequence.
Publishers Weekly
Lovingly rendered in careful, steady prose.
Christian Science Monitor Ron Charles
In the poetic voice of a silent man, King has created a strangely lovable hero whose chance for happiness will matter to you deeply
Houston Chronicle Barbara Liss
[King] chose for Howard an articulate interior life to compensate for his outwardly silent one, and in doing this he created the best kind of character: someone to remember and care about after the book ends.
Washington Post Dan Chaon
King imbues Howard with so much soulful nuance that commonplace dramatic devices take on a fresh vividness and urgency.
San Francisco Chronicle Malena Watrous
The ending of The Ha-Ha is neither happy nor sad. Instead, it's real, as real as Howard's voice, which will echo long in the reader's ear long after the book is finished.
USA Today Bob Minzesheimer
Howard Kapostash emerges as a character worth rooting for.
Boston Globe Julie Hatfield
There's a sweet, sad ending to this hardened vet's special time with the child he and Sylvia never had, and King has a lot of insight into the unspoken feelings of a seemingly silent loser.
Kirkus Reviews
When he shrugs off the heavy overcoat of writing program metaphors - a ha-ha is a boundary wall concealed in a ditch, it is explained - King will be a writer to watch.
The New Yorker
The plot moves predictably (damaged vet cheering at school pageant; vet buying catcher’s mitt) toward movie-ready redemption.
The Onion A.V. Club Andy Battaglia
The Ha-Ha's monochromatic presentation sometimes works against it, however: Though driven almost entirely by interior monologue, it trades less in observation than in literal descriptions of everyday people and things.
Village Voice Phyllis Fong
The book, bravely, defends any cheesiness to the end, which is one kind of victory. That emotions are basically pure is a good thing, especially when there's so little else.
 The average user rating for this book is 9.5 (out of 10) based on 4 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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