Book excerpt: "Richly imagined, beautifully written, and completely absorbing. I found myself spellbound, turning pages well past my bedtime. What a fine, fine book." -Tim O'Brien After Jack Lang impulsively buys the house directly across the street from his own, his wife, Beth, has finally had enough. She leaves him- and their six-year-old autistic son, Hendrick-for Jack's best friend, Terry Canavan. Jack tries telling everyone he's okay, but even he's not so sure. When Hendrick, who rarely talks, starts speaking in fluent Spanish, Jack knows he's in uncharted territory. But once Canavan's ex- girlfriend Rena turns up at his door to see how things are going, Jack begins to suspect the world could be far more complicated than he'd ever believed. Set against a landscape of defunct putt-putt courses and karaoke bars, parenthood and infidelity, This Is Just Exactly Like You is a wise and witty debut novel with captivating insights into marriage, autism, suburban fiasco, and life's occasional miracles.