There are books you love from the first page and then there are books that grow in you, like a virus, but a virus that sort of makes you feel better and more hopeful and more elated. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is that second kind of book. It gets off to a slow start. Too slow, really. About a third of the book had passed before I felt like I could answer the question "What's that book you're reading about?" But then as the Mark and Leila and Leo stories tie themselves more and more closely together, the novel's world cracks apart and reveals a whole Oompa Loompa Wonderland that has been going on right underneath the surface. It's funny and it's chaotic and it's a little bit beautiful and hopeful and great as well.

Plus, Leo Crane is just a character I loved more every chapter he appeared in.

I know it won't be a book for everyone, but for those who fall under its spell, it's a wonderful read.