(yes, I meant the pun in the title. read the book, re-read my review, it'll seem funnier. really.)

Tepper, when asked why so many of her stories had small furry creatures who sing in them, said 'Cats singing on my desk as I work.'

I read this book when I was 15, and I have to admit, it was a helpful thing to learn; that everyone remembers things differently, and only by pooling our stories can we possibly attempt to reach the truth.

The book is a little slow to start; revealment is layered, and occasionally could be sped up a little. Additionally, like many of Tepper's early books, the bad guys is bad. Her more recent bad guys tend to have a little more depth.

Tepper is one of the best SF writers at creating worlds and the aliens that inhabit them. Her aliens nearly always have real depth to them and a real impact on her storylines besides the usual shoot-em-up space opera SF. This book in particular [surprised] me because I wasn't sure I was going to like it after the first couple of chapters but I ended up amazed at her handling of humans and aliens and plots. This was my 2nd Tepper book (after Sideshow) and by the end of this book I was determined to read everything she'd ever written. Still am, too! I loaned this to my sister and it had the same effect on her even tho she's not as much of an SF fan as I am, so I would recommend this as an introduction to Tepper too.

As a confirmed fan of Sheri Tepper's books (and I've read almost all many times) this just might be my favourite. I know the story well from reading it again and again but the little touches she excells at still delight me.