depth of perception

According to Ballard, Steiner’s name became synonymous to “literary crime, with a compelling plot, an elegance and wit in the writing, combined with a depth of perception about human nature.”

“I’ve lost track of the number of jackets designed to look like hers, and the number of publishers, scouts and film companies who’ve used her name to describe a genre of writing they want: They mean literary crime, with a compelling plot, an elegance and wit in the writing, combined with a depth of perception about human nature which leaves you feeling deeply satisfied.”

With a depth of perception that’s both affectionate and insightful, Ford tells the stories of his parents’ lives and deaths by turn, as they move from Arkansas to Mississippi, from near-poverty to the middle class, from 15 years of child-free marriage to the surprise of parenthood at an age that was then considered late in life, and from his father’s sudden, early death of a heart attack, to his mother’s widowhood and eventual death by cancer.

All of these areas have been analyzed before, but never with such depth of perception or range of understanding.

True engagement, real knowledge, depth of perception.