The book jacket describes the main character as a “modern-day neurotic yearning to break free.” At first, I wasn’t that jazzed up reading about his various neuroses, but Daniel Pecan Cambridge grew on me. I loved Shopgirl almost instantly but I grew to love Martin’s second novel as I read more of it, with my attachment to it coming to a crescendo just as I read the last page. (damn!)

While I don’t join Daniel in his insistence on a constant total of wattage from indoor lighting, the book got me thinking about the more subtle barriers I put in place to avoid doing the things I want to do but don’t—I know I’ll be happy after doing those things, but still I avoid them. All those nights I waste watching television shows that mean nothing rather than have to make a decision about what I want to do with my time. All those mornings I hit the snooze button 10 times rather than wake up and have time to write. All those times I make excuses that I can’t exercise rather than just do it and feel good about my body and my health. This book made me wonder: What am I afraid of?