What the Family Needed
by Steven Amsterdam

reviewed by Christopher Currie

One of the problems in summing up a book is the immediate impression that it gives someone. As soon as I say to you What the Family Needed is about a family that receives superpowers, straight away you’re thinking The Incredibles or some other collection of lycra-clad heroines and heroes. This idea could not be further from the truth. Spanning numerous decades in the life of an extended family, this book is more about the repercussions of getting what you wish for.

It would spoil it to reveal all this book’s secrets, but, like Amsterdam’s first book Things We Didn’t See Coming, the linked stories add up to an intriguing and memorable whole. In turns funny, poignant, heartbreaking and real, this family’s stories will stay with you long after you turn the final page.