If you plan to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, bring a toothbrush and this book. It's that good, and probably just that necessary. I've read 'Winter's Tale' like 6 times, and it keeps showing me new stuff. I'm not even clear on what it all means, really, but I don't think that matters. Helprin -- try to prove me wrong -- puts something gorgeous and profound and soul-pleasing in every single paragraph, if not every sentence. There's a glowing, resonant, orchestral familiarity in each romance, each caper, each heartbreak in this book; this is escapism of the rare sort that makes you believe that YOU CAN. And it's got a flying horse in it.