Rick Moody is one of the few truly important young contemporary fiction writers. He's a natural who can describe even the most taudry and painful subjects with a moving lyricism. But he can tell a story too, and the Ice Storm's a compelling one about family and loss of faith. The film was brilliant--as Moody has readily admitted--but the book has a unique voice you won't hear in the movie. Highly, highly recommended, as are his other novels and short stories.