In a haunting, darkly comic novel, Michael Reed, a professor at a small Midwestern college, is mourning the accidental deaths of his wife and child and so is numbed and going through the motions. But when events force him to act as if he cares, he begins to find people who – against all expectation – help him through his private labyrinth. Poignant and beautiful, The Name of the World is a tour de force by one of the most astonishing writers at work today.