[As Terms of Endearment proves, Larry McMurtry] is possessed of gifts that seem to be growing ever more rare among American novelists, chief among these being a true and literate wit. There are others: a feeling for place, an abundance of energy, and an absolute commitment to the depths and lines of character. This is not to say that his saga of a Houston family is without flaws, for there are a number here, among the more serious of which is Mr. McMurtry's tendency to nudge the reader overmuch and t...