Dubus has publicly praised such books as Graham Greene's The End of the Affair, William Kennedy's Ironweed, Dorothy Allison's Bastard Out of Carolina, and Larry Brown's Father and Son. But if one looks for books that, because of their tragic view of life, may have engendered in some way House of Sand and Fog, several candidates come to mind from the vast library of nineteenth- and twentieth-century long fictions.

Thomas Hardy's view of implacable fate may, in fact, be closer to Dubus's than just about any other writer. Tess of the D'Urberuilles, Jude the Obscure, and The Return of the Native all examine the unforeseen consequences of untidy passions on plans and desires for a secure home, a position in society, a satisfactory income, and a loving, whole family.

Like Hardy, Dubus is skillful in arranging the incidents of his plot so that the actions close...