"O’Neil offers masterfully complex portraits of childhood—both through the speaker’s memory and observations of her own children. She writes equally well about sex, marriage, rural life, and the suburbs with candid observations and evocative imagery. O’Neil’s collection is substantial, playful, and compassionate—even when dealing with difficult themes such as alcoholism and racism. Her narrative threads take surprising and enigmatic leaps, yet are always clear, accessible, wonderfully real."—Denise Duhamel

"O’Neil praises life with a subtle wisdom wrapped inside the most delicious language Underlife is an exact eloquence, an excellent beginning."—Afaa Michael Weaver