Critical Praise

“Gripping…Stephen Amidon is the rare writer who can illuminate the secrets of money and love with equal authority.”

—Tom Perrotta, author of THE LEFTOVERS

“Amidon proves himself a nimble storyteller…We finish this novel not only with an appreciation of his skill at orchestrating suspense but also with a keen understanding of the emotional consequences of his characters’ decisions.”

—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

“Amidon nails it…HUMAN CAPITAL is terrific.”

—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post

“A splendid novel with the satiric bite of THE BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES and perhaps the most inexorable plot since HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG.”

—The Seattle Times

"In Stephen Amidon’s brilliant HUMAN CAPITAL a specter is haunting America --- not the specter of Socialism that Marx once envisioned, but the 21st century specter of Failure. Amidon combines the intellectual acuity of a social theorist, the steady powers of observation of a first rate reporter and the sympathy and grace of a natural writer. From its very beginning, HUMAN CAPITAL seizes us and plunges us into the grand delirium of reading about characters --- men, women, boys, girls --- whose fates we eagerly, agonizingly follow to the last, lovely page."

—Scott Spencer, author of ENDLESS LOVE

"Stephen Amidon's beautiful and terrifying HUMAN CAPITAL is an ever-tightening knot of money, love, sex and lies. This roaring read cuts to the heart of how we live now in America, risking all for the almighty dollar. His best book yet."

—Colin Harrison, author of THE HAVANA ROOM

"HUMAN CAPITAL turns over the rock of NASDAQ affluence and lets us see the squirmy things underneath. Stephen Amidon's plot full of secrets reveals his garden-green Stepford suburb as an ethical desert, his characters driven and ultimately damned by their selfishness. An entertaining, scathing, very American fable."

—Stewart O'Nan, author of THE SPEED QUEEN and THE NIGHT COUNTRY