Crossroads is both the title of Jonathan Franzen’s novel and the name of a touchy-feely church youth group around which much of the plot circles. The novel is set in 1971 and the protagonists are the Hildebrant family – Russ, an associate minister, his wife Marion, and his children Clem, Becky, and Perry. Crossroads also is a metaphor for personal life choices each of the characters is making in their individual dramas. Each character’s story is told with gentle humor and also captures something of the atmosphere of the times. The writing is excellent. This novel is the first in a trilogy that will follow these characters through subsequent decades. Here’s what Kirkus Reviews says: