I thought it was interesting how the book starts off in Chapter one with the family being portrayed as the "typical" nuclear family. Of course, we soon find out that the Binewskis are anything but "normal" in the everyday use of the word. The parents go along with the traditional gender/family norm, with the father being a big, strong protector who is head of his gang, and the mother being a tall, statuesque woman who is 100% behind her husband's decisions. The "normalcy" of the father and mother is as far as it goes in the Binewski family. The children all have their own deformities, or "gifts" in the Binewski eyes, and this is the thing that is most valued in the family. The more deformed or "gifted" the children are, the more status (and love?) the children receive.
Crystal Lil is a very fascinating character to me. She comes from a wealthy, Bostonian family, yet chooses to join the Fabulon out of her own free will. Lil seems to be totally content to go along with all of Al's decisions, including breeding their own freak show. She does not seem to show any sort of resistance to being drugged up throughout her entire life. It would be very interesting to have more insight into her past to see why she is the way that she is. Could it be that her own mother was also passive and had to support her husband no matter what? Or could it be that Lil is blinded by her love for Al (and being so drugged up) that she sacrifices her morals on the altar of being a "good" wife and mother? Either way, aside from her gradual slip into madness, Lil's character lacks any real character development and remains much the same throughout the book.
