Lila Mae Watson is the first black female elevator inspector in the history of the Department. As one of the Intuitionists, she is able to intuit defects purely by tuning into the machinery. The opposition, the Empiricists, practise dutiful and routine physical inspection. When a new elevator on Lila Mae's rounds goes into total freefall, her solitary existence is shattered. Sabotage is the obvious explanation.
A New York Times Notable Book, Shortlisted for the Ernest Hemingway/Pen Prize, Winner of the 2000 Whiting Prize, a San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year, Esquire's Best First Novel of the Year, and GQ Best Book of the Millennium.
