A readable book or a teachable book? Lark & Termite

I've had a few words to say about the lackluster pace of "Lark & Termite," but haven't said much about the structure of the book - and it is very carefully, even artfully structured. Jayne Anne Phillips builds the story through multiple strands of narrrative in two parallel paths of time, each on the same span of calendar days (3 days in late July), on path in Korea 1950, the other in West Va. 1959. What ties them together: in both a male (father in Korea, son in WVa) is disabled, cannot walk/ambulate on his own, cared for by a sensitive woman/girl and protected from the hostility of surroundings. Both involve retreats to tunnels. Both involve seeking safety in a confined space (this doesn't become obvious till near the end of Lark & Termite, as the two title characters retreat to the attic as the flood fills the house - a very well written section, obviously inspired by Katrina stories and images). There are other family interstices, kind of hard to follow at times, as we learn who Lark's father is, the complicated relations between her mother (Lola) and aunt/guardian (Nona - what's with these names?). Many strands for a reader to unravel, and it's not laid out in any simple way - it's a "cool" book that you have to work toward understanding. Oddly, though there are dramatic scenes - the massacre in the tunnel in Korea, the flood filling the whole town in WVa - it is definitely not a dramatic book. The element of tension that loomed early - does the state want to remove Termite from his home? - dissipates, as the state agent is a mysterious and helpful figure, possibly even a ghost or mirage? The book does flirt with magic realism. The mystery still unresolved is what happened to the mother of the two title characters (Lola). We do suspect that she's alive - somewhere. All these strands and echoes and parallels - do they make the book more readable? Or just more "teachable"?