Tag Archives: Book Review

The Fun Parts by Sam Lipstye

I sound like the narrator of a mediocre young adult novel from the eighties. Which is, in fact, what I am. There are far too few writers who dedicate themselves to documenting the plight of losers. Would it hurt anyone if the literary world gave the odd characters among us a little more shelf space?Continue reading “The Fun Parts by Sam Lipstye”

Hell at the Breech by Tom Franklin

There is a particularly vein of literature that I find both unsettling and fascinating. Donald Ray Pollock, Daniel Woodrell, Frank Bill, Bonnie Jo Campbell, and Cormac McCarthy are modern writers who successfully mine that vein (impoverished, desperate, violent, and real).  I now consider Tom Franklin to be one of them. In his debut novel (yes, debut,Continue reading “Hell at the Breech by Tom Franklin”

Above All Things by Tanis Rideout

From Goodreads: In 1924 George Mallory departs on his third expedition to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Left behind in Cambridge, George’s young wife, Ruth, along with the rest of a war-ravaged England, anticipates news they hope will reclaim some of the empire’s faded glory. Through alternating narratives, what emerges is a beautifully rendered storyContinue reading “Above All Things by Tanis Rideout”

Revenge by Yoko Ogawa

So after a disastrous Valentine’s Day (is there any other kind?), I was in the mood for revenge, or at least a haunting collection of short horror stories. Perhaps they’re one in the same – at the very least they’re fulfilling the same purpose. Regardless, in a rather dour emotional state, I picked up theContinue reading “Revenge by Yoko Ogawa”

Charlotte Street by Danny Wallace (and why I want to be British)

I’m an introvert. Shocking? Not really. I did share my Myers-Briggs results. Albert Einstein and I are both INTP. Coincidence? No. However, I’m also mostly American. Those two things don’t go together; it’s like admitting you want to be unpopular. In America, introversion is something to be corrected. As I work in a quasi-serious research library and archiveContinue reading “Charlotte Street by Danny Wallace (and why I want to be British)”

The Flame Alphabet by Ben Marcus

“I’ve been very lonely in my isolated tower of indecipherable speech.” Being John Malkovich From Goodreads: A terrible epidemic has struck the country and the sound of children’s speech has become lethal. Radio transmissions from strange sources indicate that people are going into hiding. All Sam and Claire need to do is look around theContinue reading “The Flame Alphabet by Ben Marcus”

Blockade Billy by Stephen King

Stephen King is a baseball fan. I am a baseball fan. What’s notable about this? Aside from the superficial connection of two Americans enjoying America’s favorite pastime, not much… Then Stephen King wrote Blockade Billy, a novella about the dark past of a briefly prominent baseball player. How does this change the aforementioned connection? It doesn’t Continue reading “Blockade Billy by Stephen King”

The Lost Art of Mixing by Erica Bauermeister

From Goodreads: Lillian and her restaurant have a way of drawing people together. There’s Al, the accountant who finds meaning in numbers and ritual; Chloe, a budding chef who hasn’t learned to trust after heartbreak; Finnegan, quiet and steady as a tree, who can disappear into the background despite his massive height; Louise, Al’s wife, whose angerContinue reading “The Lost Art of Mixing by Erica Bauermeister”

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

In Warm Bodies* by Isaac Marion, what we’ve all been waiting for has finally happened. The zombie apocalypse has devastated the human population and the zombies continue to terrorize the few remaining survivors. Living in stadiums, the humans are subsisting on nutritional supplements, faux food, and what little they can grow. R is a zombie, but he’sContinue reading “Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion”