Reviews

Ancient Oceans of Central Kentucky – David Connerley Nahm

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As dazzling and unsettling as a lone firework suddenly bursting — then just as quickly vanishing — on an otherwise dark, quiet night.

Sweetness #9 – Stephen Eirik Clark

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The intentions of a Rembrandt and the team that created Sweet Maui Potato Chips can never be that far apart, it seems.

An Instrument for Leaving – Monika Zobel

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On the page, Zobel’s memories become psychedelic portraiture.

The Temporary Gentleman – Sebastian Barry

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Against what the balladeers would tell us, nationalism has never been an all-in sentiment among the Irish.

Debbie Doesn’t Do It Anymore – Walter Mosley

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The cathartic rutting that spices Mosley’s crime series is abandoned here for the everyday mechanics of industrialized desire.

Food Chain – Slava Mogutin

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The main pitfall of the book is very similar to the main problem porno generally has: after a while, it becomes predictable and boring.

The Shimmering Go-Between – Lee Klein

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To privilege surprise and suspense seems to reject the value of the possibility of critical distance, to render sacred the immersive entertainment value of story and perhaps most significantly to devalue the potential of re-reading.

The Last Days of My Mother – Sölvi Björn Sigurðsson

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Drinking novels are familiar, death of a family member novels are familiar, dark comedies, familiar, but Last Days brings something new: a mother and son with absolutely zero boundaries.

The Fun We’ve Had – Michael J. Seidlinger

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A mix of philosophy, gallows humor, love, and poetry that adds up to beautiful storytelling completely devoid of gimmicks and clichés.

The Last Lover – Can Xue

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Hour three: My head hurts. I feel like I have been translating. I have stopped tweeting.