19 Comments
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December 12, 2022
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If Amy Hempel doesn’t get a mention I’ll eat a Carolina reaper pepper.

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December 12, 2022
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Spoilers won’t kill me, though all the same, I’d rather avoid them. If you want to say what you think of the book so far without spoilers, go ahead, dude.

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December 12, 2022
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Tennis match dialogue...the killer of tension.

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Update: I get to keep my tastebuds.

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Easy:

Drown by Junot Diaz

Miles from Nowhere by Nami Mun

The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones

The Complete Works of Amy Hempel

In the Garden of North American Martyrs by Tobias Wolff

The Informers by Bret Ellis

The Ice at the Bottom of the World by Mark Richard

That's a start.

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Slaves of New York by Tama Janowitz (but beware the film version, okay)

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December 12, 2022
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I read a passage of the second short story in Knockemstiff. The way Pollock describes a corpse as, "...a body turned to wax." Had to put the book down and take a breather. Very intense.

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December 13, 2022
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Wait, Donald Ray Pollock screamed at you on Facebook?

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Can I be pedantic and argue the case for ‘Miles From Nowhere’ being a novel?

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Pedanticism aside, I thought the book was phenomenal. Easily one of my favorite books that you’ve recommended.

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I'm reading Miles From Nowhere right now. I'm already a little bit mad at Mun for not writing a hundred more books.

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I was also quite disappointed to see that she didn’t have any other books published. With any luck though, we’ll maybe get one in the future. ‘Miles and Miles From Nowhere’.

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December 13, 2022
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I hope that’s not the case. The notion that a talent like Mun isn’t getting her work out there because of disillusionment in regard to the process of publishing is quite frustrating.

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Hey Brandon, do you own a copy of Consider This? There's a section in the back with all the recommended books. It's a great reference.

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So excited to hear stories from our Midwest friends!

Off topic (sorry), but months ago someone in these comments recommended Steph Cha's Your House Will Pay. Unfortunately, I can't remember who it was. But whoever it was, if you see this, THANK YOU! Holy hell that book is good.

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Out of context here, would you ever consider writing a video game? George R. R. Martin wrote Elden Ring, which was huge. Btw, I'd pay premium money to play as Madison leading armies in hell.

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Guts: The Video Game! The masturbating can be a string of button-mashing, quick-time events.

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Chuck, I thought you might find it amusing to know that the Pixie Package you sent me went on a l'il field trip to the Strand Bookstore today. (I noticed it down by the mailboxes in my building as I was leaving. Stuff is usually left alone there, but I was paranoid that someone would see your name on the package and swipe it before I got home. My apartment is a fifth-floor walkup, and I'm a very lazy woman, so it was easier to put the box in my bag and take it downtown than to drop it off at home.) We had a lovely time browsing, and I even found a few books from your suggested reading list that aren't available at my local library. All in all, a delightful excursion.

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