Sometimes works that major artists withheld — like songs that are not deemed worthy of release —are best kept in the vaults.
Grove-Press
Book Review: “Small Things Like These” — Resisting Cruelty
Claire Keegan’s novella expertly shows how the culture of idle talk in certain Irish communities is like a secret code — an intricate language that both obscures and reveals.
Book Review: “Animalia” — ‘Taint a Fit World for Man or Beast
Jean-Baptiste Del Amo has written a marvelous novel in the naturalistic mode that explores how the lives of humans and animals are both interdependent and in conflict — it is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach.
Book Review: “The Western Wind” — A Magisterial Murder Mystery
The Western Wind turns out to be a beautifully written novel, a serious book of great depth, intention, and craft.
Poetry Review: The Devolution of Eileen Myles
One of the fears of poets and, I imagine, all writers, is that you’ll reach a certain age and you’ll run out of gas.
Book Review: “Convenience Store Woman” — Selling on Empty
Convenience Store Woman is an achievement — a satiric look at a mind that is intent on remaining empty.
Book Review: An Uneven “Bottomland”
Perhaps in the future Michelle Hoover will let her very real talent take her into the unknown, where narrative and myth merge.
Book Review: “Liberty’s First Crisis” — Oddballs to the Rescue
Liberty’s First Crisis presents reminders that elected officials have always been capable of uncivilized behavior toward their colleagues.
Fuse Book Review: Living Well is not the Same as Being Good—Jim Harrison’s “The Ancient Minstrel”
Jim Harrison’s prose is gorgeous, illuminating. The simple language slides into your head and resonates there.
Book Review: “Death by Water” — Imagination, Masterfully Redeemed
Death By Water plumbs the depths of the human condition in an entirely original way.