Two Recos: Bang Crunch and God is Not Great
Bang Crunch
Neil Smith’s collection of short stories, Bang Crunch
, is a smart, unflinching look at humanity, including life, death, loss, solace and beauty. The book starts off with a bang (heh), with the powerful "Isolettes". A mother watches over her daughter, born at 24-weeks, in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, trying unsuccessfully to feel the love she’s expected to feel. In "B9ers" a man trying to understand his body’s betrayal starts a support group for victims of benign tumours (how harmless is benign?!) In the title story, written in the second person, a young girl with a rare disease, Fred Hoyle Syndrome, ages a month a day.
Original and whimsical, the stories hold your attention for their duration. Don’t rush through it though—set the book aside between the tales while you ponder what you’ve just read.
Neil Smith lives in Montreal; Bang Crunch is his first book.
Labels: books
posted by metro mama @ 10:27 AM
4 Comments:
really. where do you find the time.
I really like that image of the xray dollies. spookygood.
Yes where do you find the time? I am very jealous thought I don't think right now is a good time for me to be reading that first book!
Moms aren't even allowed to hold the 24 week babies. I had a hard time relating to my first even having her with me all the time so I cannot imagine how moms survive months with their babies in the isolettes. It is just heartbreaking.
They both sound like interesting reads. I have to make more time for reading.
I have to admit, the first book sounds too depressing for me at the moment...
As for the second, I read about this book somewhere recently, perhaps Vanity Fair as he is a contributing writer. It sounds interesting.
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