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145th out of 223 books
—
259 voters
As a Machine and Parts
by
Caleb J. Ross (Goodreads Author)
Mitchell, a 20-something Cougar Cub with a mid-life girlfriend named Marsha, wakes each morning, living an ever-broadening line between human and machine. As his literal condition progresses, he loses his capacity for human emotion. Mitchell struggles to discover which assembly line he belongs to as he morphs from human to machine.
Paperback, 100 pages
Published
December 2011
by Aqueous Books
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This one you've definitely gotta read in print. The text placement, font treatments, illustrations, ghosting, schematics, stains, etc. (not to mention the most densely-footnoted story ever) all contribute metafictionally to this darkly-comic (bordering on bizarro) grotesque about a man losing his humanity and becoming machine. On the surface, it may seem to tread similar ground as Max Barry's Machine Man, but where Barry's nerdish protag is striving to become superhuman, Ross's is a victim of th...more
Losing Essence
Reminiscent of Metamorphosis and Flowers for Algernon, Caleb J. Ross takes us inside the mind of a man who is transforming. This man, Mitchell, experiences a slide from human to machine. This transformation coincides with the deterioration of his relationship with a much older lover, Marsha.
While becoming a machine would be an existential nightmare for most, Mitchell almost doesn’t seem to mind. Eric, Marsha’s son, asks “How did this happen to you?” “That’s not the point.” (p. 35)...more
Reminiscent of Metamorphosis and Flowers for Algernon, Caleb J. Ross takes us inside the mind of a man who is transforming. This man, Mitchell, experiences a slide from human to machine. This transformation coincides with the deterioration of his relationship with a much older lover, Marsha.
While becoming a machine would be an existential nightmare for most, Mitchell almost doesn’t seem to mind. Eric, Marsha’s son, asks “How did this happen to you?” “That’s not the point.” (p. 35)...more
This book made me rethink my view of machinery. It may not have been the point of it, but there it is.
I would describe this book as a marriage between Kafka's Die Verwandlung (The Metamorphosis) and Charlie Chaplin's film Modern Times, illuminating aspects of technology and humanity that most people consistently try to ignore.
Also, the experimental formatting of Parts (yes, pun) of the book gave it a unique flavor--I can't say I've ever tasted another such oily, mechanically intriguing story, ev...more
I would describe this book as a marriage between Kafka's Die Verwandlung (The Metamorphosis) and Charlie Chaplin's film Modern Times, illuminating aspects of technology and humanity that most people consistently try to ignore.
Also, the experimental formatting of Parts (yes, pun) of the book gave it a unique flavor--I can't say I've ever tasted another such oily, mechanically intriguing story, ev...more
This novella about heartache and love and identity and humanity is also just completely fun. It never gets bogged down in its own peculiarity or tragedy, simply accepting the transformation as a matter of course, allowing for laughs even while the story reaches deep into your bowels.
Full review at The Lit Pub
Full review at The Lit Pub
Listen to the full review: http://www.bookedpodcast.com/2012/01/...
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "As A Machine & Parts" on Facebook | 1 | 5 | Dec 23, 2011 02:23pm | |
| Aqueous Books: LitReactor Book Club | 1 | 7 | Dec 23, 2011 02:18pm |
You should subscribe to my YouTube channel. Really, you should.
I'm more fun than this bio implies, I promise.
I have a BA in English Literature and creative writing from Emporia State University. My fiction and nonfiction has appeared widely, both online and in print. I am the author of five books of fiction and is a core contributor to The BookTube Vidcast, a columnist at ManArchy Magazine, and is...more
More about Caleb J. Ross...
I'm more fun than this bio implies, I promise.
I have a BA in English Literature and creative writing from Emporia State University. My fiction and nonfiction has appeared widely, both online and in print. I am the author of five books of fiction and is a core contributor to The BookTube Vidcast, a columnist at ManArchy Magazine, and is...more
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Jan 19, 2012 11:38pm