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  <description><![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]></description>
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    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[(this review originally appeared in Art Voice)<br/><br/>Brian Evenson observes violence. He is the man behind the counter selling pins to boys who will push them through butterfly brains. But it's not so much &quot;Does the butterfly die?&quot; Or, &quot;Why does the butterfly die?&quot; Or even, ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/13170621">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[The collection is a little uneven: certain stories are shot with humour and darkness, and some are just all darkness. Despite that, I thoroughly enjoyed several of the stories, enough to look out for more of Evenson's work, despite the hit-or-miss quality. ]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[I wish I had written this book. Dark, methodical, these stories wiggle their way into your brain and stay there for a long, long time like little cerebro-literary worms.]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[The typeface in this book is the ugliest shit I've ever seen. Yes, that impeded my enjoyment.  I did like about six of these nineteen stories, but that's not a very good ratio. I got a pretty heavy Paul Auster vibe off this guy (granted I've only read the New York Trilogy but I feel like that's enou...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/37327106">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[I was looking forward to my first Evenson book since he receives so much acclaim, but <em>The Wavering Knife</em> didn't do it for me. While the ideas behind the stories are fascinating, I didn't care for hardly any of the characters besides those in &quot;Promisekeepers,&quot; &quot;Barcode Jesus,&quot; and...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/37562133">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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  <date_updated>Wed Sep 03 13:50:14 -0700 2008</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[I think Evenson is quite brilliant. I only gave the book 4 stars but perhaps I will return to this collection and try again at a later date. I think some of the darkness and violence and uncertainty in these stories unnerved me at a bit. Yet they are very well written, unusual, original, and interes...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30076170">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30076170]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30076170]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>10382859</id>
    <user>
    <id>408843</id>
    <name><![CDATA[megan]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Chicago, IL]]></location>
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  <isbn>1573661139</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781573661133</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">14</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064m/146771.jpg</image_url>
  <small_image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064s/146771.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[i dunno]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Dec 13 13:21:30 -0800 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Dec 13 13:25:47 -0800 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[some incredible, some mediocre stories in here. very macabre. the occasional mockery of southernness and religious fundamentalism is a bit tired, but the more surreal stories (&quot;The Ex-Father&quot; esp.) are rocking. <br/>True story: I was reading this on the Metro in DC when a woman barfed all ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/10382859">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/10382859]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/10382859]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>46455251</id>
    <user>
    <id>276638</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Annie]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Chicago, IL]]></location>
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  <isbn>1573661139</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781573661133</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">14</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064m/146771.jpg</image_url>
  <small_image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064s/146771.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>2</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri Mar 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Feb 15 16:42:35 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Jun 18 11:07:33 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[i'm torn between two and three stars. after reading 2/3 of the book in one day, putting it down for over a month, and then finishing it up just now i can say that the stories are more interesting and (oddly) less jarring when read only a couple at a time. not sure i would read anything else by him b...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46455251">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46455251]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46455251]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>8901347</id>
    <user>
    <id>611621</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Garett]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Portland, OR]]></location>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005</read_at>
  <date_added>Fri Nov 09 15:53:15 -0800 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Nov 09 15:58:16 -0800 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[My favorite Evenson collection. There is no way of describing the thrilling, horrific, and indelibly well-crafted terrains this book presents to its readers. 'Avant-gothic' is a fitting phrase. Evenson is a modern master of incredible intelligence and ability. A great starting point to his work, I t...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8901347">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8901347]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8901347]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>7409538</id>
    <user>
    <id>506185</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Stephen]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Lawrence, KS]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/506185-stephen-lewis]]></link>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
  </title>
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  <small_image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064s/146771.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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          </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[humans]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Oct 07 20:55:07 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Oct 07 20:58:34 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This is a great collection of short stories.  He writes in two distinct voices in the book and both of them are amazing.  This is a very original and well written book.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7409538]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7409538]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>6775691</id>
    <user>
    <id>406046</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Ida]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Oakland, CA]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/406046-ida]]></link>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[most]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Jul 29 07:58:29 -0700 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Sep 25 11:28:00 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Jul 29 07:58:29 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[very interesting so far.  super dark, ironic and succinct.  Evanson teaches at Brown.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6775691]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6775691]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>1934128</id>
    <user>
    <id>121556</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Khaliah]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Iowa City, IA]]></location>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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  <small_image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172182064s/146771.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <read_at></read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Jun 13 14:25:28 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jun 13 14:25:28 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I enjoyed some of the stories--there is no doubt he is brilliant, just not my cup of tea. ]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1934128]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1934128]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>37503347</id>
    <user>
    <id>247047</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Pamster]]></name>
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    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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  <average_rating>4.22</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>115</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
  </description>
  <published>2004</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Nov 12 05:53:51 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Feb 15 09:04:36 -0800 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[Inaugural Fancy Family Book Group Book. ]]></body>
    
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    <![CDATA[The Wavering Knife: Stories]]>
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    <![CDATA[&lt;div&gt;Brian Evenson's fifth story collection constructs a human landscape as unearthly as it is mundane.  Replete with the brutality, primordial waste, and savage blankness familiar to readers of his earlier works, Evenson's Kafkaesque allegories entice the mind while stubbornly disordering it.  In the title story an obsessive consciousness folds back on itself, creating a vertiginous mélange of Poe and Borges, both horrific and metaphysical.  Here, as in &quot;Moran's Mexico,&quot; and &quot;Greenhouse,&quot; the solitary nature of reading and writing leads characters beyond human limits, making the act of putting words to paper a monstrous violation opening onto madness. In &quot;White Square&quot; the representation of humans by dimly colored shapes confirms our feeling that something lies behind these words, while seeming to mock us with the futility of seeking it. Evenson's enigmatic names-Thurm, Bein, Hatcher, Burlun-placeable landscapes, and barren rooms all combine to create a semblance of conceptual abstraction, as though the material universe had come to exist inside someone's head.  <br/><br/>Small wonder that Evenson's work has attracted so much attention among philosophers, literary critics, and other speculative intelligences, for it continuously projects a tantalizing absence, as though there were some key or code that, if only we knew it, would illuminate everything. However, the blade of discernment wavers, and we are left to our own groping interpretations.<br/>&lt;/div&gt;]]>
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    <body><![CDATA[One of my favorite short story collections.]]></body>
    
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