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49th out of 106 books
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114 voters
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The Beast God Forgot to Invent
by
Jim Harrison
Jim Harrison is an American master, and The Beast God Forgot to Invent is a book that The New York Times Book Review called "a big, wet, sloppy kiss that] Harrison continues to plant on the face of life itself".
These are stories of culture and wildness, of men and beasts and where they overlap. A wealthy man retired to the Michigan woods narrates the tale of a y
...morePaperback, 288 pages
Published
September 18th 2001
by Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
(first published 2000)
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Mark
added it
Now that I've reached an age (48) where I can look back on the fact that I was early on infatuated with the written word, then had those blind yet powerful feelings develop further into several perhaps precocious stormy love affairs with this genre or that writer and have now settled into what seems to be a lifelong relationship with the written word that at once is and transcends the functional--equal parts mellow acceptance, jaded cynicism leavened by love and respect, like the best of all lif...more
The first two of the three short books hold water. The last story is where some exhaustion sets in - perhaps in part due to the protagonist's own indecisive wallowing. Often "unsympathetic" characters are unjustifiably singled out in lazy criticism, but here I am. The first novella's character is a wealthy recluse whose deflated energies are trying yet amusing enough in contrast to the secondary character, a "present-dwelling" and literally brainless man/beast. However, the p...more
The title novella is about a young man named Joe who becomes the focus of unrequited love and community fascination after a car accident wipes out his short term memory. Joe wanders the north woods living part of the time on government land while carrying on torrid romances with woman who will never catch him.
The narrator is an older mostly-retired book dealer who looks after Joe's well-being while quietly lusting after his women.
I did not read the second story, finding the ...more
The narrator is an older mostly-retired book dealer who looks after Joe's well-being while quietly lusting after his women.
I did not read the second story, finding the ...more
"Two [businessmen:] shook hands with the outsized vigor that made our nation what it is today."
Finally Harrison comes through with a novella collection in which all three shine. This is definitely the best of his collections I've read so far (still have Julip to go). The Brown Dog novella isn't the best of the BDs, but it's still great. I think it's the first-person I in the other two novellas that really lets Harrison's voice come through and link up with his ridiculously ...more
Finally Harrison comes through with a novella collection in which all three shine. This is definitely the best of his collections I've read so far (still have Julip to go). The Brown Dog novella isn't the best of the BDs, but it's still great. I think it's the first-person I in the other two novellas that really lets Harrison's voice come through and link up with his ridiculously ...more
Anthony
added it
I actually only read the first two novellas of this three-piece collection.
I'm not a huge Harrison reader (but then, I'm not a huge _anyone_ reader), but the books I've read by him before this one left favorable impressions on me. I don't like his style of writing at times, but I always loved the content. Neither of the two I read, however, quite matched those. I can't really expand on why this is.
Other Harrison books I've read (and I liked them all): True North, Returning to Earth, and A Goo...more
I'm not a huge Harrison reader (but then, I'm not a huge _anyone_ reader), but the books I've read by him before this one left favorable impressions on me. I don't like his style of writing at times, but I always loved the content. Neither of the two I read, however, quite matched those. I can't really expand on why this is.
Other Harrison books I've read (and I liked them all): True North, Returning to Earth, and A Goo...more
I was torn between four and five stars, but I could have gone either way. This book didn't quite grab me as hard as Dalva, his great novel, did, but that's hardly a criticism, since Dalva was so incredible.
A man has a head injury and veers off into another reality, one where he lives in the woods and sleeps in a hammock high in the trees and becomes so close to bears he can put collars on them. That sounds sort of fairy-tale-ish, but the young man is tortured. He can't speak clearly...more
A man has a head injury and veers off into another reality, one where he lives in the woods and sleeps in a hammock high in the trees and becomes so close to bears he can put collars on them. That sounds sort of fairy-tale-ish, but the young man is tortured. He can't speak clearly...more
Three Novellas, and I pretty much got this book to read the middle one, which is the third tale of Brown Dog. I'm not really sure why that is sandwiched between to stories of older intellectual types, unless maybe to make it stick out? It didn't fit.
The title story was honestly a bit grueling. It was pretty obviously a Super Ego/Id kind of metaphor that I felt dragged on. It was actually the first thing I've ever not enjoyed of Harrison's. It is essentially the story of a retired boo...more
The title story was honestly a bit grueling. It was pretty obviously a Super Ego/Id kind of metaphor that I felt dragged on. It was actually the first thing I've ever not enjoyed of Harrison's. It is essentially the story of a retired boo...more
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For the most part I am a big fan of Harrison, and though the first novella of this collection holds its own, but the remaining stories are weak at best and have a frustrating, suspect autobiographical bent that tends to bleed through the seams of quite a few Harrison tales. I can only read so many tales of the grossly nostalgic middle-aged man who yearns for a youth that in hindsight seems to be motivated largely by sexual triumphs. Even in the title story here, the best offering of the bunch,...more
Westward Ho is absolutely the best one of the bunch. The passage about seeing a bear rooting through a garbage can only to look up when Rochester (Jack Benny's bud) yelled "Cucamonga!" on the radio made me feel all the more normal. His grandfather's "Batten your gob!" polished the whole paragraph off as one of the best things I've ever read in my life.
Finally finished this. I actually didn't think the first novella was that great, and it was the basis of the title of the book, but did enjoy the second 2. The one about the Native American that loses his bear skin could definitely be made into a movie and could be quite humorous, though not sure if it would be long enough. The themes of this guy's books are a bit repetitive after reading only 2 of his, so I probably won't read anymore, but there were a few moments of brilliance and the stori...more
I would give this trio of novellas 3.5 stars if I could. I really liked the first story - a really different way to think about someone who has had a closed head injury. I liked the middle story less, and the last one even less than that.
I'd still recommend the book, but try to find it at a discount.
I'd still recommend the book, but try to find it at a discount.
I give a mixed review to this collection of three stories by Jim Harrison. On the one hand, I'm pretty much through with the guy. Too much depressing and meaningless sexuality in his stories. On the other hand, he's really good at what he does -- he writes entertainingly about old men having bouts of humorously self-aware depression. But still, enough already.
Cool story. About Michigan and nature and modern life dichotomy. Lots of cool condensed opinions/wisdom statements...couldn't understand a lot of them because my vocab is not up to par.
Jim Harrison: a gifted writer obsessed with sex, violence, food and wine. Did some time in Hollywood if I'm not mistaken.
Icemanbb
marked it as to-read
I know I've read this but don't seem to remember anything about it, so I'll have to read it again.
These are sobering tales of Michigan life. Harrison's prose is not to be missed.
Three more excellent novellas. It’s a privilege to read Jim Harrison.
loved it - each novella is enjoyable
Slow start and then a great intrigue.
I had a hard time rating this collection of novellas. The title story deserved a 5; I'd give Westward Ho a 4; but reading I Forgot To Go To Spain was painful -- and not in a good way! Jim Harrison is a great writer. Great! But all of his characters are Jim Harrison, and it can be hit or miss. I loved the first two stories and whole-heartedly recommend them!
"New York City layered oblong onions of life ,its towering glued-together slices of separate realities held together by plumbing pipes and brittle skins of stone"
3 novellas, the above from Westward Ho and another on on I forgot to go to Spain and the Title novella about care taking for a brain injured woodsman who has to do things his way.
3 novellas, the above from Westward Ho and another on on I forgot to go to Spain and the Title novella about care taking for a brain injured woodsman who has to do things his way.
These are really incredible. Three short stories that don't suffer from the problem that most short story collections have, which is that you can't remember which one is which. These are all incredible well-drawn and specific. And, as an added bonus for me, they take place in Northern Michigan and L.A. Fantastic.
Funny without turning the characters into cartoons. I liked the first and last novellas the best; the second, WESTWARD HO, was amusing but leapt a little too far into farce for me.
Only read the first novella so far. Engrossing, funny, and very interesting perspective on sort of a strange story. Very good read.
Three novellas. The one that thet title is taken from is the star here.
First novella is outstanding, worth the price of admission.
Loved all three stories in this book of three novellas.
The title track haunts.
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Jim Harrison was born in Grayling, Michigan, to Winfield Sprague Harrison, a county agricultural agent, and Norma Olivia (Wahlgren) Harrison, both avid readers. He married Linda King in 1959 with whom he has two daughters.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
His awards include Nation...more
More about Jim Harrison...
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
His awards include Nation...more
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“The danger of civilization, of course, is that you will piss away your life on nonsense.”
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