false 409287 4 <p>Here the local vigilante is a farmer's wife armed with a pistol and a Bible, the most senior member of the volunteer fire department is a cross-eyed butcher with one kidney and two ex-wives (both of whom work at the only gas station in town), and the back roads are haunted by the ghosts of children and farmers. Michael Perry loves this place. He grew up here, and now -- after a decade away -- he has returned.</p> <p>Unable to polka or repair his own pickup, his farm-boy hands gone soft after years of writing, Mike figures the best way to regain his credibility is to join the volunteer fire department. Against a backdrop of fires and tangled wrecks, bar fights and smelt feeds, he tells a frequently comic tale leavened with moments of heartbreaking delicacy and searing tragedy.</p> 221161 2002 Population: 485: Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time total:664|5:202|4:264|3:143|2:47|1:8| 664 2597 1004 182 2 3 false false Fri Sep 12 00:03:12 -0700 2008 Fri Sep 12 01:19:02 -0700 2008
The title of this book is slightly misleading in that it implies Michael Perry will introduce the reader to a rich, quirky swath of characters who inhabit a very small town. While there are...more...]]> 5 2 false false Tue Jul 15 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 28 22:10:38 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 15 09:29:34 -0700 2008
Michael Perry's ability to put into words the people, situations and feelings he encounters is beautiful. I love the a...more...]]> 5 2 false false Tue Feb 26 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 13 22:00:01 -0800 2008 Wed Feb 27 13:19:49 -0800 2008 author Michael Perry.

And I loved Population: 485 too! Writers that can hold a conversation with you, make you laugh, and bring on a ...more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Mar 13 08:53:59 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 13 08:58:19 -0700 2009 Perry's thoughtful nature, observations and stories left me laughing out loud (literally), crying and walking away from the finished book with a d...more...]]> 2 1 false false Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat Dec 01 14:13:19 -0800 2007 Sat Dec 01 14:14:26 -0800 2007
The book lacks a focus. Even a memoir has some kind of focus but this tried to do too much. The humor was strained. Things that I thought ought to b...more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Nov 10 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 10 08:12:02 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 10 08:22:32 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Sep 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 09:18:03 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 09:35:31 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Mar 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 22 13:13:56 -0800 2009 Tue Mar 03 08:21:31 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 06:10:09 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 06:10:09 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jul 15 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jun 06 20:21:18 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 06 20:27:09 -0700 2009
"Summer here comes on like a zaftig hippie chick, jazzed on chlorophyll and flinging fistfuls of butterflies to the sun."

"I tend to run at night. The idea of running in the morning is repulsive, and I retain strong reservations about anyone who ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 08 09:49:52 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 09:52:54 -0700 2009
Aside from a s...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Apr 12 22:29:27 -0700 2009 Mon May 11 18:04:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jun 27 22:40:29 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 31 21:49:04 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jun 09 22:20:20 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 10 19:20:50 -0700 2009
The writing is engaging, but it's somewhat of a one trick pony kind of book. The chapters all begin the same way -- with a horrible accident.

I hate to sound...more...]]> 2 0 false false Sun Sep 28 23:49:10 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 22 00:55:18 -0700 2008 Sun Sep 28 23:49:10 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jul 15 14:31:07 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 18 10:54:50 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Nov 26 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Oct 05 19:13:29 -0700 2007 Wed Nov 26 18:01:14 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Mar 04 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Aug 27 18:39:04 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 04 14:05:53 -0800 2009 1
At first, it was hard to get into this book because it jumps around between separate scenes and char...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 18:24:23 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 18:32:29 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sun Apr 27 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Apr 25 16:35:14 -0700 2008 Mon Apr 28 12:50:39 -0700 2008 more...]]>