Jason Pettus's Blog, page 35

American Odd: "Kooks," by Donna Kossy

Kooks: A Guide to the Outer Limits of Human Belief By Donna Kossy Feral House (1994) Review by Karl Wolff The cult movie Iron Sky has a memorable scene where African-American astronaut James Washington (Christopher Kirby), dressed like a homeless person, ranting at pedestrians about how "Moon Nazis made me white!" To the average moviegoer, the scene captures the absurdity and camp of the film. But Nazis with moon bases or living in the center of the earth are what one can read about in Kooks...

Stalking the Behemoth: "The Recognitions," by William Gaddis

The Recognitions By William Gaddis, 1955 Reviewed by Chris Schahfer Those who have followed my "Stalking the Behemoth" series might've noticed a few massive gaps in chronology, namely in my leap from Don Quixote to Moby-Dick, but release dates grow a little more consistent from here on out. After all, this is where we enter my favorite period, postmodernism, and who better to kick postmodernism off than Gaddis? I'd get more into where The Recognitions sits historically, but this is a book re...

Book Review: "Nashville Mercy" by M. Maitland DeLand, MD

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.) Nashville Mercy By M. Maitland DeLand, MD Deland Media Group Reviewed by Jason Pettus If it seems sometimes t...

CCLaP's newest book, Steven Garbas' "Orest and August," is now available!

Choo-choo! The CCLaP publishing train just keeps on rolling here in 2015; and I'm happy to say that our newest book, Steven Garbas' Orest and August, is now officially available for purchase and/or download. As always, it's easier for me to just paste in the book's official synopsis than to try to describe it off the top of my head, so here it is below... Orest Godwin is ruining his long legacy three fingers of rye at a time. His lectures have become bizarre. He's smoking indoors. And he's b...

Book Review: "Kiddieland" by Tim Chapman

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.) Kiddieland and Other Misfortunes By Tim Chapman Thrilling Tales Reviewed by Jason Pettus Regular readers of t...

Book review: "Sidewalks," Valeria Luiselli

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 12 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.) Sidewalks By Valeria Luiselli Coffeehouse Press, 2014 Reviewed by Chris Schahfer There's a remarkable sense o...

Book Review: "The Dark Will End the Dark" by Darrin Doyle

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.)



The Dark Will End the Dark
By Darrin Doyle
Tortoise Books
Reviewed by Jason Pettus

So first, let me admit that I ha...

Book Review: "Five Bullets," by Larry Duberstein

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.)



Five Bullets
By Larry Duberstein
Brimstone Corner Press
Reviewed by Karl Wolff

Karel Bondy lives with his family...

Book Review: "The Wives of Billie's Mountain" by Kelly L. Simmons

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.)



The Wives of Billie's Mountain
By Kelly L. Simmons
Self-published
Reviewed by Jason Pettus

Kelly Simmons' The Wives...

Book Review: "Loki: Nine Naughty Tales of the Trickster" by Mike Vasich

(CCLaP is dedicated to reviewing as many contemporary books as possible, including self-published volumes; click here to learn how to submit your own book for possible review, although be warned that it needs to have been published within the last 18 months to be considered. For the complete list of all books reviewed here, as well as the next books scheduled to be read, click here.)



Loki: Nine Naughty Tales of the Trickster
By Mike Vasich
Self-published
Reviewed by Jason Pettus

It's quite easy to...