The title suggests a historical novel, for the Middle Passage was the sea route used by slavers going from West Africa to the Caribbean. The book does invoke important aspects of the slave trade, life at sea in the 1830’s, … Continue reading
I don’t normally do movie reviews on this site, but this film was related to a question I had about a particular genre of writing, the horror genre. I rented Get Out, (2017), nominally a horror film. Normally I wouldn’t, … Continue reading
This short haunted house tale is celebrated as a classic of the genre, a top-seller since its publication in 1959, although I don’t normally read haunted house stories so I can’t judge that. Nevertheless, it accomplishes the goal of presenting … Continue reading
Funny, Imaginative, and Vulgar This is my first Palahniuk novel, and to my surprise, I enjoyed it. Surprised because it’s not the sort of thing I normally like, a hodge-podge of urban punk, violent, humorous, sci-fi, horror of an experimental thing. … Continue reading
Wandering Through the Nonsense Lavalle, Victor (2010). Big Machine. New York: Spiegel & Grau (366 pp.). At least a meandering river will reach the sea. This tale just meanders, as the cover art suggests. The first-person narrator, Ricky Rice, is a … Continue reading
But Do They Have Sex? Dunn, Katherine. (1983/2002). Geek Love. New York: Vintage (348 pp). You have to give this novel credit for sheer originality. The main characters are a U.S. family of performers in a traveling carnival, in the … Continue reading