WE THE ANIMALS by Justin Torres
A taut, fast ride—crisply and finely written, especially
when he keeps it simple—about three scrappy brothers from the wrong side of the
tracks; the protagonist is the youngest brother. Rendered effectively as a
series of linked short pieces, I found the first third or half or so stronger
than what followed. Midway, it started feeling a little tired, repetitive; the
movement, the change, the growth of the protagonist didn’t start to kick in
until late in the slender book. Nevertheless, I think Torres is a new talent to
watch. His writing and characters are full of compelling energy.
CONSIDER THE LOBSTER by David Foster Wallace
Sampling my way through these brilliant, dense, rich essays
a few at a time. A worthwhile project.
