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jeanne_i_d's review against another edition
5.0
I read these slowly, taking at least a couple days break in between. These stories stay with you. I am sure the characters and situations will cross my mind randomly for years to come, similar to how I find myself thinking about a Raymond Carver story I read over 10 maybe 15 years ago. As others have said, not for the squeamish.
I wish they'd never named him Mad Dog...
I wish they'd never named him Mad Dog...
briandice's review against another edition
5.0
I've just now finished reading these 165 pages of tremendous stories aloud to my wife - done in a single sitting of recited malfeasance committed by denizens of a Grit-laden world. Most of the stories are based in the Ozarks, all of them are finely crafted to make the reader believe these people have as many words for violence as Inuits do for snow.
Many thanks to friend karen for pointing out this author to us GRers - Harper has a novel coming out this year that I will definitely read.
Many thanks to friend karen for pointing out this author to us GRers - Harper has a novel coming out this year that I will definitely read.
storyman's review
4.0
Jordan Harper’s American Death Songs is an intense, warped, brain-frazzling collection of short stories, up there with Steve Rasnic Tem’s Ugly Behavior collection in terms of dragging you through terrible settings populated by total bastards. Whether many can stomach it, I don’t know, but it’s definitely my kind of thing. High stakes run through every story, and if you enjoyed the stomach ache most episodes of Breaking Bad gave you, with the knot twisting your stomach at every bad move, then you have to get your eyes on this beast.
It all kicks off with Midnight Rider, a cracking story about a couple of low lives riding the streets when a cop flashes his sirens for them to stop. Unfortunately for the passenger, The Allman Brothers’ Midnight Rider kicks in on the radio, making the protagonist stamp the accelerator. A classic car chase ensues, each guitar lick encasing his determination in concrete. It’s a beauty, punctuated by The Carpenters.
Great start, then, but it only gets better. Like Riding a Moped follows a self-confessed “fat” woman who allows a handsome man to seduce her, enjoying the ride, thrilling at the “bitch” looks from prettier, thinner women, but never allowing herself to fully fall under his spell, knowing that the man has worked his magic only for her role in the jewellery store she works security for. It’s a great character piece. She knows what she is, she works against it, sometimes fails, and tries harder for her new man. But her guard doesn’t really drop, and you hope, all the way through, she gets what she’d like.
Just when you settle in for an excellent collection, the stakes blow you through the roof. I’ve never read a short story like Agua Dulce, which burns you up as much as the California desert, with its rampaging Nazis, blazing cattle, useless junkies, and a man whose life is useless, except for the son he now seems to value as his life faces the fire shooting through this insane bit of fiction. It’s about how instinct forces you to hang on to life even when you think you’ve given it up as a bad job.
Playing Dead almost matches Agua Dulce for forcing you to hold on to something very comforting as our man survives a bathroom massacre, protected by the bodies of his friends he’s tied to in the shower, as bullets rain down on them. It’s nightmarish, makes humanity look shoddy and bleak, and is just plain ugly. But it’s brilliant.
There’s plenty more of this throughout, from the bank robbery which goes “shit, shit, shit” in Plan C, to the excellent Ad Hominem Attack about a man eavesdropping on a conversation between a pretentious student and his friend. The fart looks down his nose at his friend and argues that there is no such thing as reality; that nobody can trust words or their own senses. Our man follows the student into the night and makes him confront a sharp knife’s reality.
I zoned out a little for the last two stories, but if you love reading about lunatics, losers, and bad people doing bad things and making wrong turns, you’ll really get into this.
Great collection.
It all kicks off with Midnight Rider, a cracking story about a couple of low lives riding the streets when a cop flashes his sirens for them to stop. Unfortunately for the passenger, The Allman Brothers’ Midnight Rider kicks in on the radio, making the protagonist stamp the accelerator. A classic car chase ensues, each guitar lick encasing his determination in concrete. It’s a beauty, punctuated by The Carpenters.
Great start, then, but it only gets better. Like Riding a Moped follows a self-confessed “fat” woman who allows a handsome man to seduce her, enjoying the ride, thrilling at the “bitch” looks from prettier, thinner women, but never allowing herself to fully fall under his spell, knowing that the man has worked his magic only for her role in the jewellery store she works security for. It’s a great character piece. She knows what she is, she works against it, sometimes fails, and tries harder for her new man. But her guard doesn’t really drop, and you hope, all the way through, she gets what she’d like.
Just when you settle in for an excellent collection, the stakes blow you through the roof. I’ve never read a short story like Agua Dulce, which burns you up as much as the California desert, with its rampaging Nazis, blazing cattle, useless junkies, and a man whose life is useless, except for the son he now seems to value as his life faces the fire shooting through this insane bit of fiction. It’s about how instinct forces you to hang on to life even when you think you’ve given it up as a bad job.
Playing Dead almost matches Agua Dulce for forcing you to hold on to something very comforting as our man survives a bathroom massacre, protected by the bodies of his friends he’s tied to in the shower, as bullets rain down on them. It’s nightmarish, makes humanity look shoddy and bleak, and is just plain ugly. But it’s brilliant.
There’s plenty more of this throughout, from the bank robbery which goes “shit, shit, shit” in Plan C, to the excellent Ad Hominem Attack about a man eavesdropping on a conversation between a pretentious student and his friend. The fart looks down his nose at his friend and argues that there is no such thing as reality; that nobody can trust words or their own senses. Our man follows the student into the night and makes him confront a sharp knife’s reality.
I zoned out a little for the last two stories, but if you love reading about lunatics, losers, and bad people doing bad things and making wrong turns, you’ll really get into this.
Great collection.
drewcox's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
meganlandrychampagne's review
4.0
American Death songs is the fourth book I have won in a Goodreads Giveaway. I usually pass the books along to Goodwill, but I'm saving this one. Harper is a talented writer. This book is a compilation of crime fiction short stories. It's perfect for someone like me who can't sit still and read for long periods of time. Each story can easily be read in one sitting.
My favorite story was "Beautiful Trash." This one reminds me of a Bret Easton Ellis novel mixed with Showtime's Californication. It takes the reader into the seedy underworld of Hollywood/celebrity culture. Green Daniels is a "cleanup" guy. He takes care of business, making sure no celebrity is left with his ass showing. He's done some pretty awful deeds for the sake of "the industry", but even he has to draw the line somewhere, and he takes revenge on all of those fake fucks on his way down.
Speaking of revenge. The revenge theme runs through and through. Fans of Quentin Tarantino flicks can look forward to some good ol' fashioned vigilante justice. (See "Heart Check")
This book is not for everyone. Avoid this book if you are offended by: profanity, bank robberies, stabbings, shootings, drug deals/use, motorcycle gang ass whoopings, etc.
It's a winner in my book, and I hope Jordan Harper continues to be successful in his literary career.
My favorite story was "Beautiful Trash." This one reminds me of a Bret Easton Ellis novel mixed with Showtime's Californication. It takes the reader into the seedy underworld of Hollywood/celebrity culture. Green Daniels is a "cleanup" guy. He takes care of business, making sure no celebrity is left with his ass showing. He's done some pretty awful deeds for the sake of "the industry", but even he has to draw the line somewhere, and he takes revenge on all of those fake fucks on his way down.
Speaking of revenge. The revenge theme runs through and through. Fans of Quentin Tarantino flicks can look forward to some good ol' fashioned vigilante justice. (See "Heart Check")
This book is not for everyone. Avoid this book if you are offended by: profanity, bank robberies, stabbings, shootings, drug deals/use, motorcycle gang ass whoopings, etc.
It's a winner in my book, and I hope Jordan Harper continues to be successful in his literary career.
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