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A review by madanburg
Delicious Foods by James Hannaham

4.0

http://dakimel.blogspot.com/2015/06/delicious-foods.html

Did I know what to expect? Nope.

Did I get way more than I was expecting? Oh, heck yeah.

Our prime players here are Darlene, Eddie, and Scotty. Darlene is Eddie's mom. Scotty is...I'll let Scotty be a surprise. You will be surprised. And maybe a little fascinated and terrified.

And you'll laugh. And then Hannaham will stab you right through your sternum while you laugh. With something jagged and rusty.

There is a section of the novel during which young Eddie searches the summer streets of Houston for his missing mother. He starts near the center of my hometown, biking further and further each night, befriending all manner of hookers and night shift workers and random souls offering him mom-hunting advice. Those pawn shops and diners and strip malls are the same ones I've passed, ignoring pedestrians and bike riders and people seeking the shade of bus shelters while I pilot my air conditioned car, listening to audiobooks about eleven year olds networking with people named Giggles and Fat Back.

See? Jagged and rusty.

But don't worry, you don't have come pre-equipped with visuals of the gritty, hot Houston pavement to be stabbed yourself. Just read this book, then go buy a watermelon or a couple of carrots. Or, hey, turn on the news. And don't say I didn't warn you.

Hannaham is a trickster author, and bonus: a great narrator. I loved the way he modulated his voice according to which of his characters was in charge of the story. Scotty's energy, Eddie's dry young tone, and Darlene's love and loss. I originally planned on reading this instead of listening (author-narrators aren't always this strong), but June is Audiobook Month, so I gave the audio a try, and it was the right choice.