A review by jmcphers
Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned by Wells Tower
4.0
A wonderful little collection of short stories. Tower is a master of description, and his stories are jammed with so many evocative details and delicious metaphors that they are worth reading for the splendid prose alone.
The plots of these little gems leave something to be desired. Certainly they do that modern literary thing, where the Explore The Nature Of Human Relationships, and Reflect The Post-Modern American Family, but rarely did I feel that the stories went anywhere or revealed something new.
Perhaps the most surprising thing about these stories is the way they stick in your head (or at least stuck in mine). I found phrases from the book wafting their way into my thoughts for weeks afterwards; even now, I remember the "ruby-studded turd" that turned out to be a sea cucumber, the "sour blossom" of alcohol hitting the stomach, the compelling image of an eleven-year old child sprawled in a faux faint on the driveway, mail scattered about. In a shelf largely populated by forgettable books, this one left a lasting impression.
The plots of these little gems leave something to be desired. Certainly they do that modern literary thing, where the Explore The Nature Of Human Relationships, and Reflect The Post-Modern American Family, but rarely did I feel that the stories went anywhere or revealed something new.
Perhaps the most surprising thing about these stories is the way they stick in your head (or at least stuck in mine). I found phrases from the book wafting their way into my thoughts for weeks afterwards; even now, I remember the "ruby-studded turd" that turned out to be a sea cucumber, the "sour blossom" of alcohol hitting the stomach, the compelling image of an eleven-year old child sprawled in a faux faint on the driveway, mail scattered about. In a shelf largely populated by forgettable books, this one left a lasting impression.