Quirky Fiction
by emjane
Characters with out-there personalities, situations that could happen but aren’t particularly common in the everyday, and plots that don’t follow the through-line you might expect: these traits are what make a book fall under the “quirky fiction” umbrella. These sorts of books are my very favorite, and I’m always looking for more! Don’t hesitate to comment if you’ve got one that I should check out!
Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson | Request Now
Lillian doesn’t have a whole lot going in her life, so when her former classmate Madison reaches out with an intriguing employment offer, Lillian follows through. Madison, the wife of a prominent (and rich!) politician, needs some help looking after her twins. The one wrinkle: when they get agitated (which happens a lot), they spontaneously combust. Not only can burning twins cause chaos in their atmosphere, but the knowledge of their “little problem” would tank their father’s political career.
Within this relatively short book, the reader gets drawn into the plights Lillian faces. It’s surprisingly easy to buy into the ridiculous premise of spontaneous combustion and the narrative device raises the stakes of relationships among all of the characters. I often refer to Nothing to See Here as a “perfect book” – there’s literally nothing I would change about it.
How to Start a Fire by Lisa Lutz | Request Now
Anna, Kate, and Georgiana first became friends during their years at USC Santa Cruz and, with blips throughout the years, remain connected through their middle age. How to Start a Fire’s chapters cover various hijinks and relationship changes among the women throughout twenty years, jumping from time to time, dancing around an eventually revealed key event in their lives and friendship.
I’ve been a fan of Lutz’s work since a fellow librarian pointed me to her Spellman Files series a decade ago. She writes smart, sharp-tongued, flawed young women like no one else, and How to Start a Fire is no exception. The twisting timeline occasionally makes for more challenging reading, but the story is worth unraveling, if only to spend more time with Anna, Kate, and George.
The Epiphany Machine by David Burr Gerrard | Request Now
Imagine if there was a machine that, when you stuck your arm inside it, would tattoo a phrase that tells you the deepest, darkest truth about yourself. What would you do with that knowledge? And is it worth the price, knowing the tattoo would live on your forearm for everyone to see?
Said machine is the title premise for the book. Developed (or was it discovered?) by strong personality Adam Lyons, the machine gets a cult following, including the parents of our protagonist, Venter. (His mother’s tattoo: “ABANDONS WHAT MATTERS MOST.” His father’s?: “SHOULD NEVER BECOME A FATHER.”) By the time Venter is born, his parents have left the Epiphany Followers (and shortly after, Venter’s mother leaves him.), but Venter carries the stigma of his family’s connection to the machine throughout his early life. Despite the warnings of his father, when Venter reaches adulthood, his grandmother encourages him to get his tattoo and confront the machine that has impacted his life. He does, and Venter (DEPENDENT ON THE OPINIONS OF OTHERS) gets drawn further and further into the world surrounding the Epiphany Machine.
This may be the quirkiest of the quirky books I’ve read. It gets deeper than I anticipated and though it wasn’t particularly easy to relate to any of the characters, I still cared about them and wanted to know where the plot was going. Plus, I couldn’t stop thinking about what I thought my Epiphany Machine tattoo would be.
Mister Monkey by Francine Prose | Request Now
“I thought this was a stupid book and I didn’t finish it…” begins the sole review of this title in the AADL catalog. I would love the chance to ask the reader what they expected: it IS a deeply silly book—but would there be a serious book for adults called “Mister Monkey” with said primate under a spotlight on the cover? (It also gets fuller and less silly as the book progresses). All that aside, if you’re ready to join me in the silly adventure of the off-off-off Broadway production of a children’s musical, read on!
Mister Monkey switches between character perspectives of people loosely tied to the strange production, from the actress who recognizes she’s reached the low point of her career, to the grandfather in the audience, to the creator who really hates that “Mister Monkey” is what pays his bills. It’s silly, it’s weird, and yet somehow you find yourself caring about (a lot) of the cast of oddballs who make up both the production and the book! Or maybe you’ll find yourself thinking “this is stupid” and not finishing, and to that, I say without an ounce of sarcasm, “Good for you! There are SO many books out there. You SHOULD quit the ones that you aren’t enjoying!” (But I hope you enjoy this one like I did!)
Blog Post
Subjects
Reviews