Jackie Weighs in On Dan Chaon's Latest

"I've heard great things about Dan Chaon, but I had not read him when this book happened onto my desk. These stories really surprised me. They are all about damaged people plagued by some deep emotion--loneliness, love, grief-- and behaving in truly strange ways. There is a lot of darkness to them, a nightmarish feel of altered reality, and some seriously grim things. But I could not stop reading these stories because of the writing. Chaon has a way of putting words together that just makes whatever he writes passion edged and deeply affecting. I'm still trying to figure some of the narratives out, frankly. But I like that, the puzzles Chaon has left with me. I'm sure some of you folks out there will enjoy them too."

--Jackie