Customer Reviews

Everyday Psychokillers: A History for Girls, A Novel

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I teach literature so I never get to get drunk on novels the way I did before I got my Ph.D. (it's always, how can I teach this?). However, this one got me and kept me up far too late into the night. It perfectly gets the self-referential world of preteenhood and adolescence, where everything is life-sized and there is often no "out" except your own stubborn sense of what makes no sense. Holden Caulfield's genuineness always struck me as incredibly phony; Corin's narrator interacts with her often deadened surroundings not by pointing out their pointlessness but by animating them from within. Yes, read Corin before the media makes her into something other than the precious dork her narrator suggests she is.

I love how one reviewer here is comparing this book to _Heart of Darkness_: that's probably a little bit over the top, but I can see some of the connections--the book's dark, meditative, heavy on language, dense, and very, very fine. Quite unconventional in its methods and its meditations, Everyday Psychokillers is extremely enjoyable provided you're open to what it's going after. If you're looking for a crime novel, this isn't it, but if you're looking for something beautiful and moving exploring the mythology of this thing we call the psychokiller especially from the perspective of a girl, then this should--rightfully--blow you away. For those who are familiar with the press, FC2, this is more conventional than you'd expect given their editorial interests while still not exactly being straightforward narrative. For those more used to the bigger presses, this will be a surprise for you, a gem, something to covet and keep close to you for years. Creepy, lovely, forceful, excellent.

Look, some novels are instant classics, and then the writer never achieves the same success. Salinger, Heller, etc. This isn't one, BUT: Did I like this book? Yes I did. Should you buy it? Yes you should. Am I being Rumsfeldian via my answering my own questions? Yes, I am. But this is an author who won't be limited by a novel that shows off her prowess immediately. She will continue to delve into her subject matter, psychologically and aesthetically. This is a feminist novel in its currently most developed state, and will lead to a further exploration of truly groundbreaking themes. There is much in this book that forces the reader to recognize a literary talent, and then obligates the reader to wait for more. I didn't like this book as much as I've liked some others by "canon" authors, but if you don't read it now, you'll regret it later. Tolstoy and Nabokov are better, but this is gold and deserves to be read. I was happily amazed by the constant reinvention of everyday scenarios and the gravity of the intricate plotline(s). It was a pleasure. You might as well save yourself the effort of catching up with Lucy Corin later and read this now; so just buy the book, read it, and wait, as opposed to breathlessly catching a bandwagon later. It's rare to be able to follow the development of a talented writer with the current economic conditions, so you might as well pick a really good one such as Lucy Corin, right? You'll enjoy "Everyday Psychokillers...," and you'll enjoy her later releases as well, I'm sure. Perhaps not a classic, but a "must buy" for fans of literate literature.

This has to be the most compelling novel I've read since *Heart of Darkness.* Asked "what's it about?", I find myself groping for words and coming up with hopelessly scopey responses like "the ethical dilemma of being human," "the meaning of "civilization" and what it does to ourselves and our planet," or "the ambivalent character of love, heroism and madness in our culture and history." Definitely not light reading, this book is unflaggingly intense, often as hilariously funny as it is horrific or tender, and poetry throughout.

For required reading, this book was actually extremely entertaining, and not at all what I was expecting. The title "Everyday Psychokillers" is a perfect title, but it also made me think the book was going to be much more creepy than it actually was. The basic idea is this: everyone has the potential of being a psychokiller.

That sounds pretty presumptuous, but after reading the book I have been oddly enlightened. Corin did an excellent job combining myths and little anecdotal stories to create a book that explores the idea of the everyday person as a psychokiller. The stories included were all interesting and thought provoking, and the imagery was incredible.

I'm not sure who I would recommend this book to, but I know that if there are definitely some interesting ideas and concepts brought up in the book. If you're feeling inclined enough to read it, I'd say go for it