Customer Reviews

Kornwolf: A Novel

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

 

 

This book is great from the beginning, introducing characters and situations, gradually revealing more and more. It would be a disservice to any potential reader to touch upon any plot points, because the thrill of discovering them while reading the book is so great.

It is exciting and funny. There are loose ties at the end, and the last bit of the book seems to have been rushed a bit more than the rest. I wish the author had explored the aftermath of the last events. It would have added to the fun immensely.

If you're interested in either werewolves or in having a fun read, this is highly recommended.

I will definitely read Egolf's other two books.

Legend has it that Tristan Egolf shut himself away in some Pennsyltucky shack to pound out this glorious hunk of potential. When he considered the draft finished, he ended his own life.

And, not to sound cold, this is why Kornwolf suffers. It feels unfinished, and the knowledge of suicide after completion leaves me feeling like I'm minding after his dumbfounded child. Ideas are half realized and fizzle out. Characters warp in and out of focus. The humor of earlier works is weakened here and overcome with too much spite. You always feel like you're going somewhere but never arrive. And the ending seems forced out at the last second.

This book desperately needed its author to stick around just a little longer to work with an editor and bring it up to "Lord of the Barnyard" and "Skirt and the Fiddle" status.

I really don't know whether to be mad or sad. It's an artifact of a writer rather than a piece of his literature. Kornwolf is like reading a Faulkner's or a Hemmingway's first drafts. You see the story peeking out at you, and you know there's greatness there. But it needs shape and definition.

But alas, in this case, it will never come. Ever.

I finished this book a couple of days ago, and I have been sitting on this review for a couple of days. You see, I am torn. I read and enjoyed his Lord of the Barnyard: Killing the Fatted Calf and Arming the Aware in the Cornbelt on a random recommendation from a bookstore clerk. I only heard about Egolf's second book in a capsule review in the New Yorker, and I think they only included it because it was hot on the heels of his suicide. I didn't even know this book existed until I ran across it at a bookfair and I grabbed it up at a reduced price.

I'm torn because Egolf wrote this right before his suicide, and just knowing that tints the process of reading and enjoying and evaluating it as a text. Early on, a forlorn character is saying forlorn things, and part of my brain asked of this book was just an extended suicide note. It's not though, it is an interesting narrative that brings together an intersection of boxing, Amish folk in Eastern Pennsylvania, and warewolves. Even though I normally wouldn't be drawn to a book covering the supernatural element, Egolf lets the situation develop and come together very well.

There are some minor problems with the work, and it comes from what seems to be idiosyncrasies that may have been pulled out in further drafts. For example, the place names referred to in the book have real analogues in the world and if you're familiar with eastern PA you'll know what is being referred to but otherwise you might not know the geography of the world. There is also a lack of exposition in places that could have made the ending tighter, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed the work.

The premise of the book, the characters, and the setting all have potential - but unfortunately, all fall flat. The author continually changes style, going from a conversational feel, then to a play-by-play, followed by documentary. The book is tedious to read and at times very confusing. The author will describe a sequence of events, and then rehash the same sequence of events from another character's point-of-view. I got annoyed with the book and only skimmed the last third - I was tired of reading it. There's nothing in the writing that makes you care about any of the characters. Save your money - there are better books in the genre.

Nestled between New Holland and Narvon in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, lies Blue Ball, the heart of the Amish Basin. An abundance of legend has followed the less conspicuous inhabitants of the surrounding hills and valleys who managed to settle here from Switzerland in the early 1700s. Donning very plain eerie clothes and tightly bound by religious doctrine, the intentionally secluded Amish find themselves the Protestant cornerstone of the northeastern United States, if not the entire country. Within 300 miles of Blue Ball lives one third of the United States' population. The pressure to conform must be over whelming -but they hardly even know it. Their connection to the outside world comes from the magazines and newspapers the English drop off, as requested by road signs seeking a free farm utility. They have no televisions or computers. Current events are very simple: today's weather and the "good deals" at the local auction. They speak their own language, and generally avoid speaking with the English (us). This is one of the settings in the new novel, Kornwolf, by Tristan Egolf.

Kornwolf is an adventure into the shadow side of our country, Lancaster County, and ourselves. Tristan possesses a unique voice that places the reader into his world, (the protagonist) Owen's world. Tristan speaks our generation's disgust and disenchantment so well it makes me feel as if everyone in our generation must feel the same way... do you?