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Mother Puncher [Paperback]

Gina Ranalli
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)

Price: $4.99 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Book Description

June 30, 2008
The world has become tragically over-populated and while the government hasn't completely outlawed procreation, it strongly opposes and discourages it in what it considers to be a perfectly humane way. Ed Means is a man who loves his country. He loves beer and Johnny Cash and his sparkling beloved Ford Trinidad SUV. He is a good American, a good consumer and a good husband in a troubled--and of course--childless marriage. A former boxing champion, known to most as simply Champ, he now works in a hospital, doing a job most people despise him for. He is, like many others of his ilk, employed by the United States government; fully licensed and registered and carrying the badge to prove it. He doesn't relish his job but knows that it needs to be done and knows that he is the best one to do it. He is a Mother Puncher. A fair, firm and uncompromising Mother Puncher. Breeders beware.
--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

  • Paperback: 120 pages
  • Publisher: Afterbirth Books (June 30, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1933929170
  • ISBN-13: 978-1933929170
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5 x 0.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,291,584 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Gina Ranalli is the author of several novels, including Mothman Emerged, Rumors of My Death, Praise the Dead, House of Fallen Trees, Suicide Girls in the Afterlife, Chemical Gardens, Wall of Kiss, and Mother Puncher. Her collection, 13 Thorns (with Gus Fink) won the Wonderland Book Award for Best Story Collection of 2007. Her short stories have appeared in numerous publications including Bits of the Dead, The Beast Within, Horror Library Volume 3, and Dead Science, among others.

Gina lives in Washington state where she is working on her next novel. You can communicate with her online at www.ginaranalli.com and on twitter at http://twitter.com/GinaRanalli

Customer Reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
(19)
4.4 out of 5 stars
Just an average guy, really- except he punches women in the face. Lee Widener  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
This was the first book that I have read by Gina Ranalli and it's made me a fan. R. Moschgat Jr.  |  3 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars It Will Smack You Right in the Eye and Touch Your Heart October 10, 2009
Format:Paperback
I've been reading a lot of Gina Ranalli's books lately. This is the latest one I've read. Every single book of hers is excellent. I'm never good with picking favorites, anyway. It's a happy handicap when it comes to Ms. Ranalli's body of work. MOTHER PUNCHER is yet another excellent story from the genius mind of Gina Ranalli.

The story is set in a dystopian alternate reality. Maybe just the future, but I like to think of our future as not turning out this way. In this world, Ed is a Mother Puncher. It is his job to punch women who've just given birth (and their spineless husbands if he can catch them) in the face to discourage new mothers from "doing something so stupid as getting pregnant again". Ed doesn't like his job, but it's what he's got.

As always, though the world Ms. Ranalli creates is insane, she puts the reader into the story in an eloquent, easy way. You're immersed so completely in her world that you hardly realize how crazy it is. It's like a symphony.

Ed's world is distasteful. It's sad. And it's falling apart. His security proves insecure. Love in Ed's world proves to be as fickle as his boxing career. And maybe, it turns out, punching women for getting pregnant isn't the answer to the "problems" of the System...

There's good, there's evil, and there's the grayness that is reality.

If you're looking for beautiful writing about real world problems, personal growth, understanding, and revelations, all mixed up in an interesting and strangely possible universe, read MOTHER PUNCHER (or anything by Gina Ranalli).
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Breeders beware... August 3, 2008
Format:Paperback
(aka Ash Lomen)

Gina Ranalli's work always has a distinctly sharp, extremely readable quality to it. She's funny and she doesn't waste words.

Still I do wonder what exactly she's trying to say with her dystopian tale of a guy who's job is to discourage women from having babies by giving them a good punch in the mouth. The characters a clearly (almost brilliantly) defined... and I find myself really feeling for Ed (our "hero") as his world falls apart... but I feel I might also be missing something. What exactly is this book about?

...maybe it's about not dealing with women by hitting them in the face (sorry Grandpa, Dad, and Uncle Tommy)

Maybe it's about the limits of government control?

Maybe it's about ants and apples (still haven't figured that part out yet)

Whatever it's ultimate meaning is... it sure was damn entertaining. And Johnny Cash rules!!!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Mother Punching Good Time July 28, 2009
Format:Paperback
You might not know who Gina Ranalli is but you will soon. She has written several novellas and numerous short stories but so far has only had a limited cult following. Closely associated with the bizarro community, her latest novella from Afterbirth books, "Mother Puncher", has gotten the wider horror scene buzzing and for good reason. She has written a dark and twisted social satire that stands high above the genre completion.

The world is suffering a population problem; there are too many people and not enough resources. To discourage reproduction the government has resorted to creative problem solving. Which is where Ed Means comes in. He is a Mother Puncher. It is his job to give mothers (and fathers when they are around) a good punch right after their child's birth so they remember not to spawn again. To tell any more would spoil the story's many twists and turns.

This is not your standard horror tale. The closest one gets to a monster is government policies. The darkness of the storyline, however, will make this slim volume feel right a home in any collection of weird fiction. Ranalli paints a world on the brink of collapse, where the most absurd solutions seem rational.

The horror genre has always easily lent itself to social and political commentary. Through it, talented writers can play with and comment on the darker side of human nature. Following in the footsteps of H. G. Wells and Bentley Little, Ranalli has crafted a tale commenting on gender, the birth industry, and an individual's right to determine their own destiny. These are heavy topics to be dealing with and there is always the danger of a writer losing sense of their story for the sake of preaching to the audience. Fortunately, Ranalli avoids this and never loses sight of the story in the bigger issues with she is dealing.

With the publication of "Mother Puncher" Ranalli has been receiving a lot of attention from the broader horror scene. She is currently working on several stories for a variety of publishers for the next year, so watch for her profile to continue to rise. Don't miss out on your chance to get in on this exciting talent while she is still relatively unknown.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars It's not safe to be a breeder anymore...
This is a tiny book (100 pages) by the same author as Suicide Girls in the Afterlife, and in the same way, you have a very short time to get to know and like the characters, but... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Craig Meikle
3.0 out of 5 stars Falls apart half way through...
I really enjoyed the beginning of the book, it was a fascinating concept and was dark and humorous with delightfully sinister undertones. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Amanda
5.0 out of 5 stars Cool Concept, Cool book
I think most people know that overpopulation is a fairly serious problem. In Mother Puncher, Gina Ranalli has a created a bizarre future world where the government has tried to... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Yoyogod
4.0 out of 5 stars Just doing my job.
This was my first Gina Ranalli book, but it won't be my last. I really enjoyed her writing style, as well as the believability of the world she drops us in. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Tonia Brown
5.0 out of 5 stars True Love...
Mother puncher is very special in its own unique way. I love anything and everything that I have ever checked out by Gina and her work has never let me down, I almost own... Read more
Published 14 months ago by jon117
4.0 out of 5 stars A good bizarre little read, but that ending!
I think this is my first foray into 'bizarro' fiction. While the premise of government sanctioned workers whose job it is to punch new mothers (and fathers, if they are around) as... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Tracy L. Powell
3.0 out of 5 stars Believable Characters
Not one of Gina Ranalli's best tales but she has a knack of creating believable characters. The story-line built up to huge event but then left you flat - it just ended.
Published 16 months ago by Dawn
4.0 out of 5 stars To Punch or not to Punch?
Ed Means is an official government Mother Puncher. His job is to punch mothers (and fathers if they have the stones to stick around) of newly-born babies. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Sarah A. Shaw
5.0 out of 5 stars Have You Punched a Mother Today?
This was my first work I have read of Gina's and I must say I came away fully impressed and entertained. It is the story of one man's struggle with his everyday job. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Buckeye Nick
5.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Read!
Ed Means, is a mother puncher. It's his job to visit the hospital when a baby is being born and to sock the mother and when possible the father in the face. Read more
Published 22 months ago by R. Moschgat Jr.
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