Customer Reviews

Rumble, Young Man, Rumble: Stories

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

 

 

I was pretty skeptical about this book because of the hype and what I knew about the subject matter. But I was pleasantly surprised. The writing is beautiful. I'm not much of a boxing fan and I have to admit I found the violence a little hard to take. But I loved the humor and the passion. I especially loved "The Ropes." It almost made me cry.

The book jacket compares this book to Thom Jones and Palahniuk. I agree with the comparison. These are strong stories about confused tough guys and wannabe-tough guys. The stories don't seem as "perfect" as some other short story collections out there, but I actually liked this--it made the stories feel more real, and less labored-over. The writing is fresh without feeling overly "literary."

The best thing about this book is that the stories are just plain interesting. They have plot; you want to see what happens next. That's a rare compliment to pay to a short-story collection these days.

All in all, this is a very good read, recommended. Five stars.

This book seems to engender very strong reactions from readers, and that's all to the good. The reactions seem to even vary story by story. A recent New York Times Sunday book review used rather strong language in essentially panning several of the first stories in the book, and then turned around and praised the last story, I think that the only explanation is the stories touch on dark and hidden emotions buried within all of us, and that some readers can not deal with what it awakens within themselves. To me, that is evidence of the power of this book, that with spare dialogue and in the limited span of eight or fifteen pages of a short story, Cavell not only keep us more than interested. He can scare and thrill and stimulate our deepest primordial impulses. All in all, I couldn't put it down until I read it through.

Entertaining stories aimed at a male audience (like me) did not dissappoint. They are not Thom Jones (Pugilist at Rest) but still pack enough grit to make the cut.

Benjamin Cavell's debut collection of short stories explores masculinity through an over-the-hill ex-jock, a rising politician, a paranoid office employee and other testosterone-driven males who have plenty of bark, but no real bite to them. Their tough facades are exposed, and of course, the men are cowering like a small child - not a new notion, but it is explored with such prevailing sadness that you may want to offer consolation to the characters.

Cavell, an ex-boxer, does his best writing in one of the longest short stories, "Ropes." Alex Folsom recalls his knockout, "Spotlights made the ring rise up in front of me like a blue island in a sea of black." Stripped down sentences like this bring vividness and immediacy. Folsom continues on with unwavering honesty about his father, a troublesome love relationship, and life after boxing in a casual tone that is quite inviting. Fine details give shape to the story; this facet is often lacking in the other shorter stories, therefore consistent depth is missing.

"Rumble, young man, rumble" may demand attention with its quick starts, but the full throttle peters out towards the end within many of the shorter short stories. The climaxes often feel incomplete or just plain predictable.

Bohdan Kot

This is a pretty darn solid collection. A couple of these stories are truly great. It is, indeed very much like Thom Jones, which is a mixed blessing. I think this guy has better work ahead of him. One can not help but think, get Archie Moore to train you, you still ain't knockin nobody out, Cambridge. Worth picking up.

Boy, was I disappointed! I bought this book because I thought the topic might be interesting and because it seemed to be getting moderate-to-good reviews. There is one good story among the nine-story count: the last one, called "The Ropes." There is some real depth in this, and an indication of some talent. Unfortunately, a lot of what precedes this is posturing and foolish. The long piece "Evolution" in the middle is a short story/adventure flic, with an ongoing commentary about what makes us different from the animals. Wow, so dynamic! I was embarrassed for the author just reading this. There are a number of other sketches which are diverting but not really complete stories. I suspect the first piece, "Balls, Balls, Balls" is the one driving all this interest, and for what it is it's good. But do you really care about the inner life of some mall dope who works in a sporting goods store? To say that this collection sheds some light on the current state of men is just promotionese. There's some not-very-interesting posing, and then one real story at the end.