Waste [Paperback]

Eugene Marten (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2008

Fiction. A spare and chilling account of the day-to-day experience of Sloper, a janitor in a big-city office building, WASTE explores the import of the discarded--for those who generate it, those who dispose of it, and those who are themselves discarded. From the humble prospect of his station, Sloper uncovers ominous possibility in lives he barely brushes. Brian Everson says, "Only Eugene Marten can keep a reader enthralled with the minutiae of a janitorial existence.... Precisely and exquisitely detailed, WASTE is a stark little masterpiece." And Dawn Raffel writes, "[P]itch-perfect. WASTE wastes nothing--not a syllable, a beat, a ragged breath." And Sam Lipsyte writes, "There is nothing quite like the controlled burn of Eugene Marten's prose."

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Eugene Marten is the author of IN THE BLIND (Turtle Point Press, 2003), WASTE (Ellipsis Press, 2008), and FIREWORK (Tyrant Books, 2010). He lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Paperback: 116 pages
• Publisher: Ellipsis Press (September 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0963753614
• ISBN-13: 978-0963753618
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,159,520 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous and visceral., June 18, 2010

By 

K. Baumann - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Waste (Paperback)

One of the most affecting experiences I've had. Buy this book. Buy many. Give them to friends. If it doesn't alter you, throw it in the garbage; it'll be okay, might actually be happy.

4.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly precise & detailed writing..., March 29, 2010

By 

Jim Slanski "Reader" (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Waste (Paperback)

Incredibly precise & intense writing (think Gary Lutz but with more of a plot) yields a darkly satisfying tale of an oafish hi-rise janitor heading for a fall. Some have complained about the "necro" angle. Yes, that aspect is disturbing -- but used less for shock value than to drive home the point (in the ultimate terms) that we're all just "waste" in the end. Minor, but memorably grim (or poignant, depending on your mood.) And you'll never leave your shoes unattended beneath your cubicle desk again.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Remarkably Unfulfilling, June 13, 2010

By 

Dash Manchette - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Waste (Paperback)

I was expecting more from WASTE. Often thin books pack the punch harder, getting to the meat of what lies underneath those everyday transactions, and those everyday people, that we pass through or pass by without much thought. Certainly WASTE has a good character for this. Sloper is a janitor with the social skills, or lack of them perhaps, that makes him invisible to so many of the rest of us. The story pushes things even more to the periphery. Lacking companionship, Sloper finds it where he can.

But it is so disjointed that we never really connect. We follow Sloper around rather than really get under his skin or experience his physical and existential isolation. Not a character that many would naturally project onto, the story required something to let us make that emotional connection that allows for a more appreciative reading. Given the companion that Sloper finds, a solid narrative could have developed based upon an exploration of Sloper's own feelings as projected onto his girl. We do not get it.

Maybe I mistook WASTE for something it was not meant to be. I personally am no fan of that stream-of-consciousness writing in which we do not really know if the words in front of us are an objective description of what is happening or a projection of the subjectivity of the character (though I would hope the latter, as the former would be very weak writing indeed). However, even given my distaste, the story here was too thin, too insubstantial, for me to recommend it.

Eugene Marten seems to have talent. He can write a scene and even some decent dialogue. Perhaps writing in a style that makes full use of such skills would allow for a better book. WASTE is (bad pun alert) a waste of this man's seeming talents.