Darkest Desire: The Wolf's Own Tale (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "I THINK of more than children..." (more)
Key Phrases: darkest desire, Anthony Schmitz, Anthony Schmilz

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In Darkest Desire Anthony Schmitz turns the Brothers Grimm on their heads, retelling "Little Red Riding Hood" from the wolf's perspective. Whatever charm the reader might reasonably expect from such a conceit, however, rapidly dissipates under the beast's graphic and unpleasantly sexual descriptions of child murder:

If I close my eyes, I can still hear the sound of cloth shredding as I pulled with my teeth. I was mad with rage and joy for a moment, and then I was overwhelmed by guilt. Yes, yes, certainly he was a pathetic thing, so miserably, mistakenly confident. But he was as God had made him, and now he was torn asunder. I quickly lost my appetite. I left him almost whole, except for the upper ham. That I retched in the grass a few minutes later.

The wolf goes on to describe how, in the days following this first kill, he "relived those few minutes again and again," and one can't help but think of the Ted Bundys and Jeffrey Dahmers of the world, slouching towards their next gruesome murder.

Schmitz does have a point he's trying to make about the individual's obligation to his own true nature, no matter how perverse, versus his duty to conform to social norms. In exploring this dichotomy, the author skewers psychotherapy--or at least the most opportunistic practitioners of it--and paints Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm as the 19th-century equivalent of tabloid journalists, willing to go to any length to get their story, even if it means manufacturing it. All this might have worked had the wolf's proclivities been less revolting. Unfortunately, there's just no argument to be made in favor of baby-killing as a form of self-expression. Darkest Desire is well written but deeply unpleasant to read. --Alix Wilber

From Publishers Weekly

In the clever conceit of Schmitz's (Lost Souls) novella, an articulate wolf with a passion for eating children is approached by the Brothers Grimm, who claim they want to help cure him of his desire, but, in fact, use him for their own literary inspiration. While the Brothers conduct their ostensible therapy, another figure, a changeling whom the nameless wolf calls Devil, argues that by eating children the wolf is only being true to his nature. Eventually, the Brothers lure the wolf to attack a house where children have been left alone. Schmitz's postmodern rewriting of familiar folk tales explores ideas of forbidden desire and of the manipulative relationship storytellers often have with their subjects. The narrative's brevity is a little thin rather than dense, like an observant short story stretched to book length. Schmitz is clearly an adroit storyteller, nevertheless, and his wolf emerges as a sympathetic narrator, his tale brisk and sly, if unsurprising.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 134 pages
• Publisher: Ecco; 1st edition (November 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0880016264
• ISBN-13: 978-0880016261
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,791,309 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable short read, February 26, 2003

By	Logan Daugherty (Louisville, KY United States) - See all my reviews

Schmitz performs in 100+ pages what many writers cannot do with several hundred more. Presents us with an affable yet fallable protagonist, sets up themes and conflict we can relate (in our own desires), and resolves it satisfactorily. As it is so short, it would be unwise to summarize the plot and spoil things for the reader. Surely, however, a newly vocal wolf who preys on children, the Brothers Grimm, and the Devil should provoke anyone to read this appealing work. :)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fur-raising tale, April 4, 1999

By	[e-mail] "wolfie_and_kansas" (Toto, Guam) - See all my reviews

This is another book review by the boonie dogs, Wolfie and Kansas. "Darkest Desire", allegedly by Anthony Schmitz, presents a wolf's-eye-and-snout view of the Brothers Grimm. We suspect that this book was ghostwritten by a fellow canine. Much of the book is too insightful and too clever to have been written by a typical human author.

The passages about the tastiness of human puppies are somewhat offensive. A canine is more likely to protect a human child from human predators than to eat the child himself. However, "Schmitz" does make it clear that the child-eating wolf is no more typical of canines than Hannibal Lecter is of humans. In a nice twist on an idea used decades ago by Clifford Simak in "City", Schmitz makes use of the canine ability to perceive and interact with phenomena beyond human perception.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A splendid and original idea well done, November 7, 1998

By A Customer

This is one of the most original books I've ever read. I was a bit skeptical when I heard about the premise. Who writes an adult book about the Big Bad Wolf? Once I cracked it, though, I couldn't put it down. Schmitz has fashioned fairy-tale characters that are not only interesting but (who would believe it?) believable. His writing is precise, his observations droll. And as you might suspect, the story is hilarious. This is a book that I'm going to tout to my friends.