The Unauthorized Biography of Michele Bachmann (and Other Stories)

Reviews:

From phone hackers to an Iraqi searching for his missing leg, these are thought-provoking accounts packed with powerful images. They don't include Brosky's earlier horror writing, but they do provide a virtual feast of emotions that do include horror, humor and observations of the human condition. 'Amazon.com' is the only essay included in this collection of fiction, and provides a fine and unexpected survey of the internet giant. Brosky's short stories always open with a bang: "I knew this guy, babe, he could do things with his mouth you ain't never seen. And I ain't talking about sex here, all right? All right? Get your head out of the gutter and listen to me, because this is a story that's gonna blow your mind." That's part of his special power: imparting scenarios and openings that keep you reading. But the tension and unexpected twists don't end with the opening lines: it is evident throughout the chatty, involving story line: "It all started in the 1960s, when Cap'n Crunch cereal included a free toy whistle in every box. The whistle just so happened to produce a 2600hz tone, which is the exact same tone that AT&T used as a steady signal for unused long-distance lines."

--Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review