⋙ Read The Contortionist Handbook Craig Clevenger Books

The Contortionist Handbook Craig Clevenger Books

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The Contortionist Handbook Craig Clevenger Books

I had wanted to read this book for some time and so finally bought it and settled in. As with any book that is not completely clear about what exactly is going on, it is important to not set this one down for too long as to keep your own memory of the characters and events from becoming jumbled. As you do this, you realize that you are doing precisely what the main character in the novel is and it puts a closeness between the two of you. Clevenger's writing style is concise and descriptive, often giving up a sentence that surprises with its beauty and/or perfect imagery. I would like to have heard more about Keara/Molly's story, but in the end, it isn't important to the overall impression that you are left with. In fact, her story (or lack thereof) only adds to the main character's. I very much enjoyed this book and now look forward to reading Clevenger's second novel!


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The Contortionist Handbook Craig Clevenger Books Reviews

This is an amazing debut novel. Craig Clevenger has written a book that appeals to the buried desire within us all to live life as someone who is not you. And he has done it with some of the most meticulous prose to appear in modern fiction in a long time. A master with detail, Clevenger also keeps the reader guessing as to how the protagonist will outwit the experts through superb "mind games" masked as physician-patient conversations. No matter how erudite the doctor, John Dolan Vincent has the upper hand -- he knows his stuff because he HAS to know it. If he fails to convince the medical staff that he is not insane or suicidal, he will be locked up in the Earthbound equivalent of hell, the Mental Institution.

Clevenger is part of a new wave of modern noir, or blank fiction, or perhaps there is no term that captures this emerging literary movement. Along with Will Christopher Baer, Stephen Graham Jones, Chuck Palahniuk, Joey Goebel and others, Craig makes NOW a great time for lovers of fiction of a different flavor. Jump in early, there's a lot more coming from this talented author.
this book definitely hooked me in right away. one of those books you wish you could read straight through ignoring the rest of your life for awhile. i found it very very well-written. there were weaknesses i agree with another reviewer that the love story part was a bit sappy as well as the crime-mob dialogue. but i found the character himself really intriguing. that line "sometimes i can be so smart and sometimes i can be so stupid" sums him up. i really did feel like i was privy to the thoughts of this incredibly intelligent man who is missing some really really obvious stuff. he's devised the most complicated solution possible to his problem but he WORKS that solution so well, is so focused on that solution that its never occurred to him to try a different angle. and really his adopted solution makes perfect sense with respect to his background. i was a bit disappointed that he actually did break out of his one-track view at the end. i think it would have been a more interesting ending if he had stayed on his complex little hampster-wheel...
anyway.. definitely a promising writer. i'm looking forward to reading more of his work.
This book was very interesting. It is about a young man who constantly changes identity after each overdose due to a headache he gets every year or so, which causes him to be placed under psychiatric evaluation. What made me buy this book is that Cuck Palahniuk said it was the best book he's read in at least 5 years, and I figured I would like it as well. It was an interesting read, a very quick read as well. It gave great insight into the main character, and it had a lot of twists and turns. While it wouldn't pass for one of Chuck's better novels, it still kept my attention long enough and was better than the books I had read recently. A great debut for an up and coming author, and I would recommend it to people who want to read something new and different. He is a master forger, and it creates all sorts of opportunities and problems for him. Good read.
I give this 4.5 stars because there was a small element missing. I couldn't quite identify it, but the book was awesome nonetheless. This is a gripping character study about a guy who keeps overdosing on drugs and has to talk his way out of the psych ward and change his identity to stay out of an institution. Clevenger's portrayal of the pysch interview was stellar. The way he wove the story in throughout the interview was brilliant. Some of the scenes are graphic, but they are brief enough that its not bothersome to more sensitive readers. It's a one day, two sitting reading. The only reason I put the book down was to eat lunch. Definitely looking forward to his next book, already on my .

-- Emma D, aka Anna Zimmerman
I had wanted to read this book for some time and so finally bought it and settled in. As with any book that is not completely clear about what exactly is going on, it is important to not set this one down for too long as to keep your own memory of the characters and events from becoming jumbled. As you do this, you realize that you are doing precisely what the main character in the novel is and it puts a closeness between the two of you. Clevenger's writing style is concise and descriptive, often giving up a sentence that surprises with its beauty and/or perfect imagery. I would like to have heard more about Keara/Molly's story, but in the end, it isn't important to the overall impression that you are left with. In fact, her story (or lack thereof) only adds to the main character's. I very much enjoyed this book and now look forward to reading Clevenger's second novel!