SE: Early on in the novel, it’s clear you want readers to have the biblical story of Noah in mind. Out of all of the strange and powerful stories from Genesis, what specifically about that one was compelling to you? Why did a sort of retelling of it seem necessary now? LS: First and foremost, […]
July Read of the Month: “Noah’s Wife,” by Lindsay Starck
Reviewed by Sean Ennis Lindsay Starck’s debut novel, Noah’s Wife, centers on a town inexplicably inundated with a soaking, seemingly never-ending rain. The subsequent flooding threatens the local economy and tests the faith of the community in terms of whether to see the storm through (the rain must end sometime, right?) or abandon the town […]
Lewis Nordan Explores Magical Bond Between Father and Son
Still looking for a meaningful Father’s Day Gift? SLR contributor Sean Ennis shares the title that most impacted his role as both a son and a father: When I first read Lewis Nordan’s Music of the Swamp, I was just a son. I laughed and cringed at the bungling of Mr. Mecklin–the well-intentioned lies […]
April Read of the Month: The Illumination, by Kevin Brockmeier
Click to Buy The Illumination (Pantheon, Feb. 2011) by Kevin Brockmeier Review by Sean Ennis Kevin Brockmeier’s newest novel, The Illumination, describes a world where all physical pain—from injuries or acute disease or chronic ailments—manifests itself as light. A sliced thumb, lung cancer, arthritis, even acne shine in ways to match […]
November Read of the Month, Citrus County by John Brandon
Review by Sean Ennis John Brandon’s second novel, Citrus County, is, on its surface, a typical sort of coming of age novel. Fourteen year old Toby wishes for a more exciting life in rural Florida, tries ineptly to understand Shelby, a potential love interest, and battles his superiors with both apathy and cunning. But […]