Comments on: Books That Saved Someone’s Life

By: KevinS

KevinS — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:01:16 +0000

Gary Lutz is Jesus-like, God-like, in that way. Stories in the Worst Way is way better than The Prophet.
For me, I think Breakfast of Champions and My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist rank up there too. And in a totally different way, Please Don’t Kill the Freshman.

By: KevinS

KevinS — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:01:00 +0000

By: samuel pink the third, duke of wilbyshire upon avon stratsfordhaven

samuel pink the third, duke of wilbyshire upon avon stratsfordhaven — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 20:57:54 +0000

i like archie ammons

By: samuel pink the third, duke of

samuel pink the third, duke of — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 20:57:00 +0000

i like archie ammons

By: Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:28:18 +0000

I would say that The Names did me better than White Noise. Oh and Great Jones Street, as far as DeLillo goes. not sure either one saved my life, precisely, but we take our thrills where we can find them.

Similarly, after I bought a copy of Gary Lutz’s Stories in the Worst Way, there was a short but very real period of time where whenever I was wasted and on a subway late at night, I would start reading aloud from it to whoever would listen. I just thought it was the most mind-bending thing I’d ever seen. I must have looked like I wanted money, though I didn’t, which is good, because nobody gave me any.

So I guess what I’m really trying to say is that I’m lucky to be alive, no thanks to Gary’s book, though in another sense that book made life worth not only living but potentially worth getting killed over, even though in the end it all pretty much came to naught.

By: Justin Taylor

Justin Taylor — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:28:00 +0000