Synopses & Reviews
Fiction. Joe Meno's acclaimed first novel, TENDER AS HELLFIRE, written when he was twenty-two, limns a near-fantastical world of trailer park floozies, broken-down '76 Impalas, lost glass eyes, and the daily experiences of two boys trying to make sense of their random, sharp lives. Now in a reedited paperback edition, TENDER AS HELLFIRE tells the story of Dough and Pill, brothers bound by more than blood. The anguish of their past, the terror of their present, and the uncertainty of their future all underscore the only truth that is within their grasp: each other. "TENDER AS HELLFIRE features some of the liveliest characters that one is apt to meet in a contemporary novel"--Publishers Weekly. "Extremely vivid.Any number of novels have been written about unhappy childhoods and bizarre families, but this one surpasses many"--Kirkus Review.
Synopsis
"Features some of the liveliest characters that one is apt to meet in a contemporary novel. Vividly described."
--Publishers Weekly "Extremely vivid. . . . Any number of novels have been written about unhappy childhoods and bizarre families, but this one surpasses many."--Kirkus Reviews
Joe Meno limns a near-fantastical world of trailer park floozies, broken-down '76 Impalas, lost glass eyes, and the daily experiences of two boys trying to make sense of their random, sharp lives.
Joe Meno is the author of the novels Hairstyles of the Damned, The Boy Detective Fails, and How the Hula Girl Sings. He was the winner of the 2003 Nelson Algren Award for short fiction and is a professor of creative writing at Columbia College Chicago.
Synopsis
"Extremely vivid . . . Any number of novels have been written about unhappy childhoods and bizarre families, but this one surpasses many." --Kirkus Reviews
Long before he established himself as an indie-publishing sensation with his hit novels Office Girl, How the Hula Girl Sings, Hairstyles of the Damned and The Boy Detective Fails, Joe Meno brought out his debut novel, Tender As Hellfire, with St. Martin's Press. Here, with a re-edited paperback edition, Meno limns a near-fantastical world of trailer park floozies, broken-down '76 Impalas, lost glass eyes, and the daily experiences of two boys trying to make sense of their random, sharp lives.
Dough and Pill are brothers bound by more than blood. The anguish of their past, the terror of their present, and the uncertainty of their future all underscore the only truth that is within their grasp: each other. For beneath the cruel surface of their trailer park community lies a menagerie of odd characters, each one strange yet somehow beautiful. Surrounded by the strange and displaced, Dough and Pill must navigate through a world of constant pain and confusion.
Finding beauty in unexpected places and maintaining a reverence for hard-won scars, these two brothers learn, finally, that even broken things can be perfect.
Synopsis
Paperback reissue of indie sensation Joe Meno's debut novel.
About the Author
Joe Meno (born 1974) is a novelist, writer of short fiction, playwright, and music journalist based in Chicago. After attending Columbia College Chicago, Meno spent time working as a flower delivery truck driver and art therapy teacher at a juvenile detention center. His first novel Tender as Hellfire was published when he was only 24 and received strong reviews from sources like Library Journal. His short fiction has appeared in literary magazines like Tri-Quarterly, Ninth Letter, and Other Voices. Meno's work is known for the use of natural language and realistic dialogue, as well as frequent forays into absurdity. He currently teaches fiction writing at Columbia College Chicago. He is a frequent contributor to Punk Planet magazine, where his comic strip Iceberg Town is featured.