Piecemeal June by Jordan Krall Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Piecemeal June
Book Review: "Such interesting uses of orifices."
Summary: 5 Stars
This is what I told Jordan Krall in an email to him after finishing Piecemeal June. In this Bizarro novella, Krall introduces us to a manifold universe where there is something perverse that lays just beneath the surface of perception.
He populates his story with believable and surprising characters. Where you expect something sinister, you get a likable being at peace with its nature. When you do find a character that is bad on the surface, you also find the pitiable creature beneath the facade. There is also room for an average joe.
At the core of all the front line personalities is a desire to possess the most fascinating creature of them all: June, a sex-doll given life. Only one will keep her in the end, of course, but given the implied pornographic nature of the tale, the reader will be pleasantly surprised that sex is not the dominant force that drives the tale. It's almost an afterthought, just there because that is the way of this multiverse.
No, Piecemeal June is a study of human interaction, even among beings that are not quite human. The search for that hard to find feeling of true love is planted firmly in the center of this narrative.
The only real annoyance with this tale is its brevity. Now this does say more about the reader than the author. Jordan Krall did an amazing job of carefully wrapping all that he did into such a small package. There is also the fact that the Bizarro genre is marked by its many novella-length works.
In short, get this book in your collection immediately. It will only disappoint you with its final punctuation mark. Piecemeal June, though brief, is an excellent first offering from a very talented author.
Book Review: A Close-Fisted Sex Comedy Worth Rereading
Summary: 4 Stars
Piecemeal June is a rare first book not because it displays an author in top form right out of the gates, but for the audacity of its creator's vision. Embedding this ultra-violent comedy with a heart as hardboiled as Hell in pink lace, Jordan Krall is a splatter-pop sensation. With the advent of Krall on the Bizarro scene, grindhouse glory has not only returned, it has retransmogrified. If you're wondering what retransmogrified means, don't reach for your dictionary. Forget your 42nd Street facts, because while you're busy studying history lessons, Krall is rewriting the rules, beginning with this sex comedy.
Piecemeal June's protagonist is a twenty-something nobody who lives above a porn shop and works at the PetPlace. His name is Kevin, and he may have a foot fetish. Meanwhile, his tarot-reading cat is dragging something in from the downstairs sex shop piece by piece, and it may have a name, a name worth killing for in the pornographic ring of local hustlers, and perhaps worth dying for in Om-Am, a mysterious pink city that makes Burroughs' Interzone look like Candyland. Toss in a down-and-out boxer, crustaceous mutants, a severe plumbing problem, and buckets of surreal sex, and you've only tipped Piecemeal June's iceberg of snot.
As stated, this is Krall's first book, a fact which occasionally announces itself. The foremost problem is Kevin's friend, Ryan, who lacks "that something that makes friendships worthwhile." He also lacks any reason for appearing in this novella, which is evidenced by his two scenes (one a tense telephone call), in which he affects neither the story nor the characters in any way. Extraneous characters might pass in a three-hundred page novel, but in such a short book as Piecemeal June, not a single word can be spared. This is hardly a severe clip, for even if the character is needless, he detracts admittedly little from the overall effect. Also, since his first book is so slim, it would be nice to see Krall flesh out the city of Om-Am in future works. As Jordan Krall develops as a writer, you'll be certain to hear his name a lot more often, and you'll be far better off for reading him first, in Piecemeal June.
Book Review: A Fast-Paced Love Story
Summary: 5 Stars
Piecemeal June is a grotesquely touching love story as only a Bizarro author of Jordan Krall's caliber could tackle. Full of sex, violence, humor, and heaping amounts of weird. If you're looking for a tale that shatters your expectations then give this one a whirl. It will shock you. It will appall you. It will make you laugh. But, most importantly, it will entertain you.Book Review: A Perverse Beauty...
Summary: 5 Stars
Jordan Krall's debut novel Piecemeal June is a gorgeously engaging bit of comic perversity.
It's the story of Kevin, who lives in an apartment above a porn shop with his very strange cat Mithra... who begins bringing him home bits of a rubber human that, when pieced together, become June- a "living" sex toy. Who belongs to a rather creepy pornographer with three crab-guy henchmen. And is also the love interest of the King of a land of sex. All it needs are a few hippy-sluts and a drag queen and it's a Russ Meyer/John Waters collaboration film.
PJ is a fast-paced, entertaining read that insists on being read in one nail-biting, crotch-grabbing sitting (or standing, depending on your preference).
HIGHLY recommended, as are Jordan's other writings!
Book Review: A breath of fresh air
Summary: 5 Stars
A magnificent escape from what is considered "the norm" in literature today. Piecemeal June appeals to fans of all genres of speculative fiction. Overall I felt the novel was very well written. Especially in terms of atmosphere and characterization. Blend in an imagination that knows no boundries and you have a novella that will open dormat parts of your mind. Why are you still reading reviews? BUY THIS BOOK!