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A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco #1
Dove Season
Jack Veeder is dying. Soon. And that impending event brings his son Jimmy back to the Imperial Valley of southern California just north of the Calexico/Mexicali border. Jimmy hopes he can spend what time his father has left laughing and reminiscing. But Jack’s got one dying request. He needs Jimmy to find a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda.
Enlisting the help of his boyhood friend Bobby Maves, the pair stumbles through the violent, the exploited, and the corrupted of Mexicali. It doesn’t take long before they’re in over their heads. And as Jimmy tries to survive the dangers of the Mexicali underworld, he unwittingly uncovers truths about his father he never imagined, forcing Jimmy to come to terms with the man he thought he knew, and to decide just what sort of man he wants to become.
“[Johnny Shaw] is excellent at creating a sense of place with a few deft strokes... he moves effortlessly between dark comedy and moments that pack a real emotional punch, and he’s got a knack for off-kilter characters who are completely at home in their own personal corners of oddballdom.”
– Tana French, author of In the Woods, Faithful Place
Enlisting the help of his boyhood friend Bobby Maves, the pair stumbles through the violent, the exploited, and the corrupted of Mexicali. It doesn’t take long before they’re in over their heads. And as Jimmy tries to survive the dangers of the Mexicali underworld, he unwittingly uncovers truths about his father he never imagined, forcing Jimmy to come to terms with the man he thought he knew, and to decide just what sort of man he wants to become.
“[Johnny Shaw] is excellent at creating a sense of place with a few deft strokes... he moves effortlessly between dark comedy and moments that pack a real emotional punch, and he’s got a knack for off-kilter characters who are completely at home in their own personal corners of oddballdom.”
– Tana French, author of In the Woods, Faithful Place
380 pages, Trade Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
177 people are currently reading
950 people want to read
About the author
Johnny Shaw
28 books283 followersJohnny Shaw was born and raised on the Calexico/Mexicali border, the setting for his award-winning Jimmy Veeder Fiasco series, which includes the novels DOVE SEASON and PLASTER CITY. He is also the author of the Anthony Award-winning adventure novel, BIG MARIA.
His shorter work has appeared in Thuglit, Crime Factory, Shotgun Honey, Plots with Guns, and numerous anthologies. He is the creator and editor of the fiction magazine, BLOOD & TACOS, which recently added a phone app, a Podcast, and a book imprint to its empire.
Johnny received his MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA and over the course of his writing career has seen his screenplays optioned, sold, and produced. For the last dozen years, Johnny has taught writing, both online and in person. He has taught at Santa Barbara City College, UC Santa Barbara, LitReactor, and numerous writing conferences.
Johnny lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife, artist Roxanne Patruznick.
His shorter work has appeared in Thuglit, Crime Factory, Shotgun Honey, Plots with Guns, and numerous anthologies. He is the creator and editor of the fiction magazine, BLOOD & TACOS, which recently added a phone app, a Podcast, and a book imprint to its empire.
Johnny received his MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA and over the course of his writing career has seen his screenplays optioned, sold, and produced. For the last dozen years, Johnny has taught writing, both online and in person. He has taught at Santa Barbara City College, UC Santa Barbara, LitReactor, and numerous writing conferences.
Johnny lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife, artist Roxanne Patruznick.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 236 reviews
February 16, 2015
Jimmy Veeder finds out that his dad Jack is dying from cancer, so he heads home to Imperial Valley to spend time with him before he goes. Jack wants an odd request from Jimmy though. He wants a prostitute. Not just any prostitute but one named Yolanda.
Jimmy and his buddy Bobby Maves head off to find her.
It's never simple when these two are involved though. Trouble will find them no matter what they are doing.
Violence is widespread because Bobby and Jimmy seem to be pros at getting their asses kicked. They never let that stop them though. As soon as they get beat down they jump right back up for that next beat down.
Then throw in the sidekicks of Buck Buck and Snout. (We need a book with those two)
Buck Buck and Snout pulled up next to us and got out. Snout gave me a big wave and a smile. Buck Buck farted loudly and then laughed. I loved those idiots.
When I had gone to ask them to join me, the entire conversation had gone like this:
Me: "Fellas, (Spoiler line-but bad guy stuff inserted here) *I didn't want to spoil anything so I changed this line*
Them: "Let's go get him."
Me: "It could be dangerous."
Them: Laughter
It's hard for me to convey just how good Johnny Shaw's books are. They are written so well that I want to quote the whole book, but then I don't want too because I want everyone to read them. My sad is that there are so few of his books available. I don't know what it's going to take to get him to write faster. Maybe if we send Kemper and Dan over to Shaw's house to wash his car he might have more time to write? They are the one's that alerted me to these books so I'm volunteering them. I want more.
A day with a Johnny Shaw book is a good day.
Jimmy and his buddy Bobby Maves head off to find her.
It's never simple when these two are involved though. Trouble will find them no matter what they are doing.
Violence is widespread because Bobby and Jimmy seem to be pros at getting their asses kicked. They never let that stop them though. As soon as they get beat down they jump right back up for that next beat down.
Then throw in the sidekicks of Buck Buck and Snout. (We need a book with those two)
Buck Buck and Snout pulled up next to us and got out. Snout gave me a big wave and a smile. Buck Buck farted loudly and then laughed. I loved those idiots.
When I had gone to ask them to join me, the entire conversation had gone like this:
Me: "Fellas, (Spoiler line-but bad guy stuff inserted here) *I didn't want to spoil anything so I changed this line*
Them: "Let's go get him."
Me: "It could be dangerous."
Them: Laughter
It's hard for me to convey just how good Johnny Shaw's books are. They are written so well that I want to quote the whole book, but then I don't want too because I want everyone to read them. My sad is that there are so few of his books available. I don't know what it's going to take to get him to write faster. Maybe if we send Kemper and Dan over to Shaw's house to wash his car he might have more time to write? They are the one's that alerted me to these books so I'm volunteering them. I want more.
A day with a Johnny Shaw book is a good day.
April 14, 2014
When he finds out his father has terminal cancer, Jimmy Veeder returns home for the first time in over a decade. His father has one last request: one last visit with a bar girl named Yolanda. Little does Jimmy know the shitstorm his is about to unleash...
Since Plaster City was part of the Kindle First program this month, I thought it was high time I read Johnny Shaw's first Jimmy Veeder novel, Dove Season, and I'm very glad I did.
Dove Season is a crime tale that feels like something Joe Lansdale would cook up after a night of bad Mexican food. It takes place in the poor communities on the California/Mexico border. Jimmy Veeder is a conflicted Slacker who returns home to spend what remaining time his father has left with the old man. Who knew crossing the border to track down a hooker would stir up so much trouble?
Shaw's dialogue reminds me of Joe Lansdale's; full of black humor and sounding authentically rural. I lost count of all the quotable lines. Jimmy and his best friend Bobby Maves drink and wisecrack their way through the Mexican underworld, getting their asses handed to them repeatedly.
The humor is tempered with some brutality and surprising plot twists. I'm not going to spoil anything but this is certainly a book where the main character doesn't leave the story in a mass of unicorns and rainbows.
The relationships between Jimmy and his friends and the depiction of small town rural life were what separated this story from other crime books for me. The way Bobby and the Buckley's helped Jimmy blunder through everything was awesome.
I guess it's harder than I thought to articulate all the things I liked about this book. Here's a line that I found particularly hilarious: "I feel like I just walked into a tampon ad. I love the shit out of her but it's time we put on our man pants."
4.5 out of 5 stars. Bring on Plaster City!
Since Plaster City was part of the Kindle First program this month, I thought it was high time I read Johnny Shaw's first Jimmy Veeder novel, Dove Season, and I'm very glad I did.
Dove Season is a crime tale that feels like something Joe Lansdale would cook up after a night of bad Mexican food. It takes place in the poor communities on the California/Mexico border. Jimmy Veeder is a conflicted Slacker who returns home to spend what remaining time his father has left with the old man. Who knew crossing the border to track down a hooker would stir up so much trouble?
Shaw's dialogue reminds me of Joe Lansdale's; full of black humor and sounding authentically rural. I lost count of all the quotable lines. Jimmy and his best friend Bobby Maves drink and wisecrack their way through the Mexican underworld, getting their asses handed to them repeatedly.
The humor is tempered with some brutality and surprising plot twists. I'm not going to spoil anything but this is certainly a book where the main character doesn't leave the story in a mass of unicorns and rainbows.
The relationships between Jimmy and his friends and the depiction of small town rural life were what separated this story from other crime books for me. The way Bobby and the Buckley's helped Jimmy blunder through everything was awesome.
I guess it's harder than I thought to articulate all the things I liked about this book. Here's a line that I found particularly hilarious: "I feel like I just walked into a tampon ad. I love the shit out of her but it's time we put on our man pants."
4.5 out of 5 stars. Bring on Plaster City!
February 2, 2016
The Reading Gods had been tapping me on the shoulder for a while about Johnny Shaw, but I foolishly ignored their omens.
Dove Season was one of the ARCs I got in the freebie bag at Bouchercon last fall. I thought it looked interesting, and then I got into a conversation with a young woman who worked for Amazon and asked me what books I’d received. When I mentioned this title, she told me I should put it at the top of my list. So after I got home I put it on the To Read pile with every intention of checking it out in the near future.
Then I forgot all about it.
Six months later and the Blood & Tacos e-book was pointed out to me and with a title like that, who could resist? Read it and loved it, and when I looked up this Johnny Shaw character, I saw that he had written a book called Dove Season which sounded really familiar for some reason. After finally reading it, I’m heartily ashamed that I let it languish on the shelf.
Jimmy Veeder is a good natured guy who has been coasting through life with the sole ambition of avoiding responsibility. When he learns his father Jack is dying of cancer, Jimmy returns to his childhood home in Imperial Valley which is in the desert borderland of California, Arizona and Mexico. As a last request, Jack asks Jimmy to track down a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda and convince her to come see him. With the help of his boyhood friend Bobby, Jimmy crosses the border to Mexicali and asks another old friend who is now a big shot in the porn and prostitution industry to track her down. Unfortunately, Jimmy’s wish to fulfill his dying father’s request will lead him to more trouble than he can imagine.
The story of Jimmy’s return to his hometown while he tries to cope with the upcoming death of his father and then getting sucked into the violent Mexicali underworld made for a crime story that doesn’t skimp on the death and violence but also has a surprising amount of moving things to say about family and friendship.
Fans of Joe R. Lansdale’s Hap & Leonard series would probably enjoy this because it’s got a similar vibe with a very decent guy with good intentions in a rural environment getting mixed up with dangerous people.
I definately won’t be letting the next Johnny Shaw book gather dust on a shelf.
Dove Season was one of the ARCs I got in the freebie bag at Bouchercon last fall. I thought it looked interesting, and then I got into a conversation with a young woman who worked for Amazon and asked me what books I’d received. When I mentioned this title, she told me I should put it at the top of my list. So after I got home I put it on the To Read pile with every intention of checking it out in the near future.
Then I forgot all about it.
Six months later and the Blood & Tacos e-book was pointed out to me and with a title like that, who could resist? Read it and loved it, and when I looked up this Johnny Shaw character, I saw that he had written a book called Dove Season which sounded really familiar for some reason. After finally reading it, I’m heartily ashamed that I let it languish on the shelf.
Jimmy Veeder is a good natured guy who has been coasting through life with the sole ambition of avoiding responsibility. When he learns his father Jack is dying of cancer, Jimmy returns to his childhood home in Imperial Valley which is in the desert borderland of California, Arizona and Mexico. As a last request, Jack asks Jimmy to track down a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda and convince her to come see him. With the help of his boyhood friend Bobby, Jimmy crosses the border to Mexicali and asks another old friend who is now a big shot in the porn and prostitution industry to track her down. Unfortunately, Jimmy’s wish to fulfill his dying father’s request will lead him to more trouble than he can imagine.
The story of Jimmy’s return to his hometown while he tries to cope with the upcoming death of his father and then getting sucked into the violent Mexicali underworld made for a crime story that doesn’t skimp on the death and violence but also has a surprising amount of moving things to say about family and friendship.
Fans of Joe R. Lansdale’s Hap & Leonard series would probably enjoy this because it’s got a similar vibe with a very decent guy with good intentions in a rural environment getting mixed up with dangerous people.
I definately won’t be letting the next Johnny Shaw book gather dust on a shelf.
May 30, 2012
This is an excellent novel set in the Imperial Valley on the border between California and Mexico. Jimmy Veeder, the main protagonist, grew up there but put the Valley in his rearview mirror years ago, without looking back. Since then, he's been drifting from one place and one job to another, rootless and with no real ambition beyond taking each day as it comes. But then Jimmy learns that his father, Big Jack Veeder, is dying of cancer and Jimmy returns home to be with his father and to offer what comfort he can during Big Jack's last days on earth.
Jimmy returns to find that his father's house has fallen into disrepair, although a relative is tending to the farm fields that belong to Big Jack. Father and son have a heartfelt reunion, and the principal bond between them is humor. But Big Jack surprises Jimmy with a strange request: he wants Jimmy to bring him a prostitute named Yolanda that Big Jack apparently knew some years ago. Big Jack has no idea where Yolanda might be found, except that she's probably across the border in the town of Mexicali. Big Jack does not explain the reason behind the request, and Jimmy simply assumes that his father is looking for one last night of happiness with a woman whose company he had once enjoyed.
Jimmy recruits his childhood friend and drinking buddy, Bobby Maves, and together they cross the border into the seedy, depressing and dangerous world of Mexicali. From that point the story moves back and forth across the border and involves a variety of characters all of whom Shaw renders vividly. Along the way, Jimmy Veeder will discover that there's much he never knew about his father and about himself.
There are many things to recommend about this book, including the story itself and the characters. But Shaw perhaps excels most of all in his description of the Imperial Valley, which becomes a central character in and of itself. The subtitle of the book is "A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco," but while Jimmy's somewhat delayed journey to adulthood might involve any number of fiascos, his story is anything but. Johnny Shaw has created here a setting and a group of characters that will linger a long time in the memory of those who join in Jimmy Veeder's quest.
Jimmy returns to find that his father's house has fallen into disrepair, although a relative is tending to the farm fields that belong to Big Jack. Father and son have a heartfelt reunion, and the principal bond between them is humor. But Big Jack surprises Jimmy with a strange request: he wants Jimmy to bring him a prostitute named Yolanda that Big Jack apparently knew some years ago. Big Jack has no idea where Yolanda might be found, except that she's probably across the border in the town of Mexicali. Big Jack does not explain the reason behind the request, and Jimmy simply assumes that his father is looking for one last night of happiness with a woman whose company he had once enjoyed.
Jimmy recruits his childhood friend and drinking buddy, Bobby Maves, and together they cross the border into the seedy, depressing and dangerous world of Mexicali. From that point the story moves back and forth across the border and involves a variety of characters all of whom Shaw renders vividly. Along the way, Jimmy Veeder will discover that there's much he never knew about his father and about himself.
There are many things to recommend about this book, including the story itself and the characters. But Shaw perhaps excels most of all in his description of the Imperial Valley, which becomes a central character in and of itself. The subtitle of the book is "A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco," but while Jimmy's somewhat delayed journey to adulthood might involve any number of fiascos, his story is anything but. Johnny Shaw has created here a setting and a group of characters that will linger a long time in the memory of those who join in Jimmy Veeder's quest.
August 8, 2016
I've been wanting to read this book since I first laid eyes on the cover. I mean, look at it! We all know booze and firearms always lead to trouble. Here in Pennsylvania, at least once each deer season some drunken hunter bags a trophy that upon closer inspection is actually a cow...or a brother-in-law.
There are no hunting accidents in this book, but plenty of people drink and carry guns, and sometimes shoot them at other people.
Jimmy Veeder is an educated professional loafer. He works a variety of odd jobs and is content with his life of coasting. Summoned home to sit by his father's death bed, he reconnects with old friends and one still-flickering old flame. When his elderly dad asks for a hooker - not just any hooker, and not for the usual reason - Jimmy's life begins to take a more dangerous turn.
His buddy, Bobby, is eager to help. "How hard could it be to find one Mexican woman in a city of a million people?" he says. "We know her first name and everything. Piece of cake."
Their search takes them back and forth across the border, and right into the arms of some very sleazy and dangerous characters. Jimmy seems to have some very bad luck south of the border. "It's like you're allergic to Mexico." quips Bobby. Then Jimmy tangles with a very, very bad man, and the mierda REALLY hits the ventilador.
"Because one thing is certain - he's coming."
"Then what happens?" I asked.
"People die."
This was a fun read. For a book just chock full of action and violence, there is also plenty of comic relief. The narrator has a likable self-deprecating tone, and for out-and-out comedy there are two unforgettable ne'er do wells named Buck Buck and Snout. (I kid you not!)
Turns out, guns and alcohol can sometimes be a very good combination.
There are no hunting accidents in this book, but plenty of people drink and carry guns, and sometimes shoot them at other people.
Jimmy Veeder is an educated professional loafer. He works a variety of odd jobs and is content with his life of coasting. Summoned home to sit by his father's death bed, he reconnects with old friends and one still-flickering old flame. When his elderly dad asks for a hooker - not just any hooker, and not for the usual reason - Jimmy's life begins to take a more dangerous turn.
His buddy, Bobby, is eager to help. "How hard could it be to find one Mexican woman in a city of a million people?" he says. "We know her first name and everything. Piece of cake."
Their search takes them back and forth across the border, and right into the arms of some very sleazy and dangerous characters. Jimmy seems to have some very bad luck south of the border. "It's like you're allergic to Mexico." quips Bobby. Then Jimmy tangles with a very, very bad man, and the mierda REALLY hits the ventilador.
"Because one thing is certain - he's coming."
"Then what happens?" I asked.
"People die."
This was a fun read. For a book just chock full of action and violence, there is also plenty of comic relief. The narrator has a likable self-deprecating tone, and for out-and-out comedy there are two unforgettable ne'er do wells named Buck Buck and Snout. (I kid you not!)
Turns out, guns and alcohol can sometimes be a very good combination.
February 18, 2015
'Is it better to have responsibility and fail or to choose to remain irresponsible?'
Jimmy Veeder has come back to Imperial Valley after a 12 year absence, his Father Jack is dying from cancer and there's not long left. Lots to catch up on, one of his last requests, find him a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda, an usual one from the man that shaped him, maybe even a touch precarious but hell it's his Dad and he sets out to achieve this last thing for him with the help of a few friends.
That's the bare bones of the story and what a story this is, sad, serious, violent and insanely funny at times. The shift from the swift and intense, more often than not, our protagonist getting the shit kicked out of him to a laugh out loud moment as things calm suddenly, is absolutely wickedly told.
First friend to reintroduce himself is Bobby Maves a man who was completely at peace with violence. Not a mean bone in his body. He just liked to fight and he was good at it. Bobby is also funny as Fuck. As kids Jimmy was always the funny one, Bobby the giggling bully forever getting him out of the shit. Their relationship forms the backbone of the story and their interaction is amusing, entertaining and very much rough and ready.
'Bobby stopped laughing. His voice got quiet. “Wait a minute. You haven’t seen me in fucking years, you barely fucking know who I am anymore , and you just assume that I have some line on where the hookers are? Now I’m the tour guide driving the Muff Bus down Pussy Road? Is that what you fucking think of me.' Feigned anger all the way.
Honestly this is a review I could construct purely on quotes, there's so much I highlighted when I went over the kindle book after I'd finished with the audio, I could have read this book twice. These two quotes centre on the search for Yolanda early in the story and there's shit loads more of this kind of dialogue.
Do I look retarded? Don’t answer that. I was undercover, remember? Had to be subtle. Have a plausible story,” Bobby said. “What I told him was that you hadn’t been laid in five years, and I was worried that you were edging toward queer. Mr. Morales agreed with my assessment, saying something about your long hair. We both agreed it was pretty gayish. He gave it some thought. And seeing that the situation was desperate, he told me where Tomás holds court.'
Second friend and the one they need to find Tomás Morales, now a serious player in the illegal border businesses and the link to the one they seek in Mexicali.
Don't get me wrong though this is not solely a humour trip, there's some pretty raw, sharp edged stuff in here as well, notably a torture scene that delves into the hardness of Mexican life on the edge, the complete lack of compassion and a place where death is almost expected if you Fuck up. A power struggle where the biggest and baddest protect what they have, the only way they know how and it’s not handshakes and beers. Jimmy and Bobby stumble through the Mexican underworld, a journey of discovery and the simple fact that you never really know someone as well as you would have liked.
Then a gut wrenching death scene that will stay with you a long time after you finish this book, an intense sadness, an agreement of sorts and compelling to the point of needing a break but desperate to carry on, absolutely riveting.
And then we have Buck Buck and Snout, almost as if there wasn't enough to laugh at we have the introduction of two animals, not literally, two brothers who it seemed accepted their lot in life a long time ago and it's fart jokes and the like. Two characters loyal as they come and heap loads of fun, but brutal when required.
There was a small fire a few yards away, and two figures huddled around it. It was ninety-something degrees. What kind of idiots build a fire? These kind of idiots. Buck Buck and his brother Snout had a gopher turning on a makeshift spit. They sat on the ground in nothing but boxers and rubber boots, facing the fire.'
Jesus, I could go on for hours, enough to say that I really enjoyed this, I've not given any real game changers away plot wise, most of this happens in the first 50 pages. There's so much happening in this story, so many brilliant characters, laughs aplenty, brilliant dialogue, a stream of epiphanies both shocking and stunning, violence, more violence, cigarettes and alcohol, and all capped off with a Mexican standoff.
My apologies for the long review/ramble and I still feel like I've not said enough. I could go on for hours, read this southern U.S. crime thriller, honestly you won't be disappointed.
Highly recommended, manic at times, gripping at others and this I will definitely read again. Johnny Shaw has only released 3 books so far and I'll be reading the others very soon.
Also posted at http://paulnelson.booklikes.com/post/...
Jimmy Veeder has come back to Imperial Valley after a 12 year absence, his Father Jack is dying from cancer and there's not long left. Lots to catch up on, one of his last requests, find him a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda, an usual one from the man that shaped him, maybe even a touch precarious but hell it's his Dad and he sets out to achieve this last thing for him with the help of a few friends.
That's the bare bones of the story and what a story this is, sad, serious, violent and insanely funny at times. The shift from the swift and intense, more often than not, our protagonist getting the shit kicked out of him to a laugh out loud moment as things calm suddenly, is absolutely wickedly told.
First friend to reintroduce himself is Bobby Maves a man who was completely at peace with violence. Not a mean bone in his body. He just liked to fight and he was good at it. Bobby is also funny as Fuck. As kids Jimmy was always the funny one, Bobby the giggling bully forever getting him out of the shit. Their relationship forms the backbone of the story and their interaction is amusing, entertaining and very much rough and ready.
'Bobby stopped laughing. His voice got quiet. “Wait a minute. You haven’t seen me in fucking years, you barely fucking know who I am anymore , and you just assume that I have some line on where the hookers are? Now I’m the tour guide driving the Muff Bus down Pussy Road? Is that what you fucking think of me.' Feigned anger all the way.
Honestly this is a review I could construct purely on quotes, there's so much I highlighted when I went over the kindle book after I'd finished with the audio, I could have read this book twice. These two quotes centre on the search for Yolanda early in the story and there's shit loads more of this kind of dialogue.
Do I look retarded? Don’t answer that. I was undercover, remember? Had to be subtle. Have a plausible story,” Bobby said. “What I told him was that you hadn’t been laid in five years, and I was worried that you were edging toward queer. Mr. Morales agreed with my assessment, saying something about your long hair. We both agreed it was pretty gayish. He gave it some thought. And seeing that the situation was desperate, he told me where Tomás holds court.'
Second friend and the one they need to find Tomás Morales, now a serious player in the illegal border businesses and the link to the one they seek in Mexicali.
Don't get me wrong though this is not solely a humour trip, there's some pretty raw, sharp edged stuff in here as well, notably a torture scene that delves into the hardness of Mexican life on the edge, the complete lack of compassion and a place where death is almost expected if you Fuck up. A power struggle where the biggest and baddest protect what they have, the only way they know how and it’s not handshakes and beers. Jimmy and Bobby stumble through the Mexican underworld, a journey of discovery and the simple fact that you never really know someone as well as you would have liked.
Then a gut wrenching death scene that will stay with you a long time after you finish this book, an intense sadness, an agreement of sorts and compelling to the point of needing a break but desperate to carry on, absolutely riveting.
And then we have Buck Buck and Snout, almost as if there wasn't enough to laugh at we have the introduction of two animals, not literally, two brothers who it seemed accepted their lot in life a long time ago and it's fart jokes and the like. Two characters loyal as they come and heap loads of fun, but brutal when required.
There was a small fire a few yards away, and two figures huddled around it. It was ninety-something degrees. What kind of idiots build a fire? These kind of idiots. Buck Buck and his brother Snout had a gopher turning on a makeshift spit. They sat on the ground in nothing but boxers and rubber boots, facing the fire.'
Jesus, I could go on for hours, enough to say that I really enjoyed this, I've not given any real game changers away plot wise, most of this happens in the first 50 pages. There's so much happening in this story, so many brilliant characters, laughs aplenty, brilliant dialogue, a stream of epiphanies both shocking and stunning, violence, more violence, cigarettes and alcohol, and all capped off with a Mexican standoff.
My apologies for the long review/ramble and I still feel like I've not said enough. I could go on for hours, read this southern U.S. crime thriller, honestly you won't be disappointed.
Highly recommended, manic at times, gripping at others and this I will definitely read again. Johnny Shaw has only released 3 books so far and I'll be reading the others very soon.
Also posted at http://paulnelson.booklikes.com/post/...
March 10, 2015
Jimmy Veeder returns to his hometown and his roots when he learns his father is dying. His dad makes an unusual request of his son. Find a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda (last name and whereabouts unknown) and bring her to his hospital room. The old man has his reasons.
Jimmy enlists the help of his best friend since boyhood, Bobby Maves, to find this proverbial needle in a haystack. Bobby is 'a man at peace with violence'. He is no misanthrope, he merely likes to fight and is very good at it. He wears his startling white hair in an Elvis pompadour and drives a Ranchero.
Nothing ever goes according to plan for these two. Their hearts are in the right place, but their methods are invariably questionable. Pure D mayhem ensues. Childhood buddies Buck Buck and Snout can be called on in a pinch, assuming they aren't off looking for Bigfoot again. Jimmy and Bobby walk into a rough bar just across the Mexican border and every miscreant in the place falls silent and gives them the stink eye. And we're off to the races!
Jimmy and Bobby are two of the most entertaining characters I have met in some time. I read Dove Season and Plaster City out of order, and it didn't even matter. Loved them both!
Jimmy enlists the help of his best friend since boyhood, Bobby Maves, to find this proverbial needle in a haystack. Bobby is 'a man at peace with violence'. He is no misanthrope, he merely likes to fight and is very good at it. He wears his startling white hair in an Elvis pompadour and drives a Ranchero.
Nothing ever goes according to plan for these two. Their hearts are in the right place, but their methods are invariably questionable. Pure D mayhem ensues. Childhood buddies Buck Buck and Snout can be called on in a pinch, assuming they aren't off looking for Bigfoot again. Jimmy and Bobby walk into a rough bar just across the Mexican border and every miscreant in the place falls silent and gives them the stink eye. And we're off to the races!
Jimmy and Bobby are two of the most entertaining characters I have met in some time. I read Dove Season and Plaster City out of order, and it didn't even matter. Loved them both!
August 8, 2016
8/10
A great read which came out of nowhere really. I didn’t expect to enjoy this one as much as I did but I was swept away with the easy narration and entertaining plot. Jimmy is tasked by his dying father to find a long lost prostitute he had previous liaisons with to have one final encounter. The only issue is he’s unsure of where she will be. Time to call up some buddy’s and head down to Mexico!
As mentioned, the writing style is really good in that you can easily get lost in the story for a couple of hours and churn through the pages. Add to that an interesting plot which is more complex than what I’ve stated here in that there are numerous gangsters, street fights, gun battles, and all round shenanigans. Things progress quickly and keep things interesting with lots of additional aspects placed throughout the novel.
I’d highly recommend this as a fun quick read which doesn’t fall into any specific genre other than enjoyable. I will definitely be picking up more by this author.
Many thanks goes to Kelly for giving me a copy of this, thank you Kelly and Mitchell! I recommend you pick this one up!
A great read which came out of nowhere really. I didn’t expect to enjoy this one as much as I did but I was swept away with the easy narration and entertaining plot. Jimmy is tasked by his dying father to find a long lost prostitute he had previous liaisons with to have one final encounter. The only issue is he’s unsure of where she will be. Time to call up some buddy’s and head down to Mexico!
As mentioned, the writing style is really good in that you can easily get lost in the story for a couple of hours and churn through the pages. Add to that an interesting plot which is more complex than what I’ve stated here in that there are numerous gangsters, street fights, gun battles, and all round shenanigans. Things progress quickly and keep things interesting with lots of additional aspects placed throughout the novel.
I’d highly recommend this as a fun quick read which doesn’t fall into any specific genre other than enjoyable. I will definitely be picking up more by this author.
Many thanks goes to Kelly for giving me a copy of this, thank you Kelly and Mitchell! I recommend you pick this one up!
February 27, 2015
Fantastic debut
It's hard to believe this is a debut novel. Seriously, it's one of the best books I've read in months. I loved everything about it. The characters, the witty dialogue, the story, the pacing....you get the idea. I'm really looking forward to the next book, Plaster City. To quote my friend Shelby: "A day with a Johnny Shaw book is a good day."
It's hard to believe this is a debut novel. Seriously, it's one of the best books I've read in months. I loved everything about it. The characters, the witty dialogue, the story, the pacing....you get the idea. I'm really looking forward to the next book, Plaster City. To quote my friend Shelby: "A day with a Johnny Shaw book is a good day."
July 31, 2017
“There is something about the desert that pisses everything off.
It could be the heat. Or the barren landscape. Or the stark desolation. It doesn’t really matter the why. The fact is the desert brings out the desperate worst in a thing. In an environment where nothing is meant to survive, life seethes.”
Quite the opening, to a solid, debut novel, that defies conventional genres. Is it a crime novel, a coming of age story, a comedy, hick lit, or possibly all of the above? The book’s cover calls it a fiasco. Perhaps that’s the best description. Because what starts off as a fairly simple but odd request, by a dying father, quickly leads to a whole mess of trouble.
Our story takes place in the Imperial Valley, a poverty stricken, border region of California, Arizona, and Mexico.
Jimmy Veeder wants out. For the past 12 years he’s succeeded. Traveling from town to town, taking any dead end job, in order to see more of the world, than what the Valley has to offer. But now he’s been called home with news of his father’s illness.
While he’s prepared to spend the final days, with his dad, joking and reminiscing, his old man has other plans. The big ask: find a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda, and bring her back to him.
Jimmy’s not one to argue with a dying man’s last request, so he enlists the help of his buddy Bobby, and a former neighbor, turned Mexican gangster Tomás. Their quest to find Yolanda leads them across the border into Mexico. Comedic mishaps and brutal violence ensue.
This search unravels other mysteries. And what Jimmy learns of his father, calls into question where he truly belongs, and what kind of man he wants to be.
The story’s filled with many memorable, if off-color, lines such as this conversation Jimmy has with his dad's friend. Who explains that back in his day, “going to a Mexican hooker wasn't considered cheating. You wouldn't tell your wife, of course, but you never felt guilty neither. Used to joke, call it 'a side of beans.' You know, 'Let’s go down to Mexicali, grab a few beers and a side of beans.'”
While there really are no major plot twists, and most mysteries are easily solved, the story is still pretty enjoyable, and most of the characters are well drawn.
Turns out I really had nothing to worry about. It looks as if Johnny Shaw will get this 4 star rating the old fashion way, he’ll earn it!
It could be the heat. Or the barren landscape. Or the stark desolation. It doesn’t really matter the why. The fact is the desert brings out the desperate worst in a thing. In an environment where nothing is meant to survive, life seethes.”
Quite the opening, to a solid, debut novel, that defies conventional genres. Is it a crime novel, a coming of age story, a comedy, hick lit, or possibly all of the above? The book’s cover calls it a fiasco. Perhaps that’s the best description. Because what starts off as a fairly simple but odd request, by a dying father, quickly leads to a whole mess of trouble.
Our story takes place in the Imperial Valley, a poverty stricken, border region of California, Arizona, and Mexico.
Jimmy Veeder wants out. For the past 12 years he’s succeeded. Traveling from town to town, taking any dead end job, in order to see more of the world, than what the Valley has to offer. But now he’s been called home with news of his father’s illness.
While he’s prepared to spend the final days, with his dad, joking and reminiscing, his old man has other plans. The big ask: find a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda, and bring her back to him.
Jimmy’s not one to argue with a dying man’s last request, so he enlists the help of his buddy Bobby, and a former neighbor, turned Mexican gangster Tomás. Their quest to find Yolanda leads them across the border into Mexico. Comedic mishaps and brutal violence ensue.
This search unravels other mysteries. And what Jimmy learns of his father, calls into question where he truly belongs, and what kind of man he wants to be.
The story’s filled with many memorable, if off-color, lines such as this conversation Jimmy has with his dad's friend. Who explains that back in his day, “going to a Mexican hooker wasn't considered cheating. You wouldn't tell your wife, of course, but you never felt guilty neither. Used to joke, call it 'a side of beans.' You know, 'Let’s go down to Mexicali, grab a few beers and a side of beans.'”
While there really are no major plot twists, and most mysteries are easily solved, the story is still pretty enjoyable, and most of the characters are well drawn.
Turns out I really had nothing to worry about. It looks as if Johnny Shaw will get this 4 star rating the old fashion way, he’ll earn it!
October 2, 2020
Ten years ago, when I first read this, I thought it was a laugh riot. Now I don't.
I was not taken with the casually dismissive treatment of Latinx characters, even...maybe especially...by other Latinx characters. I think I'd've been less grossed out by it had any one of the characters in question questioned their callousness and selfishness. They did not, though it's cloaked in the fog-machine mists of cluelessness. That doesn't cut it anymore, not with me, though it certainly did not all that long ago.
When you know better, do better. I've internalized the full extent of that maxim now, at sixty-one, in a way I hadn't at fifty-one. I guess, anyway, since many if not most of the things that've changed in my life are calendrical. There are more Jimmy Veeder books on my Kindle, but I suspect I'll let them languish since I got so little from this re-read.
I don't, however, want to mislead you. This isn't a poorly executed book, and if you're more open to mildly unpleasant people bumbling about and learning nothing than I am, this is snarky fun. I'm just not there anymore.
It happens, like it or not, and it can't be undone.
I was not taken with the casually dismissive treatment of Latinx characters, even...maybe especially...by other Latinx characters. I think I'd've been less grossed out by it had any one of the characters in question questioned their callousness and selfishness. They did not, though it's cloaked in the fog-machine mists of cluelessness. That doesn't cut it anymore, not with me, though it certainly did not all that long ago.
When you know better, do better. I've internalized the full extent of that maxim now, at sixty-one, in a way I hadn't at fifty-one. I guess, anyway, since many if not most of the things that've changed in my life are calendrical. There are more Jimmy Veeder books on my Kindle, but I suspect I'll let them languish since I got so little from this re-read.
I don't, however, want to mislead you. This isn't a poorly executed book, and if you're more open to mildly unpleasant people bumbling about and learning nothing than I am, this is snarky fun. I'm just not there anymore.
It happens, like it or not, and it can't be undone.
January 12, 2014
Initially I was anticipating something along the lines of the Frank Bill/Donald Ray Pollock school of car-wheels-on-a-gravel-road noir.
I was forced almost immediately to reconsider my expectations.
The narrator the reader will eventually discover is one Jimmy Veeder returning to his small hometown in The Imperial Valley to spend –hopefully- a few remaining months with his cancer stricken father.
Early on Johnny Shaw delights with excellent set-ups for passages such as the following:
I had been making good time when I pulled into the parking lot of the Wheel Inn in Cabazon just west of Palm Springs. I needed coffee and something to eat, and the Wheel was eternally open. The food was standard diner fare, but the giant dinosaurs that loomed over the parking lot offered a pleasant wave of nostalgia.
The food was above adequate, and the coffee gave me just the amount of jitters that I wanted. I wasn't ready to get back in my truck. The gift shop in the belly of the brontosaurus was closed. So I walked underneath the tyrannosaurus, running my hand along the cracked plaster and having a smoke before I got back on the road.
From far away those dinosaurs were roadside behemoths, but up close they were nothing more than shoddy construction, chipping paint, and exposed chicken wire. To be crystal clear, I'm not saying that when we look at monsters up close we find that they are truly fragile. And I'm not saying that strength from a distance can often be revealed as a facade, protecting one's smaller weaknesses. What I'm saying is that those dinosaurs needed some spackle. Simplistic metaphors are for people who take fortune cookies to heart, need something to say to their book club, and believe that love conquers all. Things are never more than exactly what they seem. We all could use a little spackle.
Those passages killed me.
I thought what jewels are these that this author should go casting them before swine the likes of me?
What kind of way is this to kick off a tale that will center around a promise a son makes to his dying father to find a specific Mexican prostitute for a final tryst before he passes on? And how will this prostitute reinforce in our narrator (albeit in absentia) the weight of familial obligation?
How is this author going to work in fist-fights, knife-play, gunfire, tough-guy patter and the usual mayhem that accompanies all of the aforementioned yet still have room for a detour deep into the black heart of injustice just a few miles south of the United States border with Mexico?
Well… much happens.
First off -the relationship between the father and son is delicately handled. It never descends into pathos. You love this father and son –one of the many gifts Johnny Shaw displays as a writer. The camaraderie between the two comes off as natural and the exchanges of jokes & puns between the two is genuinely amusing –not the “stiff upper lip” corn that a lesser writer might have come up with. Just a pair of regular guys who happen to be father & son in an ever constant quest of a nigh-mythical something they call ”The Big Laugh”… That elusive, once-a-year laugh that was so rare. The contagious laughter that hurt your face and sides, but you couldn’t stop through the pain. Hell, “The Big Laugh” wasn’t even fun. Didn’t mean it wasn’t our goal.
The pages devoted to the interaction between Jimmy and Jack -his fatally ill father- alone could have added up to more than half of the novel and I wouldn’t crab. But for that kind of stuff, I guess we’ll always have Mitch Albom.
Secondly –you are introduced to Jimmy’s lifelong best friend Bobby Maves. Bobby promptly insists on accompanying his long-lost best friend down beyond the border to a Mexico depicted as being unexpectedly violent and pitiless with the market on third world poverty and hopelessness cornered.
The mystery behind Jack Veeder’s request that his son locate this unusually tall Mexican prostitute and the tragic events that follow demand solutions and ultimately vengeance.
I’m too terrified of blurting out a spoiler or two so once again, I urge you to read the various synopses posted in many of the reviews here on GR to gain a better insight into the plot of this extraordinary debut novel by Johnny Shaw.
I’m incapable of doing this novel the respect and the justice it demands.
Coincidentally I came to discover late several nights ago while reading appraisals of Charles Willeford's writing career found by following links posted on Johnny Shaw's website that "Johnny Shaw" happens to be the name of the protagonist of possibly the hardest of all Charles Willeford novels to find -his only Western- The Hombre From Sonora.
I was forced almost immediately to reconsider my expectations.
The narrator the reader will eventually discover is one Jimmy Veeder returning to his small hometown in The Imperial Valley to spend –hopefully- a few remaining months with his cancer stricken father.
Early on Johnny Shaw delights with excellent set-ups for passages such as the following:
I had been making good time when I pulled into the parking lot of the Wheel Inn in Cabazon just west of Palm Springs. I needed coffee and something to eat, and the Wheel was eternally open. The food was standard diner fare, but the giant dinosaurs that loomed over the parking lot offered a pleasant wave of nostalgia.
The food was above adequate, and the coffee gave me just the amount of jitters that I wanted. I wasn't ready to get back in my truck. The gift shop in the belly of the brontosaurus was closed. So I walked underneath the tyrannosaurus, running my hand along the cracked plaster and having a smoke before I got back on the road.
From far away those dinosaurs were roadside behemoths, but up close they were nothing more than shoddy construction, chipping paint, and exposed chicken wire. To be crystal clear, I'm not saying that when we look at monsters up close we find that they are truly fragile. And I'm not saying that strength from a distance can often be revealed as a facade, protecting one's smaller weaknesses. What I'm saying is that those dinosaurs needed some spackle. Simplistic metaphors are for people who take fortune cookies to heart, need something to say to their book club, and believe that love conquers all. Things are never more than exactly what they seem. We all could use a little spackle.
Those passages killed me.
I thought what jewels are these that this author should go casting them before swine the likes of me?
What kind of way is this to kick off a tale that will center around a promise a son makes to his dying father to find a specific Mexican prostitute for a final tryst before he passes on? And how will this prostitute reinforce in our narrator (albeit in absentia) the weight of familial obligation?
How is this author going to work in fist-fights, knife-play, gunfire, tough-guy patter and the usual mayhem that accompanies all of the aforementioned yet still have room for a detour deep into the black heart of injustice just a few miles south of the United States border with Mexico?
Well… much happens.
First off -the relationship between the father and son is delicately handled. It never descends into pathos. You love this father and son –one of the many gifts Johnny Shaw displays as a writer. The camaraderie between the two comes off as natural and the exchanges of jokes & puns between the two is genuinely amusing –not the “stiff upper lip” corn that a lesser writer might have come up with. Just a pair of regular guys who happen to be father & son in an ever constant quest of a nigh-mythical something they call ”The Big Laugh”… That elusive, once-a-year laugh that was so rare. The contagious laughter that hurt your face and sides, but you couldn’t stop through the pain. Hell, “The Big Laugh” wasn’t even fun. Didn’t mean it wasn’t our goal.
The pages devoted to the interaction between Jimmy and Jack -his fatally ill father- alone could have added up to more than half of the novel and I wouldn’t crab. But for that kind of stuff, I guess we’ll always have Mitch Albom.
Secondly –you are introduced to Jimmy’s lifelong best friend Bobby Maves. Bobby promptly insists on accompanying his long-lost best friend down beyond the border to a Mexico depicted as being unexpectedly violent and pitiless with the market on third world poverty and hopelessness cornered.
The mystery behind Jack Veeder’s request that his son locate this unusually tall Mexican prostitute and the tragic events that follow demand solutions and ultimately vengeance.
I’m too terrified of blurting out a spoiler or two so once again, I urge you to read the various synopses posted in many of the reviews here on GR to gain a better insight into the plot of this extraordinary debut novel by Johnny Shaw.
I’m incapable of doing this novel the respect and the justice it demands.
Coincidentally I came to discover late several nights ago while reading appraisals of Charles Willeford's writing career found by following links posted on Johnny Shaw's website that "Johnny Shaw" happens to be the name of the protagonist of possibly the hardest of all Charles Willeford novels to find -his only Western- The Hombre From Sonora.
September 3, 2012
Tracking down a Mexican prostitute named Yolanda, bleeds life into a story derived from impending death. Protagonist, Jimmy Veeder returns to his old stomping ground and quickly becomes reacquainted with lost friends. Author, Johnny Shaw, spotlights the unsettled dust between youth and adulthood leaving festering wounds wide open and past grudges in the forefront of Jimmy’s predicament. The borderlands of California and Mexico are as much a character as the colourful inhabitants of the environs sounding the desert-land borders. Solid writing and in-depth character development give breath to the pop culture-like influenced boyhood friend Bobby Maves, Jimmy’s former girlfriend Angie, and budding crime boss Thomas. All enjoyable and distinctly believable to read, either character was defined enough to lead this story in their own right, a testament to Shaw’s craft.
‘Dove Season’ is all encompassing raw emotion perceived through powerful heart-felt moments, equal in parts love, anguish, and cruelty. At its core, Jimmy is but a son returned to honour his dying father’s wishes while simultaneously drifting back into a society he thought he’d left behind. On the peripheral, it’s a story of murder, vengeance and rage told through a hail of bullets and booze. In reality, it’s so much more. ‘Dove Season’ is just a damn good book that no reviewer words could possibly do it justice. Subtitled a ‘Jimmy Veeder fiasco’, I sure hope we see more of this entertaining character and intriguing band of friends – 5 stars.
‘Dove Season’ is all encompassing raw emotion perceived through powerful heart-felt moments, equal in parts love, anguish, and cruelty. At its core, Jimmy is but a son returned to honour his dying father’s wishes while simultaneously drifting back into a society he thought he’d left behind. On the peripheral, it’s a story of murder, vengeance and rage told through a hail of bullets and booze. In reality, it’s so much more. ‘Dove Season’ is just a damn good book that no reviewer words could possibly do it justice. Subtitled a ‘Jimmy Veeder fiasco’, I sure hope we see more of this entertaining character and intriguing band of friends – 5 stars.
March 1, 2016
The higher side of three stars. This reminds me of a cross between a Hap & Leonard novel & anything Sughrue by James Crumley, which I did actually think of myself before seeing a blurb on the back of the book saying basically that same thing. I'm heartened to see that this is the first in a series (thank you Prospector for locating book #2 for me) because I can't get enough of the banter between Jimmy & Bobby.
"'The boys say they've found a tunnel. Think it leads to the smokestack things. They're going to check it out and we should go in here ourselves.'
'They texted all that?' I leaned in, trying to read the message.
'No. It just says found tunnel. And tunnel is spelled wrong. I inferenced the rest. Found is spelled wrong too.'"
And a cover blurb by Tana French, of all people, so to paraphrase something Dan wrote years ago, if it's good enough for Tana French, it's good enough for you.
"'The boys say they've found a tunnel. Think it leads to the smokestack things. They're going to check it out and we should go in here ourselves.'
'They texted all that?' I leaned in, trying to read the message.
'No. It just says found tunnel. And tunnel is spelled wrong. I inferenced the rest. Found is spelled wrong too.'"
And a cover blurb by Tana French, of all people, so to paraphrase something Dan wrote years ago, if it's good enough for Tana French, it's good enough for you.
May 7, 2015
Raise your hand if you love a country boy!
Jimmy Veeder heads back to his hometown deep in the Imperial Valley of Southern California after a 12 year absence. He's headed back home after his father finally tells him that he has been battling cancer and has lost the battle. Big Jack Veeder has always been larger than life to Jimmy and even though Jimmy hasn't been home in a while, he and his dad talked regularly and wrote letters weekly if not more often. So when he gets back to the family farm and sees how things have rundown and then sees a decrepit and old Jack at the hospice in town, Jimmy is shocked at how thoroughly his dad had hidden his illness.
Jimmy's friends come to him when they hear he's back in town, and Jimmy and his old buddy Bobby are thick as thieves within minutes of seeing each other, almost like Jimmy never left. Bobby and Jimmy raised a lot of hell back in the day and it begins to look like they're on that road again when Big Jack asks Jimmy to help him locate "an old friend", Yolanda, a hooker from across the border. Jimmy has no idea why Big Jack wants to see her but he loves Jack and respects his wishes and puts out the word that he's looking for this hooker. Bobby and his friends Buck Buck and Snout decide they want to help, too, and things go from dangerous to insane when they get mixed up in narco-trafficking wars, pornography rings, and thoroughly corrupt Mexican police.
Okay, I loved this book and I was laughing my ass off at some of the dialog because I know these guys. They go by different names in my world and they live here in Texas, but I know these crazy country boys. So much of what I read reminded me of my husband and his buddies and the stupid stuff they used to do while tearing around the backwoods of East Texas on four wheelers and dirt bikes. The bar brawls, the willingness to go to any length to defend a friend, the "no questions asked" attitude when approached for help with some crazy scheme, these are the guys I know and love. And while we didn't get up to as much trouble as Jimmy Bobby, Buck Buck, and Snout, we had a good time!
Jimmy Veeder heads back to his hometown deep in the Imperial Valley of Southern California after a 12 year absence. He's headed back home after his father finally tells him that he has been battling cancer and has lost the battle. Big Jack Veeder has always been larger than life to Jimmy and even though Jimmy hasn't been home in a while, he and his dad talked regularly and wrote letters weekly if not more often. So when he gets back to the family farm and sees how things have rundown and then sees a decrepit and old Jack at the hospice in town, Jimmy is shocked at how thoroughly his dad had hidden his illness.
Jimmy's friends come to him when they hear he's back in town, and Jimmy and his old buddy Bobby are thick as thieves within minutes of seeing each other, almost like Jimmy never left. Bobby and Jimmy raised a lot of hell back in the day and it begins to look like they're on that road again when Big Jack asks Jimmy to help him locate "an old friend", Yolanda, a hooker from across the border. Jimmy has no idea why Big Jack wants to see her but he loves Jack and respects his wishes and puts out the word that he's looking for this hooker. Bobby and his friends Buck Buck and Snout decide they want to help, too, and things go from dangerous to insane when they get mixed up in narco-trafficking wars, pornography rings, and thoroughly corrupt Mexican police.
Okay, I loved this book and I was laughing my ass off at some of the dialog because I know these guys. They go by different names in my world and they live here in Texas, but I know these crazy country boys. So much of what I read reminded me of my husband and his buddies and the stupid stuff they used to do while tearing around the backwoods of East Texas on four wheelers and dirt bikes. The bar brawls, the willingness to go to any length to defend a friend, the "no questions asked" attitude when approached for help with some crazy scheme, these are the guys I know and love. And while we didn't get up to as much trouble as Jimmy Bobby, Buck Buck, and Snout, we had a good time!
January 8, 2016
It is anything BUT a fiasco... its one of the best written novels I've EVER come across.
I read a book a week, more when I can. I am a fan of Faulkner and Steinbeck and I am so tired of the overindulgent pointless vobabulo-philes and the mindless critical accolades that follow. I was shocked that this book Ive never heard about, that I got for $0.50 at a library book sale about characters I have nothing in common with reached into my mind and soul.
Granted this is a book about some wonky situations, and the last third devolves into a satisfying airport thriller type plot (not a bad thing), but the first 2/3rds of this book is actually admirable literature- it funny without ever being comic. Its raw and vivid, brutally ironic, viscerally authentic and poignant. With an admirable economy of words Shaw's work is overflowing with humanity and meaning.
I don't remember ever underling a novel, but I did on this one.
It took me forever to finish- not because I ever wanted to put it down- but becasue I read passages over and over- I demanded silence at the pool while I read some sentences aloud..
"Growing up, I was the funny kid and Bobby was the bully with the giggles"
"It was like I had woken up in a museum dedicated to my childhood. Not a good museum, more like a back-of-a-gas-station roadside attraction dedicated to spam or yarn."
"'Anything can be a curse if it aint a choice. If its all you know.' ... 'Farming is a noble profession is what they tell you. It aint any more noble than coal mining or meat packing or grave digging. If having a shit job is all it takes to be noble, then I'm the Queen of Norway. They may exists, but I aint never met a first generation farmer'"
" Never seen him loose a fight in the fifty years I've known him. A few he didn't win maybe..."
I read the book six months ago and gave it 5 stars, but I've never really thought I could do it justice in a review that I've wanted to write ever since. 200 books later I'm back because I still feel compelled to share this gem, even if I can't explain it right.
I read a book a week, more when I can. I am a fan of Faulkner and Steinbeck and I am so tired of the overindulgent pointless vobabulo-philes and the mindless critical accolades that follow. I was shocked that this book Ive never heard about, that I got for $0.50 at a library book sale about characters I have nothing in common with reached into my mind and soul.
Granted this is a book about some wonky situations, and the last third devolves into a satisfying airport thriller type plot (not a bad thing), but the first 2/3rds of this book is actually admirable literature- it funny without ever being comic. Its raw and vivid, brutally ironic, viscerally authentic and poignant. With an admirable economy of words Shaw's work is overflowing with humanity and meaning.
I don't remember ever underling a novel, but I did on this one.
It took me forever to finish- not because I ever wanted to put it down- but becasue I read passages over and over- I demanded silence at the pool while I read some sentences aloud..
"Growing up, I was the funny kid and Bobby was the bully with the giggles"
"It was like I had woken up in a museum dedicated to my childhood. Not a good museum, more like a back-of-a-gas-station roadside attraction dedicated to spam or yarn."
"'Anything can be a curse if it aint a choice. If its all you know.' ... 'Farming is a noble profession is what they tell you. It aint any more noble than coal mining or meat packing or grave digging. If having a shit job is all it takes to be noble, then I'm the Queen of Norway. They may exists, but I aint never met a first generation farmer'"
" Never seen him loose a fight in the fifty years I've known him. A few he didn't win maybe..."
I read the book six months ago and gave it 5 stars, but I've never really thought I could do it justice in a review that I've wanted to write ever since. 200 books later I'm back because I still feel compelled to share this gem, even if I can't explain it right.
May 25, 2016
Biting wit, humor, scathing dialog and plenty of violence are the theme for this one from Mr. Shaw, as Jimmy Veeder and his childhood friend, Booby Maves go on a wild, drunken, whore hunt for Jimmy’s dying father.
I really liked everything about this one. It starts strong and remains that way throughout. The secondary characters are superb and are a perfect set up for a string of belly laughs and crazy hijinks. This is only my second read by Johnny Shaw, but there is something about this guy that I like. He has a smooth and easy style that flows extremely well onto the page. A solid 4.5 Stars and Highly recommended!
I really liked everything about this one. It starts strong and remains that way throughout. The secondary characters are superb and are a perfect set up for a string of belly laughs and crazy hijinks. This is only my second read by Johnny Shaw, but there is something about this guy that I like. He has a smooth and easy style that flows extremely well onto the page. A solid 4.5 Stars and Highly recommended!
September 2, 2012
In naming his novel Dove Season, Johnny Shaw definitely seemed to be trying to lay out his priorities. His characters do not participate in the seasonal hunting that apparently takes place in the Imperial Valley of Southern California during the time of the story. That's okay. Shaw's goal, I think, is to make a character of the setting. He succeeds. I've never visited this part of the world but enjoyed Mr. Shaw's introduction to it: alfalfa, desert, excursions into Mexico, water rights, and illegal immigration.
I read another novel this year that interprets some of the same experiences, but I'd be lying if I left you with the impression that Dove Season is attempting to paint as rich a picture of the United States and Mexico as Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros. Dove Season does not attempt that historical scope, that poetry. It takes place over a shorter amount of time and involves guns, revenge, murder, death and drinking. Its genre fiction with character development and themes. And its guns and drinking, don't forget.
Jimmy Veeder heads back to the Imperial Valley because his father is dying of cancer. Jimmy left 12 years earlier for college, a literature degree, and what seems to have been a life of underemployment (how unrealistic). Read other reviews if you need more details about the plot but the ball gets rolling when his dying father requests that Jimmy locate a prostitute named Yolanda in Mexico and bring her to his convalescent home. Jimmy, a good son, sets out with an old friend Bobby. Bobby's game for anything. Good thing. Jimmy's first person description of how his body felt the next morning made me wince. And the fun had only just begun.
I'm a literary sort at heart, I guess. Caramelo was rounded down to four stars because I didn't think it was quite five. Dove Season rounded up since it wasn't really three, especially in appreciation of Jimmy's intriguing growth. Still giving its moral implications some thought.
This is an excellent first novel.
I read another novel this year that interprets some of the same experiences, but I'd be lying if I left you with the impression that Dove Season is attempting to paint as rich a picture of the United States and Mexico as Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros. Dove Season does not attempt that historical scope, that poetry. It takes place over a shorter amount of time and involves guns, revenge, murder, death and drinking. Its genre fiction with character development and themes. And its guns and drinking, don't forget.
Jimmy Veeder heads back to the Imperial Valley because his father is dying of cancer. Jimmy left 12 years earlier for college, a literature degree, and what seems to have been a life of underemployment (how unrealistic). Read other reviews if you need more details about the plot but the ball gets rolling when his dying father requests that Jimmy locate a prostitute named Yolanda in Mexico and bring her to his convalescent home. Jimmy, a good son, sets out with an old friend Bobby. Bobby's game for anything. Good thing. Jimmy's first person description of how his body felt the next morning made me wince. And the fun had only just begun.
I'm a literary sort at heart, I guess. Caramelo was rounded down to four stars because I didn't think it was quite five. Dove Season rounded up since it wasn't really three, especially in appreciation of Jimmy's intriguing growth. Still giving its moral implications some thought.
This is an excellent first novel.
March 19, 2013
“Is it better to have responsibility and fail or to choose to remain irresponsible?”
Dove Season is a hell of a debut novel, and might be the most twisted coming of age story you’re likely to read. Jimmy Veeder returns to his hometown in the Imperial Valley of California, a bleak, blistering hot farming region near the Mexican Border. Jimmy has spent his life avoiding responsibility, taking menial jobs that are easy to quit, despite a college education. He’s returning home after many years to care for his dying father. His father’s last wish is to have a Mexican prostitute. Not just any hooker, but a specific woman named Yolanda, who he must find somewhere across the border. Jimmy teams up with an old high school buddy and they take up the quest.
I thought I knew where this story was going with that set-up, but things go in a few dramatically different directions. The cast of characters is from Jimmy’s childhood, and when he returns, some of them have hardly changed, and others are remarkably different. As the situation escalates, the rose-colored glasses are lost, and Jimmy is blind-sided with plenty of harsh realities and tough decisions. It's a unforgettable transformation from an adolescent in denial to a responsible grown man. Hilarious, poignant and violent, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading Shaw’s second novel, Big Maria.
Dove Season is a hell of a debut novel, and might be the most twisted coming of age story you’re likely to read. Jimmy Veeder returns to his hometown in the Imperial Valley of California, a bleak, blistering hot farming region near the Mexican Border. Jimmy has spent his life avoiding responsibility, taking menial jobs that are easy to quit, despite a college education. He’s returning home after many years to care for his dying father. His father’s last wish is to have a Mexican prostitute. Not just any hooker, but a specific woman named Yolanda, who he must find somewhere across the border. Jimmy teams up with an old high school buddy and they take up the quest.
I thought I knew where this story was going with that set-up, but things go in a few dramatically different directions. The cast of characters is from Jimmy’s childhood, and when he returns, some of them have hardly changed, and others are remarkably different. As the situation escalates, the rose-colored glasses are lost, and Jimmy is blind-sided with plenty of harsh realities and tough decisions. It's a unforgettable transformation from an adolescent in denial to a responsible grown man. Hilarious, poignant and violent, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading Shaw’s second novel, Big Maria.
May 8, 2014
http://www.mybookishways.com/2014/05/...
Jimmy Veeder hasn’t seen his dad, Jack, in years, but he’s back home after Jack finally discloses to him that he’s suffering from cancer and living out the rest of his days in hospice. Jimmy is a college grad, but his degree in English literature isn’t doing him any good, and he’s been wiling away his days doing a variety of manual labor. Jimmy loves his father, and is glad to be back with him, even if it’s for a short time, so he opens up the old house, now full of dust and with a busted air conditioner, and starts mentally ticking off all the things that need fixing. During a visit with his father, and after some catching up, Jack makes a rather odd request: he wants Jimmy to track down a prostitute named Yolanda. So, Jimmy calls on his old friend Bobby Maves to help him out with his rather odd quest. He’s not about to deny his father at this point, and looks forward to spending time with Bobby in the process. Their search leads them to Tomás, the nephew of the man that runs the bar across the street from Jimmy’s house. The last time Jimmy saw Tomás, he was a kid that carried around a briefcase and had nerd written all over him. Not anymore. He’s all grown up, and now Tomás runs girls, among other things, but he remembers Jimmy and is willing to help. Tomás does find Yolanda and Jack is able to see her before he dies. Unfortunately, not too long after Jack dies, Yolanda dies too, and her death certainly is not a natural one. In fact, Jimmy and Bobby find her broken body in the cistern on Jimmy’s property. Her death leads Jimmy on a quest to find her family so that he can tell them what happened to her, and if you think more than a few cans are already opened, things are just about to get really interesting.
I really, really enjoyed this nourish tale that’s set among the melting pot of Holtville, in the Imperial Valley of Southern California. The heat is stifling, but the beer is cold. A little about our hero: Jimmy Veeder is just about one of the most affable protagonists you’ll ever meet, and it’s in his voice that the book is presented. He’s kind of your every guy, and if it was really up to him, he’d drink a lot of beer and hang around shooting the shit with Bobby. His father’s death has forced him to take on more responsibility than he wants, and he realizes that since he’s now got a 300+ acre farm on his hands, he’ll have to mature pretty quickly. When Yolanda is killed, that sets off a chain of events that will force him to grow up even more. So, I suppose you could call this a coming of age story, wrapped in a buddy story, Bobby being the buddy of course. He’s the kind of friend that, even though they haven’t had a lot of face time in the past, Jimmy knows Bobby has his back. Bobby is loud, crude, and very often drunk, but his heart is huge (much like his mouth), and he’s intensely loveable. Amidst the shootouts (of which there are a few), the brawls, and the wildness that often goes along with any border town, this book is about loyalty, friendship, and how family can take many forms. I may have gotten teary once or twice, but don’t tell anyone.
If you’re wondering , the title Dove Season refers to, well, dove season, and the gunshots that can be heard almost constantly as hunters shoot birds of peace out of the skies, and it’s a soundtrack to a few key scenes in the story. The possible rekindling of an old romance has Jimmy hopeful while he dodges bullets and fists, and in spite of some sobering scenes, this book had me laughing quite a bit, especially the moments between Jimmy and his father. Keep an eye out for Buck Buck and Snout too. You’ll like them. Even Tomás has his own kind of dubious charm, even if he is a stone cold killer. The conclusion is game changing for Jimmy and will have you anxious to dive into Plaster City. If you’ve read the Nick Reid novels by Rick Gavin, you’ll love this, or if you just like your crime noir with humor and literary flair, this is one for you. What an awesome book.
Jimmy Veeder hasn’t seen his dad, Jack, in years, but he’s back home after Jack finally discloses to him that he’s suffering from cancer and living out the rest of his days in hospice. Jimmy is a college grad, but his degree in English literature isn’t doing him any good, and he’s been wiling away his days doing a variety of manual labor. Jimmy loves his father, and is glad to be back with him, even if it’s for a short time, so he opens up the old house, now full of dust and with a busted air conditioner, and starts mentally ticking off all the things that need fixing. During a visit with his father, and after some catching up, Jack makes a rather odd request: he wants Jimmy to track down a prostitute named Yolanda. So, Jimmy calls on his old friend Bobby Maves to help him out with his rather odd quest. He’s not about to deny his father at this point, and looks forward to spending time with Bobby in the process. Their search leads them to Tomás, the nephew of the man that runs the bar across the street from Jimmy’s house. The last time Jimmy saw Tomás, he was a kid that carried around a briefcase and had nerd written all over him. Not anymore. He’s all grown up, and now Tomás runs girls, among other things, but he remembers Jimmy and is willing to help. Tomás does find Yolanda and Jack is able to see her before he dies. Unfortunately, not too long after Jack dies, Yolanda dies too, and her death certainly is not a natural one. In fact, Jimmy and Bobby find her broken body in the cistern on Jimmy’s property. Her death leads Jimmy on a quest to find her family so that he can tell them what happened to her, and if you think more than a few cans are already opened, things are just about to get really interesting.
I really, really enjoyed this nourish tale that’s set among the melting pot of Holtville, in the Imperial Valley of Southern California. The heat is stifling, but the beer is cold. A little about our hero: Jimmy Veeder is just about one of the most affable protagonists you’ll ever meet, and it’s in his voice that the book is presented. He’s kind of your every guy, and if it was really up to him, he’d drink a lot of beer and hang around shooting the shit with Bobby. His father’s death has forced him to take on more responsibility than he wants, and he realizes that since he’s now got a 300+ acre farm on his hands, he’ll have to mature pretty quickly. When Yolanda is killed, that sets off a chain of events that will force him to grow up even more. So, I suppose you could call this a coming of age story, wrapped in a buddy story, Bobby being the buddy of course. He’s the kind of friend that, even though they haven’t had a lot of face time in the past, Jimmy knows Bobby has his back. Bobby is loud, crude, and very often drunk, but his heart is huge (much like his mouth), and he’s intensely loveable. Amidst the shootouts (of which there are a few), the brawls, and the wildness that often goes along with any border town, this book is about loyalty, friendship, and how family can take many forms. I may have gotten teary once or twice, but don’t tell anyone.
If you’re wondering , the title Dove Season refers to, well, dove season, and the gunshots that can be heard almost constantly as hunters shoot birds of peace out of the skies, and it’s a soundtrack to a few key scenes in the story. The possible rekindling of an old romance has Jimmy hopeful while he dodges bullets and fists, and in spite of some sobering scenes, this book had me laughing quite a bit, especially the moments between Jimmy and his father. Keep an eye out for Buck Buck and Snout too. You’ll like them. Even Tomás has his own kind of dubious charm, even if he is a stone cold killer. The conclusion is game changing for Jimmy and will have you anxious to dive into Plaster City. If you’ve read the Nick Reid novels by Rick Gavin, you’ll love this, or if you just like your crime noir with humor and literary flair, this is one for you. What an awesome book.
August 1, 2019
Wonderfully written. Recommended
March 3, 2014
DOVE SEASON swiftly shifts into fourth gear during its first half, but it doesn't really have a fifth gear. It's a very good novel and a very consistant novel (which is an admirable trait for a first novel), but the unusual intimacy of the narration and its rugged naturalism swept me away so quickly, I was disappointed it never became transcendent.
I'm still giving DOVE SEASON 5 stars because it's a hardboiled crime novel that doesn't feel formulaic and recycled. It exists within a paradigm it created, which is the most difficult thing you can ask a genre novel. If you want something original that has everything you want out of a mystery, reading DOVE SEASEAON is a winning choice. Beware the almighty pen of Johnny Shaw, for that it knows its strengths and weaknesses.
I'm still giving DOVE SEASON 5 stars because it's a hardboiled crime novel that doesn't feel formulaic and recycled. It exists within a paradigm it created, which is the most difficult thing you can ask a genre novel. If you want something original that has everything you want out of a mystery, reading DOVE SEASEAON is a winning choice. Beware the almighty pen of Johnny Shaw, for that it knows its strengths and weaknesses.
July 13, 2014
I am not sure why I did not like this book more, especially since some of my GR friends gave it 4 stars (Dan S., Kemper, James T.), but I didn't. Jimmy Veeder returns home to the Imperial Valley, on the U.S. Mexico border when news of his father's impending death from cancer finally reaches him. He reconnects with his long ago abandoned friends, helps his Dad with belly laughs and connecting with the mysterious Yolanda, before finding himself in a world of trouble in connection with the latter. I want to read Johnny Shaw's Big Maria.
March 11, 2015
Loved this. Mr Shaw where have you been all my life! Review to come.
June 11, 2012
Jimmy Veeder returns to his father's home after a twelve year absence. His father, Jack, kept his cancer to himself but when he knew his days were numbered, he called Jimmy.
Jimmy's home is Holtville in southern California by the Mexican border. It's a place in the desert where "...even the plants have a chip on their shoulders."
Holtville hasn't changed much since Jimmy left. Neither has his best friend, Bobby Maves. When Jimmy greets Bobby and asks how he's been, Bobby's response, "I live in Holtveile. How good could I be?"
Jimmy's father only has one request, to find a prostitute named Yolanda who lives in Mexico.
In this noir novel, the desert is also a character. Jimmy, Bobby and their boyhood friend Tomas work to find Yolanda. Tomas is an underworld figure in Mexciali. He claims to be an arranger, to help people cross the border, find girls for pornography or whatever can earn him money.
Yolanda is found and returns with Jimmy for a last visit with Jack. When Jack dies later on, Yolanda is able to return for the service. However, something happens that changes the direction of the story. We learn more of Jack's earlier days and the underground world of Mexicali.
I don't know what I expected with this novel but it was a pleasant surprise. The characters are well presented and the plot is interesting.
Jimmy's home is Holtville in southern California by the Mexican border. It's a place in the desert where "...even the plants have a chip on their shoulders."
Holtville hasn't changed much since Jimmy left. Neither has his best friend, Bobby Maves. When Jimmy greets Bobby and asks how he's been, Bobby's response, "I live in Holtveile. How good could I be?"
Jimmy's father only has one request, to find a prostitute named Yolanda who lives in Mexico.
In this noir novel, the desert is also a character. Jimmy, Bobby and their boyhood friend Tomas work to find Yolanda. Tomas is an underworld figure in Mexciali. He claims to be an arranger, to help people cross the border, find girls for pornography or whatever can earn him money.
Yolanda is found and returns with Jimmy for a last visit with Jack. When Jack dies later on, Yolanda is able to return for the service. However, something happens that changes the direction of the story. We learn more of Jack's earlier days and the underground world of Mexicali.
I don't know what I expected with this novel but it was a pleasant surprise. The characters are well presented and the plot is interesting.
June 3, 2014
'My friends in different cities found it charming, even romantic, that I grew up on a farm. It was neither. Ask a farmer.'
DOVE SEASON is the second book I have read recently by Johnny Shaw, the first being BIG MARIA. DOVE SEASON is a little less slapstick than BIG MARIA. Some serious subjects are actually looked at, such as poverty, racism, dying, cancer, growing up, murder, but it is no less fun to read.
The main protagonist of the story is Jimmy Veeder. Jimmy comes home when he finds out his dad, Pop, is dying of cancer. "Cancer, right?" "No, I'm an Aries."
Dark humor throughout, the love of a son for his father and vice versa, friendship, family, lots of drinking, a lot of peeing, farming, desert, fighting and more fighting, hard decisions...all thrown together in a great novel - a bit of desert noir.
I will definitely be keeping my eyes open for new Johnny Shaw novels. I understand there are at least two more Jimmy Veeder books being planned. I am glad to hear that. I want to know more about Jimmy and his best friend, Bobby Maves.
DOVE SEASON is the second book I have read recently by Johnny Shaw, the first being BIG MARIA. DOVE SEASON is a little less slapstick than BIG MARIA. Some serious subjects are actually looked at, such as poverty, racism, dying, cancer, growing up, murder, but it is no less fun to read.
The main protagonist of the story is Jimmy Veeder. Jimmy comes home when he finds out his dad, Pop, is dying of cancer. "Cancer, right?" "No, I'm an Aries."
Dark humor throughout, the love of a son for his father and vice versa, friendship, family, lots of drinking, a lot of peeing, farming, desert, fighting and more fighting, hard decisions...all thrown together in a great novel - a bit of desert noir.
I will definitely be keeping my eyes open for new Johnny Shaw novels. I understand there are at least two more Jimmy Veeder books being planned. I am glad to hear that. I want to know more about Jimmy and his best friend, Bobby Maves.
July 20, 2016
If'n you don't like Joe Lansdale's writin', then you won't like Johnny Shaw's either, I reckon. I found this novel to have an original plot, very well-developed characters and a great sense of humor about itself and its participants, good and bad. Yes, it reminded me of Lansdale and it can easily stand shoulder to shoulder with that writer's east Texas stuff. I will certainly be looking for more of Jimmy Veeder and the Imperial Valley.
January 1, 2014
Very enjoyable debut novel. I thought the plotting was impressive, loved the characters, and thought there was just the right amount of both humor and violence.
June 3, 2018
"There are no cute calendars devoted to the creatures of the desert floor. Whether a rattlesnake, or a scorpion or a centipede, under every rock some scaly, poisonous monster waits for the chance to bite the next unsuspecting ankle. Even a desert hare will take a finger off the dumbass that tries to pet it. If the desert can make a bunny that angry, imagine what it does to people."
Johnny Shaw had me after that-- and that isn't even the end of page 1. This is an outstanding book. And for an author's first novel? Yikes. Off the chart! Really, some people will disagree, but perhaps I'm influenced by having lived in the desert southwest for the better part of my life. Shaw captures the sense of place and of the inhabitants of the small border communities of California's Imperial valley. He draws characters rich in dimensions, full of flaws and yet, irresistibly likeable. Loyal to their friends, come hell or high water, these characters surround our protagonist, Jimmy Veeder, who has returned to his hometown to see his father just before the latter succumbs to cancer.
Of course, if you've read the dust cover blurb, or others' reviews, you already know that nothing will be that simple. The book is really two separate, but closely connected parts, pre and post the father's death. It is full of laugh-out-loud moments juxtaposed with bittersweet experiences and hair-raising tensions. Life, death, struggles to find what is really meaningful in one's existence-- all of that and some bad actors thrown into the mix just to keep you turning those pages as fast as you can.
I began this book wondering if I'd be interested in continuing the series-- now I'm convinced that I'll read the next and the next after that-- in all likelihood, and the only concern I'll have is whether or not Shaw can keep up this level of entertainment and quality. I sure hope so-- 'cause I live in the desert, and we know how angry that can make a man!
Johnny Shaw had me after that-- and that isn't even the end of page 1. This is an outstanding book. And for an author's first novel? Yikes. Off the chart! Really, some people will disagree, but perhaps I'm influenced by having lived in the desert southwest for the better part of my life. Shaw captures the sense of place and of the inhabitants of the small border communities of California's Imperial valley. He draws characters rich in dimensions, full of flaws and yet, irresistibly likeable. Loyal to their friends, come hell or high water, these characters surround our protagonist, Jimmy Veeder, who has returned to his hometown to see his father just before the latter succumbs to cancer.
Of course, if you've read the dust cover blurb, or others' reviews, you already know that nothing will be that simple. The book is really two separate, but closely connected parts, pre and post the father's death. It is full of laugh-out-loud moments juxtaposed with bittersweet experiences and hair-raising tensions. Life, death, struggles to find what is really meaningful in one's existence-- all of that and some bad actors thrown into the mix just to keep you turning those pages as fast as you can.
I began this book wondering if I'd be interested in continuing the series-- now I'm convinced that I'll read the next and the next after that-- in all likelihood, and the only concern I'll have is whether or not Shaw can keep up this level of entertainment and quality. I sure hope so-- 'cause I live in the desert, and we know how angry that can make a man!
April 13, 2021
There's a lot to like in Johnny Shaw's Dove Season. A story that is centered around Jimmy Veeder and those that orbit him. The pull of family, appeasing the dead, and if I'm honest, some pretty good laughs. Most of these coming courtesy of Jimmy's friend Bobby. And what have I always said when this occurs? That's right: if a book can make me laugh out loud, it's a fucking bonus. Go forth, seek out, purchase and enjoy. Tell 'em another lover of the Batcave sent you.
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