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The Tumours Made Me Interesting
Hello, my name is Bruce Miles and my life means nothing to no one.When I was 12, I watched a falcon carry away my father, leaving me to care for my mother while a mysterious illness slowly transformed her into an arm. Events like these tend to ensure a bleak future and, until recently, I was making good on that promise.I was the sort of person you didn’t notice. I wasn’t worth noticing. Just a talentless nobody destined to die alone and unremembered.Then I was diagnosed with terminal cancer and everything turned around.You see, it turns out I have a gift for illness. My tumours aren’t like other tumours. They’re special. And now that I’m going to die, my once miserable life may actually be worth living. There’s this lady, Fiona. She’s what you’d call a sickness enthusiast and she has a plan that’ll rocket me to superstardom in the underground world of disease fetishists. With her help, I’m going to chase the elusive perfect tumour that will be both my legacy and the key to being something I’ve never been……interesting.
- GenresHorrorBizarro Fiction
202 pages, Paperback
First published September 24, 2011
1 person is currently reading
150 people want to read
About the author
Matthew Revert
40 books94 followersMatthew Revert is a writer, musician and graphic designer from Melbourne, Australia.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 26, 2021
Full Review
Revert’s prose is excellent. He paints vivid pictures of the ridiculousness of Bruce’s situation without any winking at the audience or trading emotional verisimilitude for jokes. I honestly can’t think of an author to compare Revert’s style to. Even other bizarro authors don’t seem to match what Revert does in this novel.
Revert’s prose is excellent. He paints vivid pictures of the ridiculousness of Bruce’s situation without any winking at the audience or trading emotional verisimilitude for jokes. I honestly can’t think of an author to compare Revert’s style to. Even other bizarro authors don’t seem to match what Revert does in this novel.
October 11, 2014
There are quite a few people who have branded this book 'spoof', 'satire', 'parody'. While I agree those elements are there, I don't think you can posit that it is the dominant tone of the story.
The Tumors Made Me Interesting was, to me, a melancholy goodbye to something that was never really yours. I spoke with the author at length after reading it and he confirmed as much. One of the great things about Bizarro is that you can play with raw symbols, the greatest example being the main character's mother in this being just a detached arm. A mother comforts and soothes, thus her arms (and hands) are a major factor in bringing this about. Matthew Revert confirmed to me that it was the symbol of his own mother in the rawest form he could think of.
The narrator feels, knows deep down there is something wrong with him. So he turns to traditional medicine for answers, but the doctor doesn't seem too interested in helping him, just telling him about his garage band. It is only when he falls in with a cult-like group who can communicate with the tumors inside of him that he begins to understand his situation. They build him up, hype his spirits beyond belief. He finally feels important, like his role in the universe is essential. But then, the big come down we are all too familiar with.
It is hard to believe that a lighter with a cartoon illustration of a man passing gas could be, at turns, so brilliant, cathartic and touching when viewed in the context of the ending, but it is. This book will eat into the tissue lining of your heart. The tumors made this interesting.
The Tumors Made Me Interesting was, to me, a melancholy goodbye to something that was never really yours. I spoke with the author at length after reading it and he confirmed as much. One of the great things about Bizarro is that you can play with raw symbols, the greatest example being the main character's mother in this being just a detached arm. A mother comforts and soothes, thus her arms (and hands) are a major factor in bringing this about. Matthew Revert confirmed to me that it was the symbol of his own mother in the rawest form he could think of.
The narrator feels, knows deep down there is something wrong with him. So he turns to traditional medicine for answers, but the doctor doesn't seem too interested in helping him, just telling him about his garage band. It is only when he falls in with a cult-like group who can communicate with the tumors inside of him that he begins to understand his situation. They build him up, hype his spirits beyond belief. He finally feels important, like his role in the universe is essential. But then, the big come down we are all too familiar with.
It is hard to believe that a lighter with a cartoon illustration of a man passing gas could be, at turns, so brilliant, cathartic and touching when viewed in the context of the ending, but it is. This book will eat into the tissue lining of your heart. The tumors made this interesting.
January 23, 2012
Matthew Revert is not as prolific as a lot of absurdist/bizarro authors but what he lacks in quantity he makes up for with quality. At first glance this book (like some of his stories) appear to be absurdly silly stories involving flatulence, sex, puns, and other jokes about body parts, etc.
But behind all this is a brilliance unequaled in the genre. What genre? I don't know. I'm not sure I'd classify it as bizarro... and I guess it could be absurdist fiction but it's really more like literary absurdist fiction if we had to put a classification.
This book, despite its absurd humor, unbelievable plot points and characters, is a very touching and sober look at illness and how it affects both the ill and their family. Despite the laugh out loud parts, I found myself also putting the book down to really think about what Revert was trying to express. I came away from reading this with the realization that it was an intensely personal and heart-wrenching work that could only have been birthed by a true artist.
I'm not a philosopher and I'm sure there was a lot more going on here. But at its heart, I can see that it's about a man trying to come to terms with his illness/disease, alternating between hating it and accepting it while also dealing with the love for his mother. There are also the themes of betrayal, friendship, obsessive collectors, and loyalty.
But being a Revert book, there's some great absurd humor at work. It's funny but bittersweet and you will be all the better for having read it.
But behind all this is a brilliance unequaled in the genre. What genre? I don't know. I'm not sure I'd classify it as bizarro... and I guess it could be absurdist fiction but it's really more like literary absurdist fiction if we had to put a classification.
This book, despite its absurd humor, unbelievable plot points and characters, is a very touching and sober look at illness and how it affects both the ill and their family. Despite the laugh out loud parts, I found myself also putting the book down to really think about what Revert was trying to express. I came away from reading this with the realization that it was an intensely personal and heart-wrenching work that could only have been birthed by a true artist.
I'm not a philosopher and I'm sure there was a lot more going on here. But at its heart, I can see that it's about a man trying to come to terms with his illness/disease, alternating between hating it and accepting it while also dealing with the love for his mother. There are also the themes of betrayal, friendship, obsessive collectors, and loyalty.
But being a Revert book, there's some great absurd humor at work. It's funny but bittersweet and you will be all the better for having read it.
November 1, 2019
The more you read, the harder it is to find a book that surprises you. In the case of Matthew Revert's The Tumours Made Me Interesting, the entire narrative is like reading a succession of unexpected literary morsels that range from the surreal to the hilarious and leaves your brain full of buzzing exclamation points.
You can read Gabino's full review at Horror DNA by clicking here.
You can read Gabino's full review at Horror DNA by clicking here.
April 9, 2013
"The Tumours Made Me Interesting," by Matthew Revert is a great piece of bizarro fiction. I loved it, especially when I got it for free from Legumeman Books. Without beating you in the eyes with words, I’ve decided to skip the parade of praise and bought "A Million Versions of Right," also by Matthew Revert. That's the best compliment I can give to a writer, my time and my money, and both were well spent. So go ahead and buy this book, take it with you to your next doctors appointment, and be sure to check out more titles by Matthew Revert and Legumeman Books.
October 31, 2011
Revert has really done it this time. His newest book has set the bar so high for Bizarro fiction that it may be years before somebody tops it. This book is deep without being pretentious and the humor is low brow without being immature and stupid. Like a surgeon he uses abusurdity to express real emotions. Every little joke actually has a meaning and a purpose to the story rather than being there merely for shock value like so many other authors in the genre tend to do.
May 12, 2012
Two versions of a review appear here.
This book is an allegory about art, about the source of creativity and the engine of fame and the agonies of love, false and true.
Bruce has tumours. Bruce also has a "Manager" named Fiona who nurtures the development of Bruce's tumours. Around Bruce develops an entourage of strange quirky characters who are interesting and worthless both.
One of the things that is interesting about Bruce's tumours is that they can be commodified. Fiona becomes rich selling a kind of access to Bruce's tumours to an already existing fan base. Bruce's ability to produce commodifiable objects supports Bruce and his entourage. Under the direction of Fiona.
By the way, Bruce's mother is sick, too. She turns into an arm. Bruce's apartment floods after his entourage moves in. The entourage continues playing a card game that consists of drawing and passing around cards until, at some random point, someone/anyone decides they have won.
They don't call the game life, they call it canasta.
To describe more of the surrealist aspects of this book would be to spoil too much of the fun of reading it.
This is a wonderful book. About love and art and pain. And falseness. Please promise me that, if you start this, you will read it all the way through. At times you might want to stop. Please do not.
This book is an allegory about art, about the source of creativity and the engine of fame and the agonies of love, false and true.
Bruce has tumours. Bruce also has a "Manager" named Fiona who nurtures the development of Bruce's tumours. Around Bruce develops an entourage of strange quirky characters who are interesting and worthless both.
One of the things that is interesting about Bruce's tumours is that they can be commodified. Fiona becomes rich selling a kind of access to Bruce's tumours to an already existing fan base. Bruce's ability to produce commodifiable objects supports Bruce and his entourage. Under the direction of Fiona.
By the way, Bruce's mother is sick, too. She turns into an arm. Bruce's apartment floods after his entourage moves in. The entourage continues playing a card game that consists of drawing and passing around cards until, at some random point, someone/anyone decides they have won.
They don't call the game life, they call it canasta.
To describe more of the surrealist aspects of this book would be to spoil too much of the fun of reading it.
This is a wonderful book. About love and art and pain. And falseness. Please promise me that, if you start this, you will read it all the way through. At times you might want to stop. Please do not.
November 25, 2015
The way that Revert makes the bizarre elements seem completely acceptable makes this book absolutely shine. Of course his dad gets carried off by a falcon. Doesn't everyone's? It seems so acceptable, so reasonable, and (like the tumors) interesting. This one really rolls along and fires at all the right times. I enjoyed it immensely and will be definitely checking more of Revert out.
August 3, 2021
Utterly bonkers and unlike anything I’ve read before. The Tumors Made Me Interesting is a story that will stay with me until I inevitably forget what happened in it and have to read it again, thanks to my terrible memory.
Also, the author is a really cool dude and sent me an ARC of this, so thank you, Matt.
Loved it. Five stars!
Also, the author is a really cool dude and sent me an ARC of this, so thank you, Matt.
Loved it. Five stars!
March 28, 2014
Review soon
March 14, 2025
Not my fave. Writing style was clunky and just plain silly most of the time but the themes of uncovered trauma and self worth were enough to keep me hanging on. ‘Twas alright.
February 26, 2015
This book is about a man who creates perfect tumors inside his gut. He may be sick, but he’s really good at it.
I don’t remember how I first heard of this book, but the title had me hooked. I was interested in the reversal: how disease and sickness could become advantages.
The book fluctuates between astute observations to absurd, bizarre shockmongering.
“The parent/child relationship, especially when the child has entered the world of adulthood, often descends into a series of practiced platitudes. The automatic drive to conduct the relationship without emotional interference enforces itself.”
versus
“I had been cooking a fart all night and I was too tired to concern myself with social etiquette. It flew from my arse like a gas dragon and circled the bedroom. … ‘It’s like a revolting rainbow!’”
If I hadn’t read the reviews of this book, I might have taken it more straight-forwardly. But descriptions such as “parody” and “allegory” made me take statements such as, “We are taught to fear disease and respond combatively toward it,” as ironic instead of subversive. I began to try to parse out what the text meant instead of just reading it.
About half way through the book I realized I was allowing other people’s reading of the book to influence me. And even if they were correct, I wanted to derive my own values and interpretations.
Revert delves into the shitty, unlooked-at portions of humanity. But he doesn’t do so cavalierly. He is aware of his putridity. He shows his hand when he writes, “So much of life is shit, piss and vomit. The waste itself is no way near as disgusting as our urge to run away from it.” He knows he is employing shock tactics, gore tactics.
As the narrative progresses, he uses more magical-realism-type prose. As the climax approaches, the shit and vomit abates (not disappearing entirely) to be replaced by a populace of police wearing xylophones riding mechanized ladders and children dressed as audio cassette tapes, etc.
This book wasn’t exactly what I thought it was going to be. I felt Revert backpedaled a little at the end with a spurt of didacticism. He tries to justify what he has just commemorated to paper by tacking on a moral. “Life is the illness,” he writes. He says other things, there, towards the end, but I don’t believe him, so I won’t repeat them here.
I believe this nugget he buried in a nostalgic memory: “I didn’t just obsess over my failures. I became the perfect embodiment of them.”
I don’t remember how I first heard of this book, but the title had me hooked. I was interested in the reversal: how disease and sickness could become advantages.
The book fluctuates between astute observations to absurd, bizarre shockmongering.
“The parent/child relationship, especially when the child has entered the world of adulthood, often descends into a series of practiced platitudes. The automatic drive to conduct the relationship without emotional interference enforces itself.”
versus
“I had been cooking a fart all night and I was too tired to concern myself with social etiquette. It flew from my arse like a gas dragon and circled the bedroom. … ‘It’s like a revolting rainbow!’”
If I hadn’t read the reviews of this book, I might have taken it more straight-forwardly. But descriptions such as “parody” and “allegory” made me take statements such as, “We are taught to fear disease and respond combatively toward it,” as ironic instead of subversive. I began to try to parse out what the text meant instead of just reading it.
About half way through the book I realized I was allowing other people’s reading of the book to influence me. And even if they were correct, I wanted to derive my own values and interpretations.
Revert delves into the shitty, unlooked-at portions of humanity. But he doesn’t do so cavalierly. He is aware of his putridity. He shows his hand when he writes, “So much of life is shit, piss and vomit. The waste itself is no way near as disgusting as our urge to run away from it.” He knows he is employing shock tactics, gore tactics.
As the narrative progresses, he uses more magical-realism-type prose. As the climax approaches, the shit and vomit abates (not disappearing entirely) to be replaced by a populace of police wearing xylophones riding mechanized ladders and children dressed as audio cassette tapes, etc.
This book wasn’t exactly what I thought it was going to be. I felt Revert backpedaled a little at the end with a spurt of didacticism. He tries to justify what he has just commemorated to paper by tacking on a moral. “Life is the illness,” he writes. He says other things, there, towards the end, but I don’t believe him, so I won’t repeat them here.
I believe this nugget he buried in a nostalgic memory: “I didn’t just obsess over my failures. I became the perfect embodiment of them.”
Read
February 25, 2016One of the better books I've read these last few years. Put me in mind of Raw Shark Texts. Surrealist in nature, often unexplained events involving birds just occur. His dad was carried off by a falcon. A waitress gave him two dead sparrows in a hat with a straw. A quail swims by, pecking at him in his flooded flat.
I could attempt an interpretation along the lines of how ones world disintegrates upon a cancer diagnosis. But that isn't it.
This is the story of a man who is an everyman and a nobody, who finds that there's always something special about yourself if you look. In his case, he makes perfect tumours. A good read
I could attempt an interpretation along the lines of how ones world disintegrates upon a cancer diagnosis. But that isn't it.
This is the story of a man who is an everyman and a nobody, who finds that there's always something special about yourself if you look. In his case, he makes perfect tumours. A good read
September 24, 2012
Full of ridiculous, unbelievable events and horrifying health conditions, including tumours, and one character gradually turning an arm. "Tumours" is tragic, funny, sad, and usually some combination working all at once. Perhaps not for the easily offended by exaggerated body functions. The story is Bruce Miles learning a few big things about himself, and that comes through quite clearly no matter how unbelievable his surroundings are. If you're able to accept what happens as the world of Bruce Miles, it's a great read and quite a rewarding experience.
June 17, 2012
This was one of the weirdest books I've ever read. And that's okay, I like a little bit of weird now and then. Sometimes a lot. Revert is to be commended for the bravery of his ridiculousness. This is a fantastically surrealist tale, but the fact that it is in some parts incredibly filthy and depressing makes it hard going at times. Luckily, it's redeemed byt some simply brilliant turns of phrase, wildly inventive ideas and a biting humour. Well worth a read, but make sure you're ready to go all the way down the rabbit hole...
August 22, 2015
it's hard to be fair about this one. i expected to like it, it's rather in the pynchonian bend of absurd world coming apart at the seams. but the writing never sat right, the jokes were a little too scatological, things that might have been poignant were still played for laughs, and over all it seemed a little too intent to be bizarre and not careful enough about being interesting.
still there is great momentum and the parts that work are really hilarious.
still there is great momentum and the parts that work are really hilarious.
November 6, 2012
Matthew Revert is good at writing. This book is proof.
March 12, 2014
A freaking masterpiece. It is THAT good. Do not hesitate and please read this book.
December 27, 2022
One of the best bits of writing I've read in a while. Totally absurd, but in a way that holds together, which is a hard feat to accomplish. Not for the faint of heart.
May 26, 2014
The phrase "weird as f*ck" doesn't even begin to explain this book.
This is what a hallucination of peyote + LSD must be like...
This is what a hallucination of peyote + LSD must be like...
April 7, 2017
Great story telling. Very easy to suspend disbelief.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews