Shenanigans!

by Joseph Michael Owens

Benjamin “Benji” Palko is just trying to get by, to fly under life’s radar. But random events keep happening to him and to those he cares about most that make him question what he thinks he knows along the way.

In this collectio(novel)la, Ben gets entangled in a strange and humiliating coffee debacle that results in a trip to the Emergency Room. He has a standoff with his dog over a routine toenail trimming. A bike ride in the Rocky Mountains turns into a learning experience is dressing climate appropriate. Ben’s nunchucks-wielding neighbor provides an odd sense of calm in the wake of a rash of home invasions.

"The voice in Shenanigans! is muscular, rhythmic, and full of whizz-bang linguistic energy. The stories view the world with the kind of self-deprecating humor that makes you want to spend an afternoon just wandering around in Benjamin’s mind. Read Shenanigans! You’ll laugh, you’ll think…you’ll have a great time." -- Amy Hassinger, author of Nina Adolescence

“Shenanigans! is the textual photo-album of Anna and Ben, language made to Polaroid the gentle tangle of coupling and maturation. This is a collection wonderfully tinged with humor, beautifully tempered with landscape, and soaked in the genuine.”
– J. A. Tyler, author of Girl With Oars & Man Dying

"The charm of Joseph Michael Owens's debut collection, Shenanigans! can be found in his voice. At heart, these are a young man‟s stories of love and loss, of life and death. There‟s a sincerity that flirts with retro yet feels like innovation. Each one reads like a conversation … unscathed by the unsentimental tone that too often passes for hipness in this day and age, yet clearly of his own time. These are honest stories." – Karen Gettert Shoemaker author of Night Sounds and Other Stories

"Between Hunter S. Thompson and David Foster Wallace‟s essays, Joseph Owens‟s stories will take you through a caffeinated romp through his life, its exciting highs and frightening lows. Dogs, horses, bicycles come alive with as much love and empathy as the people he holds dear. Owens's voice, spirited, crackling with energy, is too fierce, and engaging to be ignored." – Catherine Texier, author of Russian Lessons, The Breakup

Art Faccia interview with Joseph Michael Owens: http://artfaccia.com/post/21864318201...

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

100 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2012

About the author

Joseph Michael Owens has written for PANK Magazine, The Rumpus, The Houston Literary Review, InDigest Magazine, Specter Magazine and Grey Sparrow Journal (CELJ’s Best New Literary Journal of 2010), where he is a regular contributor to its section, “The Campus,” and serves as an associate editor. Additionally, his short story “We Always Trust Each Other, Except for When We Don’t” was nominated for both Dzanc Books‘ Best of the Web 2011 anthology and storySouth‘s Million Writers Award (where it was a top-100 finalist!). Joseph also manages the website Category Thirteen, dedicated primarily to the hectic and haptic process of writing. Joe lives in Omaha with three dogs, two sons, and one wife.

Reviews

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This work could be called a collection of short stories or a novella. Either label will work and Joe Owens obviously likes them both, which is why they have been smushed together in the book description.

The first story, "Contemptibly, A Hair," introduces us to Ben Palko, an overworked IT and data entry specialist with largish pores, as he faces the dilemmas of dealing with a less-than-ideal office job. He is observant, critical, sarcastic and sensitive to the ridiculous traits of his co-workers. Luckily for them, he is largely silent about what he observes. So much so that he can't tell the clueless and clumsy Kathy Adkins what he really thinks of her.

Having ushered his hero on to the stage, Owens hands the microphone over to Ben, as it were, and lets him speak for himself. The stories Ben proceeds to tell are about the little but memorable things in life: the weird shenanigans your dog, your neighbor and your landlady pull to complicate your existence; the argument about lasagna which is about so much more than noodles and cheese; a particularly challenging outdoors adventure. Though all the stories touch on serious issues, they are fairly light and comical in tone. And the last story starts on the same light note. But suddenly our hero faces some pretty serious problems when unexpected things happen, first to a family member and then to Ben himself.

Ben appears to be a quirky, goofy guy who cares about his family, wants what is best in life for his girlfriend Anna, and loves animals. Luckily for Anna, he's pretty good--despite some very male idiosyncrasies--at picking up on her signals. And luckily for the reader, his narration treads the fine line between humor, sentiment and pathos, without overdoing it on any of them. How could you not like this guy?

[Nefariousbig · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is absolutely necessary to add this awesome update to my pathetic review. Everything you need to know about JMO in a word: GoaT

http://categorythirteen.com/2013/06/0...

_______

Joseph Michael Owens sat down at his typewriter and bled. He writes with heart and soul about real life. About the spaces that get lost when you open your eyes and start your day. The sweetness that you long for when you close your eyes after your day is done. If you are looking for something to read that has the comfort of sunshine after the rain, and the fun and simplicity of old fashioned shenanigans, you must read this book.

[Chris Blocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know Joseph Michael Owens. He's a great guy and conversations with him, regardless of the topic, are always interesting. Whether he's talking about string theory, tree nuts, or David Foster Wallace, Owens has such a passion for life that it's difficult not to listen.

Owens' voice comes through strong in Shenanigans!. No matter the subject—and he covers a wide variety of subjects here from nunchucks and lasagna, to love and cancer—Owens yanks in the reader. With a tone that is both casual and exciting, Owens approaches life's big issues with humility and its more trivial matters with great expertise.

Charming. Funny. Aching. Insightful. Gentle. In a mere 100 pages, Owens' voice parades around in the dress of so many adjectives it's like a game of Apples to Apples. These stories are so many things because they vibrate with life. This collection is a genuine conversation with its author; even if I didn't know Joseph Michael Owens, after reading Shenanigans! I believe I would feel like I did.

[J.A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Shenanigans! is the textual photo-album of Anna and Ben, language made to Polaroid the gentle tangle of coupling and maturation. This is a collection wonderfully tinged with humor, beautifully tempered with landscape, and soaked in the genuine.”
– J. A. Tyler, author of Girl With Oars & Man Dying

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've heard that by the time Bukowski was really into the swing of things as a writer he had stopped reading much of anything because he did not feel that most of what he came across had life. It felt dead and, as such, was worthless. I can't really say for sure because I didn't know old Buk', but I believe he would have felt very differently about the writing in "Shenanigans!" If there was ever writing with life, "Shenanigans!" is it.

In some cases I mean this quite literally. The writing in "Contemptibly, A Hair" blasts out of the page with more energy than a hyperactive toddler on meth, though with much more pleasurable results. It dances, it spins, it screams. In short, it is the language equivalent of class ten rapids.

However, in other stories I mean the above comment a bit more figuratively. In "What We Talk About When We Talk About Lasagna," one of the most humorous Raymond Carver tributes I've ever seen by the way, the prose is certainly lively, but the much more impressive aspect is the way that the emotion seems to pulse with actual, organic life. Really, all that's at stake is what Ben and his wife are really arguing about when arguing about eating a pan of mostly burned lasagna. However, the way that the things that are unsaid are not said, the way the words that are there are laid out, it all seems to work inside the reader to cause the exchange of emotions to happen afresh.

All of these stories have that life, that real quality that we always turn to fiction to simulate for us, though such is not always achieved as well as in "Shenanigans!" Whether concerning a nunchaku-wielding neighbor, the mistrust between man and his best friend over the issue of nail-clipping, or a wedding proposal leading into buying more than a landlord approved number of dogs leading into a parental heart attack leading into a personal unknown health threat, these stories bring forth life for the reader. Truly, you could not ask for more.

[Joseph Michael Owens]

UPDATE 06/22/13: Shenanigans!: Now comes with 100% more Indie-Book-Award-Finalist-sticker-action!!
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j47...

UPDATE 05/20/13: I'm now officially listed at the Next Gen. Indie Book Awards for regional fiction -- 'tis all good, as they say!!
http://www.indiebookawards.com/2013_w...

UPDATE 04/06/13: Big thanks to everyone who's read the book and offered their opinions! I truly appreciate the feedback; whether 1-star, 3 stars, or 5-stars, your time and consideration mean the world to me!!

The new cover is ready to roll! If you're interested, here's the link! http://amzn.to/N4ohSa

It's probably cheating to add this to my "Books Read in 2012".

Art Faccia interviewed me about Shenanigans! which was really great (and humbling to be asked)!! http://artfaccia.com/post/21864318201...

[Ben]

You are very much caught-up in your own head and the answers are not clear.

[Kyle Muntz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really friendly and endearing book. I know those are usually words to use for people rather than novellas, but Shennanigians! has a certain energy and humility that I really liked; the style reminded me a bit of DWF on occasions (especially the clever use of footnotes), but sort of pared to its emotional core. For the most part, it's rare for writers to do slice-of-life this well (which is generally something I'd expect mostly from Japanese writing), but Shenanigians! nails it; the moments of tenderness, introspection, humor, feel completely natural, and also really profound. There are also some fascinating meditations on language and the relationship of a writer to the text, and in general, the stories mostly get better as they go--which is especially good because they start out so strong.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading "SHENANIGANS!" was like sitting down with a stranger with a cup of coffee and finding myself when I finished the last word,as if I had come to know a gentle,caring,extremely funny person & wanting to say "Wait,don't go!" The personal battles of his body bicycling against rain,ice and high altitudes in nature, or disease are described so you seem to see and feel what he was experiencing. Yet he also is not afraid to show with humor his ability to laugh at himself and invite you to laugh with him.The trip to the kennel to just "look" at puppies & how Steve McQueen came to be the third dog in an apartment that could get them evicted is one of my favorites.This book has left me wanting to read more from this author.

[Georgiann Hennelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ben Palko is just trying to get by. But random events keep happening to him and those he cares about. The stories view the world with self-deprecating humor. At heart this is a young mans stories of Love and Loss, of Life and Death. Each one reads like a conversation. I look forward to reading more books by Joseph Michael Owens

[Karolyn Sherwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

SHENANIGANS!, by Joseph Michael Owens, nearly demands its own literary category. It's listed as a short story collection/novella, but it reads like a memoir. I can't help but think that the stories aren't too far from the author's real life. I met Joe once, at a workshop, and I know many of the main character's personal facts to be pretty darn similar to his own. That being said, the adventures that the main character, Ben Palko, undertakes could be entirely fictional, in which case the book is even more amazing than I realize.

Shenanigans! is seriously funny. Ben Palko is a self-deprecating twenty-something white male who is alternately a student and or employee in the Midwest. Think Catcher in the Rye meets Office Space. He speaks to us in a casual, personal, colloquial voice, kinda like a best friend. In the stories (labeled as Chapters), he relays snippets from his life that range from grossly hilarious (Contemptibly, A Hair) to insightful (We Always Trust Each Other, Except When We Don't) to heart-rending (The Year That Was ... And Was Not).

Shenanigans! is short, barely 100 pages, but it's full of wisdom and style. Let's hope this is the first of many books by Owens.

Five Stars

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Shenanigans!" by Joseph Michael Owens was a fast read that left a lasting impression. At first the non-linear story line distracted me, not because I dislike non-linear story lines, but because I wasn't expecting it. However, with each passing chapter/short story I felt as if I were being allowed a brief glimpse into the character's private life. It was like experiencing the secret, guilty pleasure of being a fly on the wall. Ben and Anna, their relationship, their hobbies, their work, and their dogs, all became more and more familiar as if I were getting to know them in real life. Overall the story did not have as strong of a climax as I would have anticipated, but each individual story had enough drive to keep me reading. It's the sort of book that makes me wonder how someone would narrate the mundane events of my own life in short story form. I would recommend "Shenanigans!" to others and have already promised to pass if off to a friend.

[Peter Tieryas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this and reviewed the book at the Lit Pub. Here's a little segment:

"With a title like Shenanigans!, I was expecting a lot of mischief in this collection of nine short stories by Joseph Michael Owens. I was surprised, then, to find a touching relationship at the center of the stories, a connection warmly rendered between the book’s main character, Ben and his wife, Anna. Commonplace becomes setup for epiphany, only the epiphany is more like a softly whispered melody, gently inviting readers along. At the same time, the prose bursts with vigor, painting inanimate environments in ecosystems of exuberance and melancholy — there is a joy in the writing that revels in vivid details."

http://thelitpub.com/featured-books/s...

[Carl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was for me a nice read. In the stories with dialogue it was like I was there observing what was happening. In some of the stories it was like a view into someones mind with what is going on. "The Year That Was...and Was Not" being my favorite of the stories. Really got me interested in the characters and the storyline of their lives.

[Noirscope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know the whole adage about not judging a book, but this cover is beautiful; I felt as if I were advertising a title by graffiti while I read the stories during my commute.

The artist I was most reminded of while reading this book is director Ang Lee. The first 8 stories strike me almost as snapshots, or at least gifs, offering hints and perspectives of the character Ben, all which alter our view of him almost imperceptibly until we reach the final and longest story, "The Year That Was...and Was Not," which is a thoughtful and touching and maddening culmination. Is this a collection of stories or a character seen through various lenses? The structure is what reminds me of Ang Lee . . . his film, The Ice Storm specifically, uses this technique of offering cinematic glimpses, pushing characters inches this way and that way until their center cannot hold and they are utterly revealed at the story's temporal climax.

Owens does this himself by revealing the minutiae of his main characters in their details (hair, follicles, nails, pet paranoia, etc) so that even as we don't fully grasp his character, we have a deeper appreciation for his actions and reactions in his penultimate story. I can't help but hope that as Owens develops as a writer that he will populate his stage with more rich characters, as he's done here with Ben.

Recommended, particularly for the vigilant literati. :)

[Ihatethatguy]

I've won this book via goodreads Giveaways and can't wait to read it. I have been on a short story collection and bizarro kick lately. I will update this review once I have received and read this book.