Skirt and the Fiddle

by Tristan Egolf

Charlie Evans is a brilliant violinist who, embittered by a truly horrendous gig, has kissed the fiddle and the entire straight world goodbye. Dreaming of skipping town, he lives in a flophouse among misfits like Armless Rob, Emmy Lou Mattressback, and Tinsel Greetz, an ersatz anarchist and 200-proof charlatan. Mutually antagonistic and joined at the shot glass, Tinsel and Charlie nevertheless make a great team, and when they get a highly illegal, extremely lucrative gig killing rats in the sewers, they are a deadly, unstoppable force. The morning after dissipating their hard-earned money, the boys wake up in a strange (five-star!) hotel room with the worst hangovers of their lives. And when Charlie meets the bewitching Louise, who's offered them shelter - well, then he's in trouble of a whole new sort.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Literature, Contemporary

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Egolf was born in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain. His father, Brad Evans, was a National Review journalist and his mother, Paula, a painter. His younger sister is American actress Gretchen Egolf. His parents divorced in Egolf's childhood and he took the surname of his stepfather, Gary Egolf. In his youth, the family moved from Washington to Kentucky. It was life in Philadelphia, however, that inspired Egolf, along with summer visits to his father's new home in Indiana. He graduated from Hempfield High School in Landisville, Pennsylvania, in 1990. Egolf briefly attended Temple University, in Philadelphia.
In Paris, Egolf struck up an acquaintance with the daughter of Patrick Modiano, a prominent French author and screenwriter (Lacombe Lucien). Modiano helped get his first novel published in France in 1998 by Gallimard after it had been rejected by more than 70 U.S. publishers. Lord of the Barnyard was subsequently published in the UK and the US and received moderately favorable reviews - with a few raves worldwide. His second book, Skirt and the Fiddle, was published in 2002 to even better critical response; his third, Kornwolf, was published after his death. He had also been working on a screenplay for Lord of the Barnyard, left unfinished.

Reviews

[Manu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pos ok

[Galactic Hero · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one plays up the strengths of Barnyard, dazzling descriptions of cartoon mayhem and squalor, while addressing Barnyard's biggest weakness (too darn long). So I think I get the general idea, but still don't really recommend it. You can find the general plot elements: drunken vandalism, shoplifting, bashing rats, falling for a caricature of a lady better treated in more depth in your average episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

[Anna Ward-Gow · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s going to be very difficult for me to summon the interest to read Egolf’s other two novels (which I’ve heard many good things about) after this disappointment.

The humour wasn’t redeeming, (was it even humour?), and none of the characters made an impact. The story was a mess of intentional mess. Zero substance.

Grrr! It’s clearly even put me in a bad mood. I do not recommend.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of his three books this is the weakest. Lord and Kornwolf are much more engaging works with more interesting characters. Here, Charlie and Greetz are barely likable and the enigmatic Louise is more plot device than flesh and blood.

[Mercurymouth · Rating 3 out of 5]

The whole time I read this I could not think of the narrator as anybody but Tristan. Greetz- perhaps his uninhibited punk alter ego... Maybe.

[Michael Flick · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sophomoric.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A frantic second novel, arguably set in Philadelphia, but that could just be my interpretation as that's where I was when I read it. This book was as intense and absurd as Lord of the Barnyard, but significantly darker and perhaps a bit more confusing. Really liked this book and just wish it had been longer.

[Andrew]

Lord of the Barnyard is a total romp of a novel, but it also managed to be tight and focused. My problem with Skirt and the Fiddle is that it isn't tight and focused. It's downright sloppy. The focus is, to me, what gave Egolf his edge when I first read him, and it was what separated him from the low-grade, adolescent rants of Chuck Palahniuk and Tom Robbins. This felt like a step backward. Hmm.

[Spoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as epic as Lord of the Barnyard, and not as focused as Kornwolf, this book is a pounding hangover. It's sloppy, rambunctious, crude, and funny as hell. it's the way your best friends should be. awesomely fun read.

[Massimo Foglio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ritmo discontinuo ma tutto sommato avvincente.
Un finale geniale.
Bisogna abituarsi allo stile di scrittura sicuramente non convenzionale, ma una volta assimilato il libro diviene godibilissimo.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

RIP Tristan Egolf

Thanks for the stories

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind of disappointing, given what Egolf was capable of. I should give it another shot, to be fair, but his first andlast books are far more engaging.

[Franco · Rating 4 out of 5]

It takes place in West Philly. That's all.

[Avi]

I told you, I'm reading his entire output.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

So disappointing after the magic that was "Lord of the Barnyard."

[Mia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm expecting this to be like "Lord of the Barnyard" (which I loved) and it's just... not.

[Nfpendleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lean and economical yet bursting with character. Goddamn hilarious novel by a brilliant author who could have been one of The Greats.

[keatssycamore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Humor is a variable thing. So when I tell you that this guy's writing makes me laugh, YMMV.

[Zachary Bush · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of Egolf's shining moments. Yet, it's worth a re-read.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent tale with some very funny parts, but the build up the calamity has got nothing on Egolf's previous effort, and suffers for it. I'm looking forward to reading Kornwolf, still.

[Amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, that was certainly less charming than expected. Also, why did it feel like it was set in England? There's intentionally not making sense, and then there's this.

[Hani · Rating 1 out of 5]

a waste of time.

[Michael Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down, finished in roughly 24 hours...reminded me of the F*ck Up...very well written, characters made the story!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absurd, intelligent, and darkly comic. Sorry we lost Egolf so young; all 3 of his novels are worthwhile.

[Elaine Reinhard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun Read; Interesting characters with twists and turns.