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The Dead and the Desperate
Dan Denton's 2nd novel Step into a world of grit and survival in "The Dead & The Desperate" by Dan Denton. This poignant novel takes you on a raw and unflinching journey through the life of its main character, who becomes an accidental father while grappling with untreated mental illness, addiction, and the grueling reality of low-paying factory jobs in the heart of the Midwest. Denton's evocative prose paints a vivid picture of a life under the poverty line, where desperation and resilience coexist in a landscape of broken dreams and shattered hopes.
Amidst the chaos of a struggling existence, the protagonist navigates the shadowy corners of dive bars, forges unlikely friendships with a diverse cast of characters, and grapples with the weight of homelessness, divorce, and the specter of overdose. "The Dead & The Desperate" is a haunting portrayal of the challenges faced by those on the margins, offering a unique and unvarnished perspective on a world often overlooked.
This book has garnered praise from literary voices and readers alike, heralded as a return to authentic proletarian literature. Critics acknowledge Dan Danton's unapologetic honesty and courage in baring his soul through this harrowing yet beautiful narrative. The novel's exploration of life's struggles and the quest for love and connection resonates deeply, making it an unforgettable read that lingers in the mind long after the final page is turned.
If you're seeking a powerful and moving tale that delves into the depths of human experience, "The Dead & The Desperate" is a must-read. It's a story that gives voice to the voiceless, offers solace to the desperate, and reminds us all of the strength to keep going, even when faced with the darkest of circumstances. “The return of authentic proletarian literature.”—Richard Modiano Director Emeritus Beyond Baroque Literary/Arts Center, 2022 winner of the Joe Hill Prize for Labor Poetry "With The Dead and the Desperate , Dan Denton bares his tortured soul for all to see and it's a harrowing yet beautiful sight to behold. A damn fine writer who should be applauded for his honesty and courage. Denton is not afraid to 'go there,' wherever 'there' really is. I'll be thinking about this book for the rest of my life."—Jason Webber, author of Purple How Prince Saved Me “Dan Denton is a writer with a tough exterior and a heart dripping gold and love. His poetry has moved me to tears, so I expected no less from The Dead and The Desperate. Damn, was I right! With prose that digs into your soul, Mr. Denton describes a life lived hard - from a failing, too-quickly-entered-into relationship, to a shitty factory job, to a dirty dive bar filled with other desperate souls, Denton’s protagonist lives his life day-to-day, devolving deeper and deeper into alcoholism and addiction as his relationship and life crumble to pieces. Denton’s writing is so beautiful as it describes the death and desperation surrounding him - one can’t help but keep reading, keep feeling. Finally, we’re granted a glimmer of hope as Dan completes his compassionate, brutally honest tale of life in a mid-America town. I didn’t want this novel to end, and can’t wait to see what his next work brings.”—Nadia Bruce-Rawlings, Author of Scars and Driving in the Rain
Amidst the chaos of a struggling existence, the protagonist navigates the shadowy corners of dive bars, forges unlikely friendships with a diverse cast of characters, and grapples with the weight of homelessness, divorce, and the specter of overdose. "The Dead & The Desperate" is a haunting portrayal of the challenges faced by those on the margins, offering a unique and unvarnished perspective on a world often overlooked.
This book has garnered praise from literary voices and readers alike, heralded as a return to authentic proletarian literature. Critics acknowledge Dan Danton's unapologetic honesty and courage in baring his soul through this harrowing yet beautiful narrative. The novel's exploration of life's struggles and the quest for love and connection resonates deeply, making it an unforgettable read that lingers in the mind long after the final page is turned.
If you're seeking a powerful and moving tale that delves into the depths of human experience, "The Dead & The Desperate" is a must-read. It's a story that gives voice to the voiceless, offers solace to the desperate, and reminds us all of the strength to keep going, even when faced with the darkest of circumstances. “The return of authentic proletarian literature.”—Richard Modiano Director Emeritus Beyond Baroque Literary/Arts Center, 2022 winner of the Joe Hill Prize for Labor Poetry "With The Dead and the Desperate , Dan Denton bares his tortured soul for all to see and it's a harrowing yet beautiful sight to behold. A damn fine writer who should be applauded for his honesty and courage. Denton is not afraid to 'go there,' wherever 'there' really is. I'll be thinking about this book for the rest of my life."—Jason Webber, author of Purple How Prince Saved Me “Dan Denton is a writer with a tough exterior and a heart dripping gold and love. His poetry has moved me to tears, so I expected no less from The Dead and The Desperate. Damn, was I right! With prose that digs into your soul, Mr. Denton describes a life lived hard - from a failing, too-quickly-entered-into relationship, to a shitty factory job, to a dirty dive bar filled with other desperate souls, Denton’s protagonist lives his life day-to-day, devolving deeper and deeper into alcoholism and addiction as his relationship and life crumble to pieces. Denton’s writing is so beautiful as it describes the death and desperation surrounding him - one can’t help but keep reading, keep feeling. Finally, we’re granted a glimmer of hope as Dan completes his compassionate, brutally honest tale of life in a mid-America town. I didn’t want this novel to end, and can’t wait to see what his next work brings.”—Nadia Bruce-Rawlings, Author of Scars and Driving in the Rain
268 pages, Paperback
Published September 3, 2023
6 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 30, 2025
I got this book from the library, I’m grateful the author wrote it and donated it!
So this book has a lot of feelings.
I really wanted the people in the story to all get better and quit making everything worse, to stop hurting each other and themselves. All the people in the story are going through things including the main character, they contain strengths and flaws. the protagonist tells the story from his perspective mainly. It’s an emotional roller coaster. At the ending it leaves you wanting to know what happens next, you want it to end on a better note, with everything going good.
There’s a lot in here I haven’t been exposed to so it’s good for me to see how someone else go through different things, what they think and feel. This book contains mental illness, addiction, family and marriage issues, poverty, anger, sex, and also death. Drug addiction is a major thing and seeing how outside struggles exacerbate it, but then they make everything else worse too is like a double edged sword. I relate to that with my eating disorder it “helps” until it makes everything way worse.
Books bring about empathy for others and I’m grateful for being able to have books.
Thanks to the author for sharing this story!
So this book has a lot of feelings.
I really wanted the people in the story to all get better and quit making everything worse, to stop hurting each other and themselves. All the people in the story are going through things including the main character, they contain strengths and flaws. the protagonist tells the story from his perspective mainly. It’s an emotional roller coaster. At the ending it leaves you wanting to know what happens next, you want it to end on a better note, with everything going good.
There’s a lot in here I haven’t been exposed to so it’s good for me to see how someone else go through different things, what they think and feel. This book contains mental illness, addiction, family and marriage issues, poverty, anger, sex, and also death. Drug addiction is a major thing and seeing how outside struggles exacerbate it, but then they make everything else worse too is like a double edged sword. I relate to that with my eating disorder it “helps” until it makes everything way worse.
Books bring about empathy for others and I’m grateful for being able to have books.
Thanks to the author for sharing this story!
November 8, 2023
The factory life is littered with addiction, broken relationships and the mental illness bred on the poverty line. This book, a minor miracle, has all of that in spades. Dan Denton is a novelist with a poet's heart and here he delivers a dear john letter to that way of living in spare language that lays the devastation out like road maps for the damned. You can practically taste the factory dust, cheap cocaine and rotgut wine which flows across every page. This is a novel you live inside of because Dan lived it and now he's telling you about it. The story burns in the midnight grind and you burn along with it. It's a miracle because Dan survived and rose above his addictions and laid this work of art at our feet. This is high risk literature of the highest degree. Those who are faint of heart and soul need not apply just like the Midwest factories and bar rooms that bore it's sordid tales. The risk Is worth the price of admission, though. Take the plunge and let it whisper its secrets to you.
July 24, 2024
I read the is book in paperback. This is an unsolicited review.
Having read a review online for Dan Denton’s novel, I was so moved by the reviewer’s words I felt compelled to order the book straightaway. Immediately I was drawn in from the first lines and was unable to put the book aside for several days as I plowed through it, just as desperate as the main character. Not only did the protagonist dig deep into my soul, but his desperation and plight became more real to me with each passing line. Denton describes perfectly the difficulty of the everyday blue-collar workman in America. But more than that, a man addicted. Addicted to the type of self-loathing which leads to alcohol and drug addiction.
What I found really interesting was though the main character hates himself, he still has glimmers of hope to keep going and that those he is around genuinely love him, even if he IS a scoundrel. From his partner to his co-workers to his bosses to the guy at the bookstore. He has a charisma which reaches past the addiction. This just furthers the assertion that beauty, whether it be outward or inward, really IS in the eye of the beholder.
I wanted so much for him to win, to persevere, to make it through, to shine, to rise above and beyond…to see in himself what we see in him.
Not only does Denton create this vivid atmosphere, drenched in Reality, but he carefully pens poetry amidst the lines of prose. He slips it in so cleverly that you don’t realize it until you’ve read it and are pages past it. Then it hits you, what beautifully crafted writing this truly is. I find myself coming back and thinking about the story and the verbiage and the desperation. His descriptions between chapters on the reality of the factory life, of marriage and divorce, of depression and pharmaceutical drugs (and more) is a depressing hit on real life. This isn’t made up. It’s real statistics but in easily swallowed nuggets (which want to be retched back up, due to the disgusting predicament that is America today). He tucks these in so well, it’s seamless and fits the overall story perfectly.
Spoiler: I was upset by the ending of the book. I was so entrenched in his life that I wanted him to be the hero at the end. To lift up and out like a lotus from the mud of despair. Instead, he almost ends where the story began. And that made me upset. But then I let it marinate for a bit and I see that Denton couldn’t have ended it any differently. This is real life. Is there hope at the end? Yes, if you want there to be. Is there death in a gutter? Maybe, if that’s what you want. Again, it points to the clever genius in the writer himself. That he can punish his character so hard, that he can punish his reader so hard, and we keep asking for more. The reality is, not every story is so easily wrapped up. Not everyone finds true love or the perfect job or true-blue friends. But still, you put on your work boots and go work in the cancer dust of the factory and you keep your head up and you struggle, because maybe, in the end, maybe it WILL be worth it.
Overall Score: 4.75/5 stars – The story, the characters (all of them), the cover, the length, the writing all get 5/5 stars from me. The only place I felt the book lacked was in the editing and mildly in the formatting of the book. The first half of the book or so had very few spelling or punctuation errors. The second half felt like the editor simply gave up. It’s filled with misspellings, punctuation problems, and a couple times the sentence would split right in the middle and start a new paragraph. It was jarring and mildly annoying. The loss of ¼ star comes from that. If those things are unimportant to you, then you can easily dismiss my rating and upgrade it. Highly recommended reading and I’ll be checking out his other writing more.
Having read a review online for Dan Denton’s novel, I was so moved by the reviewer’s words I felt compelled to order the book straightaway. Immediately I was drawn in from the first lines and was unable to put the book aside for several days as I plowed through it, just as desperate as the main character. Not only did the protagonist dig deep into my soul, but his desperation and plight became more real to me with each passing line. Denton describes perfectly the difficulty of the everyday blue-collar workman in America. But more than that, a man addicted. Addicted to the type of self-loathing which leads to alcohol and drug addiction.
What I found really interesting was though the main character hates himself, he still has glimmers of hope to keep going and that those he is around genuinely love him, even if he IS a scoundrel. From his partner to his co-workers to his bosses to the guy at the bookstore. He has a charisma which reaches past the addiction. This just furthers the assertion that beauty, whether it be outward or inward, really IS in the eye of the beholder.
I wanted so much for him to win, to persevere, to make it through, to shine, to rise above and beyond…to see in himself what we see in him.
Not only does Denton create this vivid atmosphere, drenched in Reality, but he carefully pens poetry amidst the lines of prose. He slips it in so cleverly that you don’t realize it until you’ve read it and are pages past it. Then it hits you, what beautifully crafted writing this truly is. I find myself coming back and thinking about the story and the verbiage and the desperation. His descriptions between chapters on the reality of the factory life, of marriage and divorce, of depression and pharmaceutical drugs (and more) is a depressing hit on real life. This isn’t made up. It’s real statistics but in easily swallowed nuggets (which want to be retched back up, due to the disgusting predicament that is America today). He tucks these in so well, it’s seamless and fits the overall story perfectly.
Spoiler: I was upset by the ending of the book. I was so entrenched in his life that I wanted him to be the hero at the end. To lift up and out like a lotus from the mud of despair. Instead, he almost ends where the story began. And that made me upset. But then I let it marinate for a bit and I see that Denton couldn’t have ended it any differently. This is real life. Is there hope at the end? Yes, if you want there to be. Is there death in a gutter? Maybe, if that’s what you want. Again, it points to the clever genius in the writer himself. That he can punish his character so hard, that he can punish his reader so hard, and we keep asking for more. The reality is, not every story is so easily wrapped up. Not everyone finds true love or the perfect job or true-blue friends. But still, you put on your work boots and go work in the cancer dust of the factory and you keep your head up and you struggle, because maybe, in the end, maybe it WILL be worth it.
Overall Score: 4.75/5 stars – The story, the characters (all of them), the cover, the length, the writing all get 5/5 stars from me. The only place I felt the book lacked was in the editing and mildly in the formatting of the book. The first half of the book or so had very few spelling or punctuation errors. The second half felt like the editor simply gave up. It’s filled with misspellings, punctuation problems, and a couple times the sentence would split right in the middle and start a new paragraph. It was jarring and mildly annoying. The loss of ¼ star comes from that. If those things are unimportant to you, then you can easily dismiss my rating and upgrade it. Highly recommended reading and I’ll be checking out his other writing more.
May 7, 2024
Get it. You won't regret it. Support blue collar writers.
Books like Bukowski's Post Office, Tom Kromer's Waiting for Nothing, Jack Black's You Can't Win, Knut Hamsun's Hunger, Mark SaFranko's God Bless America, Dan Fante's Chump Change, et al, were always the best for me. Dan Denton nails it: the drudgery, the agony. He does not sugar-coat & gives you the good & the bad from his heart and soul. We desperately need truth tellers like this. Now more than ever.
Books like Bukowski's Post Office, Tom Kromer's Waiting for Nothing, Jack Black's You Can't Win, Knut Hamsun's Hunger, Mark SaFranko's God Bless America, Dan Fante's Chump Change, et al, were always the best for me. Dan Denton nails it: the drudgery, the agony. He does not sugar-coat & gives you the good & the bad from his heart and soul. We desperately need truth tellers like this. Now more than ever.
November 8, 2023
finally taking the time to tell yall how much I loved this book!!! Dan Denton is so amazing at putting what it's like working in a factory into perfect words! Once I opened it I couldn't put it down! Definitely grab you one! ;)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews