Witch Piss

by Sam Pink

I noticed it was beginning to get dark. And for a couple seconds, it was scary—like that meant the world was breaking, or expired, or bruised, or something worse. It was really scary for a couple seconds but then I calmed down. Up above, the moonlit clouds looked rippled, like the ribcage of some giant thing digesting me.

And I wondered if the direction I was going went down into the digestive system or up out of it. Wondered what difference it made. There was a bug hovering over a small pool of ice cream on the sidewalk. Like a firefly, but it wasn’t a firefly. And I could’ve stepped on it and killed it. But I didn’t. Be thankful, little bug. For in my world, you are just a little bug.

Genres: Fiction, Bizarro Fiction, Horror, Novella, Dark, Novels, Literature

112 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2014

About the author

Sam Pink is the author of The No Hellos Diet, Hurt Others, I Am Going to Clone Myself Then Kill the Clone and Eat It, Frowns Need Friends Too, and the cult hit Person. His writing has been published widely in print and on the internet, and also in other languages. He lives in Chicago, where he plays in the band Depressed Woman.

Reviews

[Ben Loory · Rating 5 out of 5]

i feel like this is some kind of transitional work maybe. the usual sam pink blueprint is you take a narrator and walk him around the very real streets of chicago and have him interact with various semi-insane characters and then you cut across that reality with the narrator's incredibly funny and poetic thoughts and fantasies (which are also semi-insane). this time around, the narrator is almost entirely effaced. so what you have are basically portraits of different semi-insane people on the streets of chicago. sam pink has a musician's ear for dialog and a real acceptance of insanity, like it's not a joke to him, it's not "weird," it's not beyond comprehension-- it's just part of what it means to be human. it's not even an issue: everyone's insane. which is a real treat because usually books bug me with their relentless rationality and their need to explain "irrational" behavior and take "rational" behavior as somehow obvious and natural. so this is like, finally, someone sees how it is! anyway, it's not as funny as his last book, Rontel, which was one of the funniest books i've ever read, but it feels more precise, more directed. and of course, as usual, every sentence is perfect. i feel like sam pink's moving towards something big. not sure what it will be, but i will read it.

[Jeremy Maddux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Throughout every Sam Pink work, the one consistency I've noticed is that he serves himself up as a conduit to whatever weirdness happens in his vicinity. He serves as the Sancho to every Don Quixote tilting at windmills in the streets. That much hasn't changed with this new work.

But something remarkable has happened with this book! Sam Pink expanded what he usually reserves for a short vignette into the focus of the novella itself.

The narrator befriends a group of slummers who live and hang out in alleys one day. The one readers will surely fall in love with goes by the moniker Spider Man, because he constantly daydreams about superheroes and the sounds their superpowers make. Fuckattahere. Ranked a close second to Spider Man's charm would be Janet, Spider Man's wheelchair bound, kleptomaniacal girlfriend. Also, Troy, Face and a guy who's perhaps a little too eager to sell video game controllers to these guys. I've never been so riveted reading about one man's love for his pet hamster.

Sam Pink has made a career out of celebrating the nuances and minutia of stragglers, grifters, bums, junkies, winos and his bewilderment at the working class paradigm. He frequently immerses himself in zen moments where the tics, vices and philosophies of the people he meets trump and overwhelm his own. It's as if he's searching for something with as much meaning as stealing a tube of lipstick means to Janet.

My only concern is that, for all the praise I've lavished on Pink's step outside his comfort zone (if indeed it was comfortable), is that sometimes, the narrator's voice got lost in the musings of Spider Man, Janet, Face and the others. I found myself at one point wondering where the narrator went, because none of those smooth transitions between a goofy statement by one character and his reaching the same consensus occurred for a few pages. Still, the last chapter, Sunbeam For a Sword, saved the day.

[Danger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a difficult time getting into this one. The protagonist spends 95% of the book hanging out with the neighborhood homeless and listening, rather passively, to their conversation. In itself, this would be fine, but the way the homeless characters talked – although I’m sure phonetically and idiosyncratically accurate – was just way too annoying and difficult to follow. And to boot, most of the time they weren’t saying anything particularly interesting or profound or worth listening to anyway.

This book is stylistically similar to my favorite Pink book, Person, but didn’t provide as many openings for me to connect with the world/characters. Not to say there’s NOTHING here, because there is. Moments of profundity sneak up from time to time, and genuinely engaging bits of conversation do happen, it just wasn’t enough for me. If you’re gonna read Sam Pink (and I implore that you do) this would probably not be the best place to start.

[Hakim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witch Piss is about a guy who hangs out with homeless people in Chicago.
The book made me feel uneasy because, for a moment, I felt the urge to hug random people and enjoy the simplest things in life... which is completely unlike me.

You might call Sam Pink a minimalist, but the reality, raw emotion and sense of humor that ooze from his books (this one in particular) are worthy of the lavishest praises a modern author could be showered upon. Bravo, sir!

[Pedro Proença · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sam Pink's newest book is classic Sam Pink: A minimalist view into people's lives. On this one, we have a nameless protagonist wandering about town, meeting people from the gutters, from the alleys, and bonding with them just for the bonding itself. The character's voice is bleak, as it is his world. The characters, the superhero obsessed Spider-Man, his wheelchair-bound girlfriend with a penchant for theft Janet, etc. They are all real people, and it is Pink's greatest skill to make us love them, make us root for them, make us bet our own emotional well-being on their sucess. Sam Pink is the true weaver of feelings of the 21st Century.

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unhappy, but not angry, young man quickly endears himself with a circle of homeless people and crackheads who seem happy to see him as long as he buys beer. He seems content though to hang out in alleyways and abandoned lots, listening to stories and meeting new acquaintances. We're never told what exactly drove this man to becoming this type of tourist, where he gets his money, what soured him to the fringes of society, but yeah it's better this way.

[Nobody · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was all like swoosh-shoosh and I just let it run. For real though, reminded me of a lot of people I've met on the streets. Favorite I've read other than Person so far (I've read Rontel, The No-Hellos Diet, and them).

Opening Hurt Others now.

[Lakisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished reading Witch Piss by Sam Pink. I don't know what happened but I feel I stepped into the lives of a group of misfits and the girl with the lisp is so incredibly adorable... 3 / 5 stars. #myReadingRecord

[Edward · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Up above, the moonlit clouds looked rippled, like the ribcage of some giant thing digesting me.
And I wondered if the direction I was going went down into the digestive system or up out of it.
Wondered what difference it made.
There was a bug hovering over a small pool of ice cream on the sidewalk.
Like a firefly, but it wasn’t a firefly.
And I could’ve stepped on it and killed it.
But I didn’t.”

I got halfway through this book then my 50 year old manager from my previous job started messaging me on Snapchat at midnight saying things like “swap pics?” I told him he was being inappropriate and he unadded me. Then I video chatted Mac Demarco and went to sleep.

The next morning I took some vitamins my grandma gave me and finished this book while drinking coffee and root beer and eating a microwaveable meal and I felt a little sick but kind of in a good way. Dammit Sam everything you write is blessed and cursed.

[Samuel Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sam Pink is only getting better. Here in Witch Piss he nails the voice and speaking style of his characters. He is rising out of himself with this book, moving beyond the confines of his own self to become an explorer and chronicler of the hidden folds of American life. His observations are devoid of judgement or wonder. Totally fresh and idiosyncratic.

[Jonathan Lee B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witch Piss is being outside in the rain and instead of thinking of it as you being stuck outside in the rain, thinking of it as the rain being stuck outside with you.

[Dan Plonsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a derelict cousin to Daniel Pinkwater's Chicago-based books, in particular, the Snarkout Boys and Lizard Music in which kids (who are a little too smart to accept the consensus reality rigidly adhered to by family) wander through a surreal city after dark. (Coincidence about Pink / Pinkwater names?) All these books are great for the optimistic portraits painted of borderline characters. Pink just pulls fewer punches, doesn't require as much magic in his realism. For instance, one of the main characters, Janet, is wheelchair-bound, wearing shit-stained pants, smelling of s'mores. Many 40's are consumed ("Witch Piss" = dregs of a 40.) People sit around on overturned buckets, luggage, and gravel/glass mixture. Both authors go for a poetic, repetitive language, and characters with sort of transcendental outlooks; popular culture is revered for the openings it provides to the astute or thoroughly deluded devotee for escape. These are strangely optimistic books.

[Daniel Eastman]

‘I leaned on a dumpster, my elbows and forearms on the lid.
Another beautiful day.
Glad to be alive and have friends.’

Sam Pink has this uncanny ability to find peace in situations where most of us would crumble. Drinking with homeless people under Chicago train tracks? Sam shows us the best of an ugly situation and makes it seem pretty without betraying these characters’ humanity. Actually, I’ve come to believe he’s never passed judgment on a single human being. It’s what makes his slice of life novels feel so lifelike.

For the uninitiated: don’t have this be your first Sam Pink. Start with Rontel or The Garbage Times/White Ibis. Then maybe give 99 Poems a shot. After you’ve knocked out some of the accessible stuff, then you’re ready to head to the alleyway with Spider-Man and the boys.

[SofiaTorn · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was OK, but a lot of rambling imo. Absolutely love the cover though.

[Vincent Konrad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't grab me like white ibis

[Robin Burton · Rating 2 out of 5]

The protagonist spent so much time listening to the boring ramblings of homeless people and the way in which their vernacular and slang was written made for an equally arduous and annoying read.

[Andrew Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now, with the exception of Frowns Need Friends Too, I have read all of Pink's work. Sam's newest book, Witch Piss, might just be my favorite. It is definitely my favorite of his novellas and it kicks my previous favorite, Person, in the ass. Granted, his short story collection I'm Going to Clone Myself and Then Kill the Clone and Eat It still might be my all time favorite.

Anyhoo, Sam knocks it out of the park with this one. The narrator decides to make friends with Chicago's homeless community, and in doing so, Sam paints a vividly real picture of society's down and out as well as life in Chicago. He shows readers how everyone is human, even those we pass on the street everyday praying they don't beg from us. Sam gives life to a community that has long been dead in the mind of society.

Besides that, it will teach you what Witch Piss is.

This book felt more real to me than any of Sam's previous works. The characters felt more developed and the book really is sweet and touching despite its cover and title.

If you haven't read Pink before, start here. If you have, read this one, too. Either way, enjoy the ride!

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witch Piss was wonderful to me in a different way. I've fed off the negativity of Person and I Am Going To Clone Myself like ramen after stumbling home drunk. Voraciously. (Don't judge.)

While there's still plenty of cynical honesty in Witch Piss, I came out of reading it with this weird, warmish feeling. I've heard it called "hope" before (or something like that).

It made me love things.

The humanizing of the dehumanized homeless population in this book is challenging and heartbreaking and wonderful. The characters, people I've seen in my daily life and (bluntly) ignored, become my friends, and the things that would make me walk faster down the sidewalk normally become eccentricities I wouldn't want to live without.

As a person that clings to a city as home the way the narrator seems to cling to Chicago, I was shown that you can't love a city and everyone in it without loving a city and everyone in it.

This book told me what beautiful can be.

Pick up Witch Piss if you're a fan of Sam Pink's work, if you're new to Sam Pink's work, or if you're a human being living on the planet Earth.

[Dottie B · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was a heartwarming romp through the rough streets of Chicago. My father lived there after he abandoned us and that city gets MY-T COLD some winters. Brrrrr! And the Black slang is so realistic. I like that it gives a real representation to underclassed minorities. True Love Knows No Bounds. Homeless people are people too. Like anyone, I forget that sometimes. They just don't have homes is all. Anyway, I was all ready to recommend this to my friend but then I logged on here and saw the author photo! What type of hairstyle is that? I would call it "Dirty" LOL. Also I am extremely concerned now that I see his other book titles. I have half a mind to go through the chicago phone book and give a little ringading to any ladies named Pink! If that was my son---- shooooowee. Poor boy. I have a lot of Jewish friends and the Halocaust is nothing to joke about. Okay, can't wait to hear what you all have to say about that! I know I hit a lot of hot issues. But that's what America's about. Go Buckeyes! And Go America!

[Jason McCracken · Rating 2 out of 5]

I deal with homeless people at work occasionally and my tolerance for their shit ran out years ago so I don't know why I chose to read this rambling, boring book about a loser who spends his time hanging out with the homeless.

Also, even my most mundane homeless weirdo experiences are much funnier and more interesting than this.

[Bob Comparda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam Pinks books are always a delight. Witch Piss is about the narrator hanging out and drinking 40s with a group of homeless people. Not much happens and there is a lot of rambling but the conversations feel so real. You can tell Sam Pink spends a lot of time in, and has a deep appreciation and understanding of his city and the people in it.

[Muumuu House · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://muumuuhouse.com/sp.fiction.1.1...

[Zadignose]

When I need a quick pick-me-up, I can always count on Sam. I hope, if I am ever homeless, he'll buy me a beer some day.

[Joel Donald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drinking with homeless people

Well written account of a dude who hates himself and has no friends so he starts buying booze and smokes for homeless people so they will hang out with him. Spoiler alert there's no witch. I felt like there was something successfully communicated by the despair and/or lack of these that these people and scenes convey. I like the rambling nature and how the book never goes anywhere or has any action. It allows you to draw your own conclusions which makes for a satisfying non preachy read. Has the feel of a classic, but the very end seemed a little forced like he didn't how to end it. Short lively read.

[Mike Andrelczyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pink hangs out and drinks 40s with the homeless people of Chicago. He takes a guy named Spider-Man and makes him the hero of his own comic - which is both funny and tragic. Here are the lives that are often ignored. Pink knows that the things that most people prefer to look away from are always worth a closer look. It’s a human book. A caring book. A generous book. It’s a kind of a book that makes you want to buy a burrito for the hungry, a 40 for the thirsty, a slushie and a cigarette for a ghost. Witch Piss is a celebration of life as the train rumbles overhead and drops buring oil on yr skull. Gah be kidding me bro.

[Ville Verkkapuro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book felt truly original. A depiction of the lives of homeless people and their dirty antics, from the streets of Chicago. Pink writes really well in this book, the accents and dialogue are top-notch. This was dirty and entertaining and wild, just like Pink always is. Somehow this felt a bit tamer though, compared to his other works. Don't get me wrong: it's still crazy. Felt like a Larry Clark film in a way that it had no moral, nobody learned anything, kind of dangerous in a way.
Having visited Chicago the setting added an extra layer of deliciousness. Lot of familiar neighborhoods from Damen to Boystown.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Among the homeless and down and outs in Chicago, the narrator, maybe better off (we don't find out) is friends with all of them, fetching beer, chatting to them, learning their legends and leanings. Seems to envy them (they've got friends). Fucking weird of course, booze and drugs blur up everything. There are adult diapers and mental illness but mainly shooting the breeze. Here's a bit:

A pit bull rushed up to the gate of the chainlink fence, barking at us.
It made sideways eye contact with me, going, 'oorv, oorv.'
Part of me wanted to grab it by the head and kiss it right on the lips and let it eat my face off.
The other part of me wanted the exact same thing.

[Craig Partain · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know what I expected from a book titled WITCH PISS, but what I certainly didn't expect was a compassionate and humanizing look into Chicago's homeless population.

There's not much plot to speak of; this is more a slice-of-life book about a guy wandering the streets of Chicago and interacting and making friends with the various homeless people he comes into contact with.

Without plot, a story like this succeeds or fails on the strength of its characters, and this is where WITCH PISS soars. Its characters are fully realized with unique voices, wit, and senses of humor.

[Downward · Rating 4 out of 5]

witch piss is an ethnographic novel about chicago's homeless population, whom sam pink never condescends to or martyrs in his depictions of them; they're real humans portrayed through their own dialogue, spoken dialectally. the narrator here is almost completely absent from the story. we know nothing about him except for the occasional abstract and poetic thought or the unsourced self hatred that drives him toward a destruction that we don't witness, but that he wants. sam pink is great. I miss lazy fascist press.

[Steffi · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was a series of vignettes that couldve been through some omni present narrator but instead we had our dude who befriended all these poor dirty warm broken funny people. But through our dude a presence and closeness to the characters was formed. A magic. Sam pink’s hold on dialogue is unparalleled but also his quick and short sentences catching a gesture or the weather is what arrests us too. Witch piss is a journey through the everyday, the people who have the least, to get from wanting to kill yourself to something more important than happiness.