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Sketch Of A Last Day
Will Varley's stunning literary debut follows the last few hours in the life of a young man before he is exterminated by the government. Set in the not-so-distant future, Varley's explosive and sharply observational narrative paints a world of political and spiritual meltdown, where the global economies have collapsed and apathy reigns king. Eruptive, poignant and at times very darkly comic, Sketch Of A Last Day suceeds both as a scathing critique of our times as well as a delicate and heartbreaking story of doomed love in a lost generation.
66 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 18, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 10, 2017
Amazing
Will Varley started writing when he was a child, and since then has developed a beautiful way to write that catches you and makes you want to feel everything the character feels. This book explains what it might be like to live in a time where the government exterminates people due to overpopulation. Love is a very strong point in this book and is explained too well to be understood completely. The feeling of the inevitability of death is common to the characters and makes their decisions reflect towards that by having them taking risks and noticing the failing world that they live in, while also explaining the joy in living.
Will Varley started writing when he was a child, and since then has developed a beautiful way to write that catches you and makes you want to feel everything the character feels. This book explains what it might be like to live in a time where the government exterminates people due to overpopulation. Love is a very strong point in this book and is explained too well to be understood completely. The feeling of the inevitability of death is common to the characters and makes their decisions reflect towards that by having them taking risks and noticing the failing world that they live in, while also explaining the joy in living.
May 22, 2025
love Varley's songs, loved this less. some incredibly evocative writing - the ending is especially brilliant, making the books I've read this year 3/3 for good endings. some of the descriptions especially early on rubbed me the wrong way though. plus some of those descriptions were definitely inappropriate. still, makes me want to write more which has gotta count for something!
March 18, 2018
A gripping, atmospheric tale with a final chapter twist I really didn't see coming. Would have benefitted from a decent proofreader though!
November 6, 2015
A fucking beautiful wonderment of relatable, horrifying truth. I love this book, and every idea it forces the reader to feel. Not just understand, but genuinely experience and sincerely feel. Every metaphor, every analogous connection sends chills and slight feelings of inadequacy (to a writer). This musician/artist has a way with words and sounds that I can't help but admire. Do yourself a favor and get into it already.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews