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King Shit
A Chihuahua-toting Mexican dressed as Santa Claus. A cross-dressing bartender. A drunk, philosophizing “Classy” Fred Blassie look-alike. Two rockabilly-greaser junkies. A bow-legged burlesque dancer and her angry dwarf lover. A man in a smelly lavender suit who rides a mobile jukebox. A quarreling, beer-spitting couple. No, this isn’t The Breakfast Club. This is a not-so-glorious night in the life of Elvis McAllister: factory worker, storyteller, Graceland enthusiast, and overall hornball. Join him and his knife-wielding sidekick, Ralph, as they bar-crawl the “Sick-Sad” avenues and alleyways of questionable hopes and dashed dreams.
- GenresFiction
60 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2014
5 people are currently reading
189 people want to read
About the author
Brian Alan Ellis
35 books132 followersBRIAN ALAN ELLIS runs House of Vlad Press, and is the author of several books, including Sad Laughter (Civil Coping Mechanisms, 2018). His writing has appeared at Juked, Hobart, Monkeybicycle, Fanzine, Electric Literature, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Funhouse, Heavy Feather Review, and Queen Mob’s Tea House, among other places. He lives in Florida, and tweets sad and clever things at both @brianalanellis and @HouseofVlad.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
November 28, 2016
A blink of a read, accompanied by several interesting illustrations, we follow a man named Elvis and his friend Ralph over the course of a night at their local dive bar.
Like the other things of his that I’ve read, Brian Alan Ellis once again elevates these drunken dregs with marionette strings of pure humanness - but the author doesn’t make them suffer and squirm for only your cheap amusement, instead letting these lovable losers just exist for a moment, outside of the shadows. It’s like an episode of Shameless. Poetry from the gutter. Beautiful, in it’s own way.
Like the other things of his that I’ve read, Brian Alan Ellis once again elevates these drunken dregs with marionette strings of pure humanness - but the author doesn’t make them suffer and squirm for only your cheap amusement, instead letting these lovable losers just exist for a moment, outside of the shadows. It’s like an episode of Shameless. Poetry from the gutter. Beautiful, in it’s own way.
October 12, 2014
I'm a shitty person. I've had this book for some time, meaning to review it, and I've completely dropped the ball. I like Brian Ellis' writing. And the crude cartoons added a nice touch. Because of repeated head trauma, my brain forgets all of the nice things that I wanted to say. Mostly I have to just say, with a title like King Shit, and Brian's talent, you have to know that this will be a quick, gritty, entertaining story. Check it out.
September 6, 2014
I grew up in flea markets. I grew up in a campground in New jersey. I grew up at the Seaside boardwalk, a slimy place, where everything was half tilted and bizarre. King Shit reminds me of where I come from. King Shit reminds me of the kind of art I used to be seen out when I was browsing through Captain Video, looking at VHS in cardboard sleeves. Brian Alan Ellis is writing works that are all these things: funny, doomed, water damaged, drunk, high, unfiltered. I like that. I identify with that. Maybe his characters are saying some things that shouldn't be said out in public, and hooray for them. This a work of fiction written outside of a writer's workshop, but instead, maybe written in the basement of a VFW hall, right before the hardcore bands show up. Right before the spiked punks in their leather jackets show up. Right before the night gets weird, violent, skewed. The other good thing about this book, is that it's illustrated in a way that is reminiscent of one of my favorite books, Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions". The drawings in both books are perfect and they give absolutely zero fucks whatsoever. King Shit, is a bar crawl adventure, written as novella. Can be read on the toilet, but your ass will be numb by the time you're finished. Can be read at the DMV waiting to get called, but you'll probably start flipping chairs and screaming when the book is done and they still haven't called you. Can be read at a bar. But that's kind of silly, bars are for other things. I recommend reading this one in jail or at work, can't go wrong there. When a book takes itself this un-seriously, I can't stop doing the happy happy dance.
April 1, 2017
Read 11/26/14
3 Stars - Recommended to those who appreciate Sam Pink and Charles Bukowski and the likes for their scrapin-the-bottom-of-the-barrel outlook on humanity
Pages: 45
Publisher: House of Vlad
Released: June 2014
Disclaimer: Yes, I am quoted on the second page inside this novel. And yes, I am the only blurb on the back cover. No, that super squee-worthy, holy-fucking-awesome fact has had no impact on the honesty of this review. And no, I really don't care if you don't believe me.
King Shit is a super-shortie. No, not the dude himself, though I guess he's not really all that much to look at if we take him at his word. He's a scrawny, pudgy bellied, thin haired guy rumored to have been named for either Elvis "The King" Presley or Elvis "the shy and geeky" Costello. Either way, we get the sense our main man falls extremely short of both namesakes.
In this shorter-than-novella sized illustrated story, we are taken on a night out with Elvis and his right hand man Ralph and are made to bear witness to the oh-so-sad shenanigans that follow. Bar crawling around town, they rub elbows with an obese Mexican Santa, a strange jukebox bike riding fella in a lavender suit, an ex-girlfriend of Elvis's who parades her lady-parts around in front of her current beau (an angry dwarf of a dude), two grease-heads puking it up in the men's room, and a whole lot of nothing to go home to.
Typical of Brian Alan Ellis, we're hanging with the grimy, dingy underbelly of society here. His characters are the kind of slimy, pickled, sleazy bastards that, were they to slide their squishy behinds onto the bar stools next to yours, you'd quickly down the drink you were nursing and find a reason to up and excuse yourself before they attempted to suck you into one of their bad-breathed ballads of woe.
Ellis's straight forward approach to storytelling can be compared to that of Sam Pink and Charles Bukowski. His uncanny ability to humbly dress his characters in yesterday's dirty, beer soaked, rumpled clothing and march them back and forth from place to place like it ain't no big thang speaks directly to the insecurities in each of us. And the fact that this is the norm for these guys, that they think this is what life is and are living it the only way they know how, that's fascinating to us.
I only wish we had been given more time to get to know these guys. I get the sense there is much more to them, more raggedy adventures to be had. That their stories are only just beginning.
3 Stars - Recommended to those who appreciate Sam Pink and Charles Bukowski and the likes for their scrapin-the-bottom-of-the-barrel outlook on humanity
Pages: 45
Publisher: House of Vlad
Released: June 2014
Disclaimer: Yes, I am quoted on the second page inside this novel. And yes, I am the only blurb on the back cover. No, that super squee-worthy, holy-fucking-awesome fact has had no impact on the honesty of this review. And no, I really don't care if you don't believe me.
King Shit is a super-shortie. No, not the dude himself, though I guess he's not really all that much to look at if we take him at his word. He's a scrawny, pudgy bellied, thin haired guy rumored to have been named for either Elvis "The King" Presley or Elvis "the shy and geeky" Costello. Either way, we get the sense our main man falls extremely short of both namesakes.
In this shorter-than-novella sized illustrated story, we are taken on a night out with Elvis and his right hand man Ralph and are made to bear witness to the oh-so-sad shenanigans that follow. Bar crawling around town, they rub elbows with an obese Mexican Santa, a strange jukebox bike riding fella in a lavender suit, an ex-girlfriend of Elvis's who parades her lady-parts around in front of her current beau (an angry dwarf of a dude), two grease-heads puking it up in the men's room, and a whole lot of nothing to go home to.
Typical of Brian Alan Ellis, we're hanging with the grimy, dingy underbelly of society here. His characters are the kind of slimy, pickled, sleazy bastards that, were they to slide their squishy behinds onto the bar stools next to yours, you'd quickly down the drink you were nursing and find a reason to up and excuse yourself before they attempted to suck you into one of their bad-breathed ballads of woe.
Ellis's straight forward approach to storytelling can be compared to that of Sam Pink and Charles Bukowski. His uncanny ability to humbly dress his characters in yesterday's dirty, beer soaked, rumpled clothing and march them back and forth from place to place like it ain't no big thang speaks directly to the insecurities in each of us. And the fact that this is the norm for these guys, that they think this is what life is and are living it the only way they know how, that's fascinating to us.
I only wish we had been given more time to get to know these guys. I get the sense there is much more to them, more raggedy adventures to be had. That their stories are only just beginning.
November 12, 2014
3.5 stars
Really great prose, but not quite enough of it in this slim volume. Loved the illustrations as well, but this easily could've been a five-star affair with more meat on the bones. Looking forward to sinking my teeth into some of BAE's more substantial offerings.
March 18, 2015
(I had to censor the SH word so I can post this on Amazon. Unless they changed their rules. Because I couldn't post C.V. Hunt's Hell's Waiting Room)
EDIT: Just realized I confused Brian Alan Ellis with Brian Allen Carr, the short story collection I'm referring to was Vampire Conditions. Sorry.
Well this was free and it's short. It's is very true for most people that when you download a book for free off Amazon, you're not always going to read it anytime soon. Sometimes never. But this was short once again and the artwork seemed quite amusing. I saw in the description that said something along the lines that it was illustrated, I actually thought this was a short comic. But it wasn't, it was a novelette or a novella. Which is fine, I'm just saying that this isn't a graphic novel, if you're a doofus like me you would interpret that wrong. This is also my first reading of Ellis and I have his short story collection sitting in my Kindle, waiting to be read. Soon.
So basically, the story is about a drunkard whose first name is Elvis. It's called "King S***," because Elvis was considered the king of music and the guy named Elvis is a piece of s***. He's always drunk and basically a nasty person. He spends his time doing nothing and just screwing around. This is pretty much the plot of the story. Some banter here and there, some nasty remarks about others, wandering around drunk, and causing chaos here and there, and getting a well deserved black eye. Some of the stuff in here was surreal and illogical and it all felt like some old cartoon my parents probably grew up watching, an uncensored one.
The drawings are lovable, there is a little drawing that sort of indicates what would happen in the next chapter or illustrates a summary of what happened in the chapter. A small little face or object usually with some ugly gross stuff. King Sh** is a short comedic piece that you can read in one sitting. It's the tale of some of the world's biggest losers. No hero, no anti-hero, just a general failure maybe.
Rating: 3/5
Originally posted here:http://wordsnotesandfiction.blogspot....
EDIT: Just realized I confused Brian Alan Ellis with Brian Allen Carr, the short story collection I'm referring to was Vampire Conditions. Sorry.
Well this was free and it's short. It's is very true for most people that when you download a book for free off Amazon, you're not always going to read it anytime soon. Sometimes never. But this was short once again and the artwork seemed quite amusing. I saw in the description that said something along the lines that it was illustrated, I actually thought this was a short comic. But it wasn't, it was a novelette or a novella. Which is fine, I'm just saying that this isn't a graphic novel, if you're a doofus like me you would interpret that wrong. This is also my first reading of Ellis and I have his short story collection sitting in my Kindle, waiting to be read. Soon.
So basically, the story is about a drunkard whose first name is Elvis. It's called "King S***," because Elvis was considered the king of music and the guy named Elvis is a piece of s***. He's always drunk and basically a nasty person. He spends his time doing nothing and just screwing around. This is pretty much the plot of the story. Some banter here and there, some nasty remarks about others, wandering around drunk, and causing chaos here and there, and getting a well deserved black eye. Some of the stuff in here was surreal and illogical and it all felt like some old cartoon my parents probably grew up watching, an uncensored one.
The drawings are lovable, there is a little drawing that sort of indicates what would happen in the next chapter or illustrates a summary of what happened in the chapter. A small little face or object usually with some ugly gross stuff. King Sh** is a short comedic piece that you can read in one sitting. It's the tale of some of the world's biggest losers. No hero, no anti-hero, just a general failure maybe.
Rating: 3/5
Originally posted here:http://wordsnotesandfiction.blogspot....
October 8, 2015
This book reminded me that , while I don't miss working in a bar, part of me misses watching all the fucked up fuck ups fucking up. This short little book is, for me, a chance to rubberneck as I drive home to a sleeping girlfriend, the WWE Network, and a slightly-above-level-humidifier.
In reading this book and looking over the shoulder of (King Shit) Elvis McAllister and (That Homo) Ralph as they bounce from one mindlessly entertaining waste of time to another, I found myself wanting to party with Brian Alan Ellis and talk about that year or two I spent playing Ace Frehley in a KISS tribute band. He references the things that hit close to home with me, and gives about as much of a goddamn about everything else as I do.
There's a Queens of the Stone Age song called "Quick and to the Pointless." This is it. A nihilistic romp, a misanthropic tangent. Call it whatever. What it is, is a "fuck you." Why? Because fuck you.
In reading this book and looking over the shoulder of (King Shit) Elvis McAllister and (That Homo) Ralph as they bounce from one mindlessly entertaining waste of time to another, I found myself wanting to party with Brian Alan Ellis and talk about that year or two I spent playing Ace Frehley in a KISS tribute band. He references the things that hit close to home with me, and gives about as much of a goddamn about everything else as I do.
There's a Queens of the Stone Age song called "Quick and to the Pointless." This is it. A nihilistic romp, a misanthropic tangent. Call it whatever. What it is, is a "fuck you." Why? Because fuck you.
January 23, 2015
A book truly meant to be read in one sitting, King Shit is an amusing journey through a single evening of tomfoolery and disappointment. You could either go out and do something stupid, or you could read this book and really feel like you went out and did something stupid (in a good way...and you'll save a lot of money). Or you could read this on the subway or in a cab on the way to do something stupid. No matter how you take it in, you'll have loads of fun. You can be King Shit for a day.
April 16, 2021
Beautiful and funny building to a wonderful crescendo.
May 2, 2017
this book was seriously badass.
i would recommend it to anyone who likes stuff.
i would recommend it to anyone who likes stuff.
December 29, 2014
This one takes us along for sort of a pub crawl and it works. The first work of Ellis' I read, I enjoyed this one maybe a little less after reading his 33 Fragments, but still found this one wildly fun and real.
Real is the key word here for me, even with the sometimes surreal characters and situations. It's not those surreal aspects of King Shit that most impressed me but the realness of the narration, the point of view. It's a trait in Ellis' writing I would find more and more of in the second book of his I read.
This is a short and quick read and can be enjoyed by nearly anyone who might also like stories of the down and out and the characters who inhabit those places.
Real is the key word here for me, even with the sometimes surreal characters and situations. It's not those surreal aspects of King Shit that most impressed me but the realness of the narration, the point of view. It's a trait in Ellis' writing I would find more and more of in the second book of his I read.
This is a short and quick read and can be enjoyed by nearly anyone who might also like stories of the down and out and the characters who inhabit those places.
March 31, 2015
A very short novellla that makes you really want to see these characters in a much longer book. King Shit is a decent read though and Ellis excells at telling a tale that doesn't really offer much aside from two people hanging out. What's makes it so enjoyable is the charachters themselves. Ellis' writing style is simple yet interesting.
The thing is that King Shit is the kind of novella that frustrates you, but also makes you a fan because you end up reading something else just to see what what he's come up with. Way too short but well written.
The thing is that King Shit is the kind of novella that frustrates you, but also makes you a fan because you end up reading something else just to see what what he's come up with. Way too short but well written.
September 8, 2014
This struck me as the wildest writing I've seen from Ellis. It's quite a gritty romp. The mix of the prose and occasional illustration reminded me just a bit of some of the Bukowski/Crumb collaborations. These characters may be at rock bottom, but they're as human as the rest of us. Ultimately, the rest of us really aren't that much better off when you really get down to it. Ellis has a real talent for writing about the low yet reminding the reader how most of us can struggle through the day.
February 13, 2015
Pete Rose is King Shit... and now let that sink in.
All humanity is lost. Gone forever with a tranny and a dog....
All humanity is lost. Gone forever with a tranny and a dog....
December 20, 2015
Legit. Might read another. Dunno.
September 14, 2014
A night long journey of drugs and violence going nowhere fast, albeit as humorously as possible.
More - http://bentanzer.blogspot.com/2014/09...
More - http://bentanzer.blogspot.com/2014/09...
November 3, 2017
I just wish it was longer.
<3
<3
July 21, 2018
If this is what all novellas were like then people would read novellas like they were going out of style. I guess the question I have is were novellas ever in style? Just for a brief second in 1992. King Shit and his buddy Ralph have a drunken night on the town and it's got more glorious moments than a Gloria Estefan show. 5/5. 💩💩💩💩💩/👑 👑👑👑👑
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews