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Cleave the Sparrow
“Cleave the Sparrow isn’t just a book; it’s an experience.”
Tom Small is a strange loop. Thirty-six years old. Never kissed a girl. Never held someone’s hand. Blitzed on ketamine half the day. Nuclear bomb strapped to his waist, and he’s the president of the United States for some reason.
Could be worse, though. He’s not Jill Stein. And he has, within his grasp, a surefire method for saving the country, the universe—and maybe even you.
You see, Tom knows why you’re confused and unhappy. Why you wake in the night with a lonely, mournful aching in your chest, in your throat. His cure is very simple, and it doesn't cost a thing.
All you have to do is cleave the sparrow…
Tom Small is a strange loop. Thirty-six years old. Never kissed a girl. Never held someone’s hand. Blitzed on ketamine half the day. Nuclear bomb strapped to his waist, and he’s the president of the United States for some reason.
Could be worse, though. He’s not Jill Stein. And he has, within his grasp, a surefire method for saving the country, the universe—and maybe even you.
You see, Tom knows why you’re confused and unhappy. Why you wake in the night with a lonely, mournful aching in your chest, in your throat. His cure is very simple, and it doesn't cost a thing.
All you have to do is cleave the sparrow…
357 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 28, 2025
1006 people are currently reading
673 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Katz
1 book22 followersJonathan Katz has been a professional writer for more than twenty years, having graduated with honors from the University of Virginia in 2004 with a concentration in creative writing. His original screenplay Very Fine People won the top prize for television writing at the Nashville Film Festival in 2019. Cleave the Sparrow is his first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 110 reviews
September 15, 2025
Cleave the Sparrow
by Jonathan Katz
Wow, the whole time I was reading this I wondered how I'd review this. It's brilliant in its chaos, breaks apart the norms of sci-fi, every sacred subject smashed, current politics made into satire, and everything normally avoided is made bare with gusto. I loved it! There was a small slow area in the first third of the book but the rest was great. It's hard to describe this book without giving spoilers.
It was like being on drugs but knowing important information was being given to you. Near the end, some things were clicking into place.
This had to be one of the most bizarre books I've ever read and enjoyed.
This won't be a book for everyone. If you get offended about religion, politics, well, anything, you won't like this. This treats all religion and politics equally.
It's like a book mixing mysticism, politics, time travel, and reading while using drugs. I will definitely read this again. There is plenty of humor in it too.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this unique book.
by Jonathan Katz
Wow, the whole time I was reading this I wondered how I'd review this. It's brilliant in its chaos, breaks apart the norms of sci-fi, every sacred subject smashed, current politics made into satire, and everything normally avoided is made bare with gusto. I loved it! There was a small slow area in the first third of the book but the rest was great. It's hard to describe this book without giving spoilers.
It was like being on drugs but knowing important information was being given to you. Near the end, some things were clicking into place.
This had to be one of the most bizarre books I've ever read and enjoyed.
This won't be a book for everyone. If you get offended about religion, politics, well, anything, you won't like this. This treats all religion and politics equally.
It's like a book mixing mysticism, politics, time travel, and reading while using drugs. I will definitely read this again. There is plenty of humor in it too.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this unique book.
May 28, 2025
“It was a hot girl summer for mutually assured destruction”
Honestly, I can’t quite explain how this made me feel. It was sharp and insane. I was constantly questioning reality, myself, everything. I felt like I was on drugs reading this. A total trip.
This was eerily on the nose in terms of current events in the world. I had many laughs overall!
Amazing read!
-one of those dirty Canucks
Thank you Net Galley for the read
Honestly, I can’t quite explain how this made me feel. It was sharp and insane. I was constantly questioning reality, myself, everything. I felt like I was on drugs reading this. A total trip.
This was eerily on the nose in terms of current events in the world. I had many laughs overall!
Amazing read!
-one of those dirty Canucks
Thank you Net Galley for the read
July 16, 2025
DNF at 38%. A metaphysical firehose that can be conceptually interesting, though quite shallow, yet devoid of any semblance of an entertaining narrative.
June 24, 2025
In a literary landscape saturated with dystopias and techno-thrillers, Cleave the Sparrow carves out a rare space—both deeply philosophical and wickedly funny. Jonathan Katz’s genre-bending debut novel fuses science fiction, political satire, and Taoist mysticism into a single, irreverent narrative that somehow holds together, much like a flaming hovercraft held aloft by sheer audacity.
At the center of the chaos is Wilder Crick, a septuagenarian neuroscientist who builds “the pretzel,” a brain-machine interface that offers a radical rethinking of consciousness and the self. When Crick becomes the unlikely presidential candidate of a fringe political movement, his campaign quickly escalates into a cultural spectacle. After a disastrous debate, Crick stuns the nation by committing suicide live on television—an act meant to prove the illusion of the ego and, incidentally, win his unassuming protégé Tom the presidency. This sets the tone for a novel that is unafraid to ask big questions and blow things up at the same time.
Narratively, the book alternates between the present-day political maelstrom and a stranger, almost mythic journey backward through time. The reader is introduced to a wide cast of characters: Shelly, Crick’s ruthless, psychically damaged campaign manager; Ravi, Crick's bodyguard who's secretly a double agent working for a competing doomsday cult; and Max Merchant, the story’s tech-bro antagonist whose spiritual ambitions mask a disturbing authoritarian streak. And then there’s the Stonefish—a 2,000-year-old Chinese monk who may or may not be real, and who serves as Tom’s cryptic guide through time and space.
What makes Cleave the Sparrow stand out is its tonal tightrope walk. It’s rare for a book to be this intellectually ambitious and this hilarious at the same time. Katz’s writing is sharp and quick, laced with wit that feels both literary and lived-in. One moment we’re unpacking the nondual self with references to the Tao Te Ching; the next, we’re watching a cult hijack a nuclear weapons shipment while arguing about tantric sex practices. The absurdity never feels like a gimmick—it’s intrinsic to the novel’s worldview. If the ego is an illusion and time is an accordion, then of course reality would fray at the edges.
Philosophically, Cleave the Sparrow is rooted in the concept of nonduality. Crick’s campaign, and the book’s title itself, alludes to the classic Zen koan: “If you cleave a sparrow in two, is it still a sparrow?” The question, like the novel, resists literal interpretation. Katz seems more interested in dismantling binaries—life/death, self/other, real/fake—than in resolving them. The result is a book that functions as both narrative and thought experiment. Readers looking for a tidy arc may be frustrated, but those open to a more elliptical, kaleidoscopic experience will find themselves richly rewarded.
It’s also a deeply political novel, though not in the usual sense. The satire is cutting, yes, but it’s also surprisingly humane. The book doesn’t mock its characters for caring about change—it mocks them for how they go about it. This is especially true in the dynamic between Crick and Max Merchant. While both men speak in the lofty register of world-changers, one is earnestly trying to dismantle illusions, while the other is building a techno-theocracy under the guise of liberation. The confrontation of their world views crystallizes the book’s core conflict: not good vs. evil, but delusion vs. awakening.
Structurally, Cleave the Sparrow is daring, sometimes to the point of disorientation. The narrative skips through time, perspective, and tone with giddy abandon. One chapter might be pure farce, the next a melancholic meditation on death and impermanence. While this can occasionally make the pacing feel uneven, it also mimics the very consciousness the book seeks to explore—fluid, fragmented, nonlinear.
Emotionally, the book hits harder than one might expect. For all its meta-commentary and metafictional pyrotechnics, Cleave the Sparrow is ultimately about letting go—of ego, of identity, of the need to be right. It’s about what happens when a person, or a society, stops clinging to the illusion of permanence and starts embracing the flow. This comes through most clearly in Crick himself, who begins as a cantankerous genius and ends as something far less individual and far more transcendent.
That said, the book is not for everyone. Readers looking for a traditional sci-fi romp or a straightforward political thriller may find themselves lost in the layers. The philosophical underpinnings, while integral to the plot, require a level of engagement that not all will enjoy. Other readers have taken issue—perhaps fairly—with the glib treatment of extreme religious ideologies (radical Islam, in particular), as well as the book's numerous allusions to sexual violence. Katz seems almost to revel in courting these controversies, though it should be said that he (unlike many others wading into these waters) is quite careful to avoid any graphic depictions. For those willing to go along for the ride, even when it veers into the absurd, the obscene, or the sublime, Cleave the Sparrow offers one of the most unique reading experiences in recent memory.
In the end, Katz has achieved something rare: a novel that is simultaneously heady and hilarious, profound and profane. Cleave the Sparrow cleaves more than just sparrows—it cleaves through assumptions, through genre, and through the illusion of self, leaving behind a strange and beautiful puzzle of a book.
My final rating is 9/10 – A brilliant, bizarre, and bravely original debut that will leave your mind spinning and your ego thoroughly dismantled.
At the center of the chaos is Wilder Crick, a septuagenarian neuroscientist who builds “the pretzel,” a brain-machine interface that offers a radical rethinking of consciousness and the self. When Crick becomes the unlikely presidential candidate of a fringe political movement, his campaign quickly escalates into a cultural spectacle. After a disastrous debate, Crick stuns the nation by committing suicide live on television—an act meant to prove the illusion of the ego and, incidentally, win his unassuming protégé Tom the presidency. This sets the tone for a novel that is unafraid to ask big questions and blow things up at the same time.
Narratively, the book alternates between the present-day political maelstrom and a stranger, almost mythic journey backward through time. The reader is introduced to a wide cast of characters: Shelly, Crick’s ruthless, psychically damaged campaign manager; Ravi, Crick's bodyguard who's secretly a double agent working for a competing doomsday cult; and Max Merchant, the story’s tech-bro antagonist whose spiritual ambitions mask a disturbing authoritarian streak. And then there’s the Stonefish—a 2,000-year-old Chinese monk who may or may not be real, and who serves as Tom’s cryptic guide through time and space.
What makes Cleave the Sparrow stand out is its tonal tightrope walk. It’s rare for a book to be this intellectually ambitious and this hilarious at the same time. Katz’s writing is sharp and quick, laced with wit that feels both literary and lived-in. One moment we’re unpacking the nondual self with references to the Tao Te Ching; the next, we’re watching a cult hijack a nuclear weapons shipment while arguing about tantric sex practices. The absurdity never feels like a gimmick—it’s intrinsic to the novel’s worldview. If the ego is an illusion and time is an accordion, then of course reality would fray at the edges.
Philosophically, Cleave the Sparrow is rooted in the concept of nonduality. Crick’s campaign, and the book’s title itself, alludes to the classic Zen koan: “If you cleave a sparrow in two, is it still a sparrow?” The question, like the novel, resists literal interpretation. Katz seems more interested in dismantling binaries—life/death, self/other, real/fake—than in resolving them. The result is a book that functions as both narrative and thought experiment. Readers looking for a tidy arc may be frustrated, but those open to a more elliptical, kaleidoscopic experience will find themselves richly rewarded.
It’s also a deeply political novel, though not in the usual sense. The satire is cutting, yes, but it’s also surprisingly humane. The book doesn’t mock its characters for caring about change—it mocks them for how they go about it. This is especially true in the dynamic between Crick and Max Merchant. While both men speak in the lofty register of world-changers, one is earnestly trying to dismantle illusions, while the other is building a techno-theocracy under the guise of liberation. The confrontation of their world views crystallizes the book’s core conflict: not good vs. evil, but delusion vs. awakening.
Structurally, Cleave the Sparrow is daring, sometimes to the point of disorientation. The narrative skips through time, perspective, and tone with giddy abandon. One chapter might be pure farce, the next a melancholic meditation on death and impermanence. While this can occasionally make the pacing feel uneven, it also mimics the very consciousness the book seeks to explore—fluid, fragmented, nonlinear.
Emotionally, the book hits harder than one might expect. For all its meta-commentary and metafictional pyrotechnics, Cleave the Sparrow is ultimately about letting go—of ego, of identity, of the need to be right. It’s about what happens when a person, or a society, stops clinging to the illusion of permanence and starts embracing the flow. This comes through most clearly in Crick himself, who begins as a cantankerous genius and ends as something far less individual and far more transcendent.
That said, the book is not for everyone. Readers looking for a traditional sci-fi romp or a straightforward political thriller may find themselves lost in the layers. The philosophical underpinnings, while integral to the plot, require a level of engagement that not all will enjoy. Other readers have taken issue—perhaps fairly—with the glib treatment of extreme religious ideologies (radical Islam, in particular), as well as the book's numerous allusions to sexual violence. Katz seems almost to revel in courting these controversies, though it should be said that he (unlike many others wading into these waters) is quite careful to avoid any graphic depictions. For those willing to go along for the ride, even when it veers into the absurd, the obscene, or the sublime, Cleave the Sparrow offers one of the most unique reading experiences in recent memory.
In the end, Katz has achieved something rare: a novel that is simultaneously heady and hilarious, profound and profane. Cleave the Sparrow cleaves more than just sparrows—it cleaves through assumptions, through genre, and through the illusion of self, leaving behind a strange and beautiful puzzle of a book.
My final rating is 9/10 – A brilliant, bizarre, and bravely original debut that will leave your mind spinning and your ego thoroughly dismantled.
May 1, 2025
Okay, this book will not be for everyone, I'm sure. But this is exactly the kind of book that will have a cult following. First of all, it's hugely entertaining and laugh-out-loud funny in a lot of places. The narrator (or author, I guess) is merciless in his satirical attacks, and almost no one is spared. So if you're sensitive about politics or religion, I can understand why you might want to sit this one out.
If you're open-minded, though, you're in for a special treat. Because this book is sort of incredible in how it all fits together. Every absurd detour, every philosophical tangent, every grotesque or hilarious or devastating scene has a function. And it’s a book that operates on multiple levels simultaneously: A political satire, a sci-fi epic, and an existential meditation. It’s Catch-22 meets Dr. Strangelove meets Snow Crash meets The Tao Te Ching. Not just a great sci-fi novel in my opinion, but a great novel, period.
Be warned, though, there are some dark and controversial subjects covered here. Personally, I didn't mind this because it deepens the story. But a content warning could have been useful for some.
If you're open-minded, though, you're in for a special treat. Because this book is sort of incredible in how it all fits together. Every absurd detour, every philosophical tangent, every grotesque or hilarious or devastating scene has a function. And it’s a book that operates on multiple levels simultaneously: A political satire, a sci-fi epic, and an existential meditation. It’s Catch-22 meets Dr. Strangelove meets Snow Crash meets The Tao Te Ching. Not just a great sci-fi novel in my opinion, but a great novel, period.
Be warned, though, there are some dark and controversial subjects covered here. Personally, I didn't mind this because it deepens the story. But a content warning could have been useful for some.
June 22, 2025
A regurgitation of philosophy 101 as told by a freshman. The freshman believes himself to be the best, greatest, most intelligent being in the universe.
A thin overhyped book. The emperor wears no clothing and all perceive him and applaud.
A thin overhyped book. The emperor wears no clothing and all perceive him and applaud.
July 22, 2025
This was one of the best books I’ve read in a really long time. Satirically similar to Chuck Palahniuk. I’d imagine if Palahniuk decided to indulge in hallucinogens and wax poetic on philosophy, he might write something similar to this.
July 6, 2025
What an absolute riot! This book is sharp, biting, hilarious, and, beneath all the absurdity, profoundly thought-provoking. The author manages to fuse dark humor, political satire, and deep philosophical inquiry in a way that feels completely fresh and original. The dialogue is razor-sharp, the pacing is engaging (except for maybe a slight lull in the middle), and the humor lands. This isn’t amateurish or half-baked. It reads like a novel written by someone who knows exactly what they’re doing. I loved this book and will read it again!
June 22, 2025
Astounding
Add in one part science, one part theology, one part philosophy and one part mysticism, blend thoroughly, and pour out a mind reeling torrent of thought about our actual existence.
Add in one part science, one part theology, one part philosophy and one part mysticism, blend thoroughly, and pour out a mind reeling torrent of thought about our actual existence.
September 26, 2025
I would dearly love to review this book, described on the cover as "the most unique book I've read in years" except I have no earthly clue what it was about.
I can't decide if it was a satirical look at religion, theoretical physics, philosophy or none of those things (or maybe all of them). There were some "clever" character names - Ubermensch, Wilder Frances Crick etc but quite what part they played is anyone's guess.
I read a few reviews after I finished which mentioned laughing and brilliance. I am clearly too simple a soul for this book because apart from the odd few pages I didn't understand what the message was, what was going on or what happened in the end: Time travel? Nuclear war? Presidential vote? Alien life? No idea.
I did like the illustrations. I don't know if Jonathan Katz did them too because I cannot find an acknowledgement.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Holofernes for the advance review copy.
I can't decide if it was a satirical look at religion, theoretical physics, philosophy or none of those things (or maybe all of them). There were some "clever" character names - Ubermensch, Wilder Frances Crick etc but quite what part they played is anyone's guess.
I read a few reviews after I finished which mentioned laughing and brilliance. I am clearly too simple a soul for this book because apart from the odd few pages I didn't understand what the message was, what was going on or what happened in the end: Time travel? Nuclear war? Presidential vote? Alien life? No idea.
I did like the illustrations. I don't know if Jonathan Katz did them too because I cannot find an acknowledgement.
Thankyou to Netgalley and Holofernes for the advance review copy.
August 9, 2025
What did I just read
This is the craziest balls to the wall book I’ve read in recent memory. And it’s great. Would recommend it, and after you finish it, go for a walk.
This is the craziest balls to the wall book I’ve read in recent memory. And it’s great. Would recommend it, and after you finish it, go for a walk.
July 17, 2025
I really liked this and I truly can’t tell you what it was about. It was a really smart author telling you a batshit crazy story with a lot of impressive background info based in real scientific theories and delivered in a really engaging way. The plot itself was turned backwards on itself and flipped inside out so many times that it was hard to keep track of what was going on and I’m not even sure there was a real point or that that even mattered. The whole thing verged on dreamscape but never quite became one which is fantastic because I can’t stand dreamscapes. Also, there is nothing I love more than feeling intelligent by association and this book accomplishes that in spades. I read it in two sittings but had to wait four weeks between readings because it was just so much to process. It was glorious.
At the end of the day, I’d call this more of an absurdist exploration of fringe-y philosophical ideas and “what if”isms rather than a full on coherent story. It felt like it started w a plot but it devolved pretty quickly (and violently). There was little character development because there didn’t need to be. Every single character at any given point was a tool in the demonstration of the concept the author happened to be talking about at that moment. And the plot was chock full of absurdities and absurdisms with the most unreliable narrator. In fact, I’d argue that all of the characters were unreliable in every way which now that I am thinking about it is really fucking trippy.
Anyway, I commented on a Reddit post that this book reminded me of Tom Robbins but that this author isn’t as smug. And I stand by that. I think it’s because Tom Robbins has this cool without trying vibe but also is still very much trying because he knows that he actually is cool and has to maintain that rep. This author on the other hand seems to have a lot of wildly interesting information on very fun topics if you’re a science and sci fi nerd. He is also a font of historical knowledge of different branches of science and lesser known philosophical concepts and he is having fun sharing this information with us in the nuttiest way possible. I loved it and I didn’t feel anything like the simmering-beneath-the-surface ego that you get with a Tom Robbins book but it was still just as jawdroppingly outlandish. I dug it.
At the end of the day, I’d call this more of an absurdist exploration of fringe-y philosophical ideas and “what if”isms rather than a full on coherent story. It felt like it started w a plot but it devolved pretty quickly (and violently). There was little character development because there didn’t need to be. Every single character at any given point was a tool in the demonstration of the concept the author happened to be talking about at that moment. And the plot was chock full of absurdities and absurdisms with the most unreliable narrator. In fact, I’d argue that all of the characters were unreliable in every way which now that I am thinking about it is really fucking trippy.
Anyway, I commented on a Reddit post that this book reminded me of Tom Robbins but that this author isn’t as smug. And I stand by that. I think it’s because Tom Robbins has this cool without trying vibe but also is still very much trying because he knows that he actually is cool and has to maintain that rep. This author on the other hand seems to have a lot of wildly interesting information on very fun topics if you’re a science and sci fi nerd. He is also a font of historical knowledge of different branches of science and lesser known philosophical concepts and he is having fun sharing this information with us in the nuttiest way possible. I loved it and I didn’t feel anything like the simmering-beneath-the-surface ego that you get with a Tom Robbins book but it was still just as jawdroppingly outlandish. I dug it.
August 20, 2025
All the cringe reviews will say that the author thinks he’s smarter than he is and that it’s all Philo 101 blah blah blah. People think they’re going to have their Intellectual Card taken away if they don’t feel enlightened after reading something. Na but if you didn’t like it, I get it. I can’t say I’m convinced this isn’t AI, but I FEEL that it’s not. If it was written by AI, then I’m an idiot and cooked.
More on the AI, I could see this because as someone who had ChatGPT write Jordan Peterson fanfiction when I first opened the app, this has the hallmarks of such writing. There were also formatting choices like the lack of punctuation and how dialogue was written that made me side-eye.
All that being said, I haven’t gone out of my way to read a comedy in a long time, especially satire. If the book was written by AI and some guy just had to prompt GPT to get a little bit of rent money, then that makes it more hilarious.
3/5 probably would be more if I was more certain this didn’t come from a clanker.
More on the AI, I could see this because as someone who had ChatGPT write Jordan Peterson fanfiction when I first opened the app, this has the hallmarks of such writing. There were also formatting choices like the lack of punctuation and how dialogue was written that made me side-eye.
All that being said, I haven’t gone out of my way to read a comedy in a long time, especially satire. If the book was written by AI and some guy just had to prompt GPT to get a little bit of rent money, then that makes it more hilarious.
3/5 probably would be more if I was more certain this didn’t come from a clanker.
September 1, 2025
Hmmm, this book is pretty hard to describe, it's as if a philosopher, a quantum physicist, and Douglas Adams met in a bar... and I think that this may be the best book that I have ever read.
I say I think, because I'm not sure that I fully understood it. If I did - which is highly unlikely - then it is certainly the greatest book I've ever read (ever written?). If I got it wrong though, then it's just a mildly amusing romp with some rad sciencey philosophical masturbation (not my proudest nut). I'm optimistic though, but just manage your expectations.
Either way, as confused as I was at times, I fucking loved it.
I say I think, because I'm not sure that I fully understood it. If I did - which is highly unlikely - then it is certainly the greatest book I've ever read (ever written?). If I got it wrong though, then it's just a mildly amusing romp with some rad sciencey philosophical masturbation (not my proudest nut). I'm optimistic though, but just manage your expectations.
Either way, as confused as I was at times, I fucking loved it.
June 9, 2025
Cleave the Sparrow by Jonathan Katz is a thought provoking read that packs a punch. I gave this a 3.5.
The blend of political and religious satire is clever and incisive, and I appreciated its unique approach.
The humour shines through in many places, making for an engaging and entertaining experience.
While it may not be to everyone's taste, I found it a compelling and resonant read.
Thank you Netgalley and Holofernes Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book.
The blend of political and religious satire is clever and incisive, and I appreciated its unique approach.
The humour shines through in many places, making for an engaging and entertaining experience.
While it may not be to everyone's taste, I found it a compelling and resonant read.
Thank you Netgalley and Holofernes Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book.
June 19, 2025
I liked this book a lot! And that's all I'm going to say because 'spell check' is trying to drive me insane.
May 28, 2025
If Robert Anton Wilson came back, saw the world as it is today, said "Nah, f**k this," and proceeded to write a book about it, he might come up with something like Cleave The Sparrow.
April 20, 2025
I've finished this a few days ago, and I've been milling over what to say about it, and particularly how to rate it. Regardless, thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
It's really on the nose with its political commentary, and I found some of that commentary pretty objectionable, particularly surrounding the Muslim characters. I also found the frequent threat of rape surrounding the female lead to be a bit much and in poor taste. Shelly in general felt like a category 5 "men writing women" situation. If it was meant a parody, it did not work as one for me, particularly considering how few female characters there were in general. A far lesser sin, but Tom (or possibly Katz) seems to misunderstand how cosmic inflation works. To my knowledge, it started after the Big Bang, not before it. If I'm wrong about that, sorry Tom or Katz, my bad.
I wasn't bored though, it must be said, which is quite impressive, considering that Tom takes many detours to talk philosophy. That philosophy was interesting to read about; I hadn't heard of much of it before (aside from the broad strokes of the rationalist stuff and some of the quantum mechanics). I'm still not entirely sure how much of it was real, but it didn't bother me. I was a little worried that this book was going to be wildly rationalist, but it wasn't, so win! It was remarkably easier than I thought it would be to follow, considering the time travel and quantum fuckery that happens. The only part that I don't understand at all is the final paragraphs or so, which, considering how this book reads, is pretty good. It is also funny in many places where it tries to be funny, so well done there.
I don't regret the time I spent with this book, but I also find its treatment of Islam to be wildly irresponsible at best, and Shelly's character to be tired and cliche. It'll be a three-star from me, but I am curious to see if Katz writes anything in the future.
It's really on the nose with its political commentary, and I found some of that commentary pretty objectionable, particularly surrounding the Muslim characters. I also found the frequent threat of rape surrounding the female lead to be a bit much and in poor taste. Shelly in general felt like a category 5 "men writing women" situation. If it was meant a parody, it did not work as one for me, particularly considering how few female characters there were in general. A far lesser sin, but Tom (or possibly Katz) seems to misunderstand how cosmic inflation works. To my knowledge, it started after the Big Bang, not before it. If I'm wrong about that, sorry Tom or Katz, my bad.
I wasn't bored though, it must be said, which is quite impressive, considering that Tom takes many detours to talk philosophy. That philosophy was interesting to read about; I hadn't heard of much of it before (aside from the broad strokes of the rationalist stuff and some of the quantum mechanics). I'm still not entirely sure how much of it was real, but it didn't bother me. I was a little worried that this book was going to be wildly rationalist, but it wasn't, so win! It was remarkably easier than I thought it would be to follow, considering the time travel and quantum fuckery that happens. The only part that I don't understand at all is the final paragraphs or so, which, considering how this book reads, is pretty good. It is also funny in many places where it tries to be funny, so well done there.
I don't regret the time I spent with this book, but I also find its treatment of Islam to be wildly irresponsible at best, and Shelly's character to be tired and cliche. It'll be a three-star from me, but I am curious to see if Katz writes anything in the future.
July 15, 2025
Cleave the Sparrow, is a wild, mind-bending ride that blends absurdist satire with profound philosophical insights, delivering a narrative that’s as hilarious as it is thought-provoking. Set in a chaotic mid-21st-century world, the story follows Tom, a small-town reporter turned unlikely presidential successor, after his mentor, the eccentric Wilder Crick, commits a shocking public suicide during a televised debate. What unfolds is a surreal, darkly comedic exploration of reality, perception, and power, wrapped in a narrative.
The humor in Cleave the Sparrow is razor-sharp and unrelenting, striking a perfect balance between biting satire and outright absurdity. Katz skewers everything from political posturing to media manipulation with gleeful irreverence. The dialogue is quick and clever, dripping with cynicism, as characters navigate a world where nothing is quite as it seems. Katz’s comedic timing is impeccable, making even the most outlandish plot twists feel both inevitable and delightfully ridiculous.
This novel is a treasure trove of philosophical insights, weaving complex ideas into its chaotic narrative without ever feeling preachy. Katz explores the fluidity of reality and the limitations of human perception. The character of Wilder Crick, a neuroscientist-turned-revolutionary, serves as a mouthpiece for these ideas, challenging the notion of a fixed reality with his cryptic “pretzel” brain-machine and a posthumous quest to uncover the “true, hidden nature of reality.” The enigmatic Stonefish, a 2,000-year-old monk, adds a Taoist twist, guiding Tom through musings on nonduality and the illusion of self with lines like, “There’s only two ways to live this life—open or closed.” These philosophical threads are seamlessly integrated, making the book as intellectually stimulating as it is entertaining. The idea that our perception might be a flawed interface, akin to a survival-driven filter, lingers long after the final page.
Cleave the Sparrow is a triumph of satirical sci-fi, blending gut-busting humor with soul-punching questions about what it means to exist. It’s a book for those who love their fiction bold, brainy, and just a little unhinged. I’m already craving a re-read to catch every clever easter egg and koan-like gem Katz has tucked into this chaotic masterpiece.
The humor in Cleave the Sparrow is razor-sharp and unrelenting, striking a perfect balance between biting satire and outright absurdity. Katz skewers everything from political posturing to media manipulation with gleeful irreverence. The dialogue is quick and clever, dripping with cynicism, as characters navigate a world where nothing is quite as it seems. Katz’s comedic timing is impeccable, making even the most outlandish plot twists feel both inevitable and delightfully ridiculous.
This novel is a treasure trove of philosophical insights, weaving complex ideas into its chaotic narrative without ever feeling preachy. Katz explores the fluidity of reality and the limitations of human perception. The character of Wilder Crick, a neuroscientist-turned-revolutionary, serves as a mouthpiece for these ideas, challenging the notion of a fixed reality with his cryptic “pretzel” brain-machine and a posthumous quest to uncover the “true, hidden nature of reality.” The enigmatic Stonefish, a 2,000-year-old monk, adds a Taoist twist, guiding Tom through musings on nonduality and the illusion of self with lines like, “There’s only two ways to live this life—open or closed.” These philosophical threads are seamlessly integrated, making the book as intellectually stimulating as it is entertaining. The idea that our perception might be a flawed interface, akin to a survival-driven filter, lingers long after the final page.
Cleave the Sparrow is a triumph of satirical sci-fi, blending gut-busting humor with soul-punching questions about what it means to exist. It’s a book for those who love their fiction bold, brainy, and just a little unhinged. I’m already craving a re-read to catch every clever easter egg and koan-like gem Katz has tucked into this chaotic masterpiece.
July 30, 2025
Bought it in a whim, finished it in one day!
I still can't remember how I found this book but once I got started I couldn't put it down. It's been awhile since I finished a book in one sitting but this story was equal parts crazy and compelling.
Best of all, despite how nonsensical it was at times, it still made sense to me! It's like a psychedelic trip through the quantum realm while stopping to rest at religious pit stops along the way.
I lost track of how many times I saw something and said, "Wait! I actually know what that is!" and it filled me with joy to know that others share the same interests, along with my weird sense of humor.
So glad I stumbled across this book. Alan Watts would certainly approve of this story!
I still can't remember how I found this book but once I got started I couldn't put it down. It's been awhile since I finished a book in one sitting but this story was equal parts crazy and compelling.
Best of all, despite how nonsensical it was at times, it still made sense to me! It's like a psychedelic trip through the quantum realm while stopping to rest at religious pit stops along the way.
I lost track of how many times I saw something and said, "Wait! I actually know what that is!" and it filled me with joy to know that others share the same interests, along with my weird sense of humor.
So glad I stumbled across this book. Alan Watts would certainly approve of this story!
July 13, 2025
Extraordinary! Nearly perfect. Beyond description! Quantum physics meets economic theory, modern spirituality meets apocalyptic sci fi, absurdity, logical reasoning both inductive and deductive, meets Philip K. Dick, Kurt Vonnegut, Neal Stephenson, Thomas Pynchon and William Gibson.
This funny, fascinating, thought provoking novel will have you laughing out loud and thinking deeply about reality and the meaning of life.
Mr. Katz is 79 years old and has lived a wonderful life. He has also dealt with multiple sclerosis relatively late in life. He is an exceptional man and this, his first novel, is an exceptional book.
It calls to be read and reread.
This funny, fascinating, thought provoking novel will have you laughing out loud and thinking deeply about reality and the meaning of life.
Mr. Katz is 79 years old and has lived a wonderful life. He has also dealt with multiple sclerosis relatively late in life. He is an exceptional man and this, his first novel, is an exceptional book.
It calls to be read and reread.
August 15, 2025
Ready for something completely different? “Cleave the Sparrow” is an irreverent satirical romp which weaves substantial insights from philosophy together with concepts from quantum physics. It’s also genuinely funny. This is a work of pure fiction, but Katz does a wonderful job of weaving in many non-fiction elements and letting you know which parts you may want to continue pondering for real-world application. Finding out the metaphorical meaning of “Cleve the Sparrow” is worth the price of admission all on its own, and there’s much more to explore in this fascinating narrative.
I ripped through this book because I enjoyed it so much, but I’ll continue circling back to it because Katz weaves together some of the most thought-provoking ideas in human history into conceptual tapestry that’s all his own.
I ripped through this book because I enjoyed it so much, but I’ll continue circling back to it because Katz weaves together some of the most thought-provoking ideas in human history into conceptual tapestry that’s all his own.
August 18, 2025
what just happened
I don’t think I’m ignorant, or stupid by any stretch of the imagination-in fact, by any known measurement, I’m intelligent. Smart.
But I’m not afraid to say that whole SECTIONS of this book went way over my head.
But it doesn’t matter.
You know why?
Because every good book has certain elements: a killer introduction hook, a well thought out story, fleshed out characters…there are other things like an immediate conflict, showing not telling, you get the picture. This book had it all.
And most importantly, it’s FUN, and the author had fun telling his tale.
Definitely recommend. But come in with and open mind!
I don’t think I’m ignorant, or stupid by any stretch of the imagination-in fact, by any known measurement, I’m intelligent. Smart.
But I’m not afraid to say that whole SECTIONS of this book went way over my head.
But it doesn’t matter.
You know why?
Because every good book has certain elements: a killer introduction hook, a well thought out story, fleshed out characters…there are other things like an immediate conflict, showing not telling, you get the picture. This book had it all.
And most importantly, it’s FUN, and the author had fun telling his tale.
Definitely recommend. But come in with and open mind!
August 14, 2025
Thank you to Holofernes for allowing me to read the arc of this.
This book is a bizarre fever dream of philosophical concepts I don’t feel smart enough to understand.
It was easy enough to read with accessible languages and definitions, darkly humorous and full of philosophy insights I have never come across.
It gave me a little bit of an existential crisis, but was enjoyable enough. If you like weird, philosophical sci-fi, check it out, but I feel like for most people (like me admittedly) it might go over your head a little.
This book is a bizarre fever dream of philosophical concepts I don’t feel smart enough to understand.
It was easy enough to read with accessible languages and definitions, darkly humorous and full of philosophy insights I have never come across.
It gave me a little bit of an existential crisis, but was enjoyable enough. If you like weird, philosophical sci-fi, check it out, but I feel like for most people (like me admittedly) it might go over your head a little.
September 17, 2025
Very different, very unique, very bizarre, It has a little bit of everything- science fiction, comedy, philosophy, history, religion, physics, astrophysics, metaphysics, existentialism and even suspense and horror. Nothing in the book makes any sense but when you put it all together- it works.
I would agree with some of the other reviews, this book is not for everyone.But if you are willing to take a major step away from reality and take a magical mystery tour.. Well, I enjoyed it at least. It felt a bit like Dr. Strangelove.
I would agree with some of the other reviews, this book is not for everyone.But if you are willing to take a major step away from reality and take a magical mystery tour.. Well, I enjoyed it at least. It felt a bit like Dr. Strangelove.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2025
Interesting alternate history (but in the future, or is it?) with philosophy of time, space, and consciousness woven throughout. Sharp, satirical, with thinly veiled references to real politicians, and actual references to real philosophers, physicists, and philosophy. Read this not too long after reading Antkind by Charlie Kaufman, and there are some similarities between the stories and the themes. A light but interesting read.
July 12, 2025
What a bizarre, wild ride. I liked it.
I do not think I have ever read anything like this before. It is at times Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and then flits to some sort of Philosophy teaching. It made me chuckle and laugh and, at times, say,"I see what you did there." I wonder what the Stonefish would have to say about the book. :-)
I do not think I have ever read anything like this before. It is at times Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and then flits to some sort of Philosophy teaching. It made me chuckle and laugh and, at times, say,"I see what you did there." I wonder what the Stonefish would have to say about the book. :-)
August 14, 2025
It's a trip.
Interesting book. The cover art grabbed me first and then the reviews sold me for sure. I'd describe this as a "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" on acid. Don't know if I'd read it again but it was worth it once.
Interesting book. The cover art grabbed me first and then the reviews sold me for sure. I'd describe this as a "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" on acid. Don't know if I'd read it again but it was worth it once.
July 20, 2025
🤯 in the best possible way
I LOVED this book… brilliant use of language, philosophy and veiled fiction. I just finished and want to start reading it all over again.
Please sir, may I have another?
I LOVED this book… brilliant use of language, philosophy and veiled fiction. I just finished and want to start reading it all over again.
Please sir, may I have another?
August 15, 2025
Strange. Existential. Funny. Smart.
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