What do you think?
Rate this book
The Face Hole
"The Face Hole is at once a testimony and a dossier, a metaphysical mystery of discarded anatomies, a cavernous and patient document of Ballardian estrangement. Here Shipley's writing enters a kind of austerity — narrative stripped down to an elemental level, filled with the detritus of everyday life, flecks of flesh and nuanced glances, stray motives and oblique intentions, the most familiar of objects quietly vanishing — all of which induces in the reader a dread as vast as it is subtle. A welcome edition to Shipley's ongoing experiments with the limits of language and bodies." - Eugene Thacker, author of In the Dust of This Planet
296 pages, Paperback
First published October 26, 2014
219 people want to read
About the author
Gary J. Shipley
47 books179 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Gary J. Shipley is a writer and philosopher based in the UK. He has published work in various philosophy journals and literary journals.
Gary J. Shipley is a writer and philosopher based in the UK. He has published work in various philosophy journals and literary journals.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 12, 2023
A deep pit of roiling grief, the craggy edge of which Gary J. Shipley will lead you to—his fingers clamped to your weak, erratic pulse—and ever so gently place his other hand on the back of your head, forcing it down so you can witness the shredded scenes of his mutilated tapestry race by.
You can see what it is to be alive when you remove its vacillations, see life as it really is once its fixtures and fittings are gone. You can feel yourself rotting.
November 10, 2015
I know that it is early to make such statements, but this may end up being my favorite book for this year. What stands out is the way it is written. The prose was simply awe-inspiring and made the book a moving experience that I was immersed in from beginning to end.
A couple loses an infant son. From there, they become more distant as time goes by. We follow both of them as they plunge into madness, with a focus on the man. Some very odd things occur for both of them, to put it very simply. I do not really want to give much else away. There are some seriously creepy undertones here that are so strong, and again, the prose makes them even more so.
Near the end there is a "Letter to the Editor" from the man, which explains his feelings on love, tying much of the book together in a profound way. This was a high point both in the book, and for me personally in a lifetime of reading. This one will haunt me for a while and I will definitely be re-reading it at some point. If you enjoy bold, fearless writing in what you read, check this one out.
A couple loses an infant son. From there, they become more distant as time goes by. We follow both of them as they plunge into madness, with a focus on the man. Some very odd things occur for both of them, to put it very simply. I do not really want to give much else away. There are some seriously creepy undertones here that are so strong, and again, the prose makes them even more so.
Near the end there is a "Letter to the Editor" from the man, which explains his feelings on love, tying much of the book together in a profound way. This was a high point both in the book, and for me personally in a lifetime of reading. This one will haunt me for a while and I will definitely be re-reading it at some point. If you enjoy bold, fearless writing in what you read, check this one out.
November 30, 2016
Further proof that Shipley is the best living writer and the one true heir to the throne of Ballard.
May 30, 2018
I wish I was articulate enough to properly describe this one, but as the book seems to suggest that language cannot accurately reflect our experiences living in a constantly mutating world, maybe this fragmentary review is apt. Anyway, here are some impressions from reading it:
It is as if language is broken, leaving us only with the shards of images, segmented descriptions of the modern world shutting down and returning to its base components. These segments usually involve the human body and its uncomfortable, often painful, place in physical reality: it is constantly at odds with its surroundings, at one moment tugging away from them, only to become consumed by them in the next. On top of this there are minds, conscious when they might not wish to be, attempting to clarify and catalogue the sensations of existence, and failing to do so. Identity is questioned constantly, and perception is always breaking down. The sentences are often abstract, frequently grotesque and visceral, hurled toward the reader with force; the only way to know which will stick into you is to read. Many will bounce off you, some will miss you completely, but these are just as important as the ones that do resonate: as the world is essentially inexplicable these impenetrable phrases have their place, obscure pools of dissonance at our feet reminding us of everything that it is impossible to know. But somehow from the maelstrom a plot still emerges: it is in no way typical, but it is there, because no matter how absurd and inhospitable something may be we still seek patterns and points of human reference, sometimes forcing them into places they have no business being .
It was an experience to read The Face Hole, and I can’t say that about too many books lately.
It is as if language is broken, leaving us only with the shards of images, segmented descriptions of the modern world shutting down and returning to its base components. These segments usually involve the human body and its uncomfortable, often painful, place in physical reality: it is constantly at odds with its surroundings, at one moment tugging away from them, only to become consumed by them in the next. On top of this there are minds, conscious when they might not wish to be, attempting to clarify and catalogue the sensations of existence, and failing to do so. Identity is questioned constantly, and perception is always breaking down. The sentences are often abstract, frequently grotesque and visceral, hurled toward the reader with force; the only way to know which will stick into you is to read. Many will bounce off you, some will miss you completely, but these are just as important as the ones that do resonate: as the world is essentially inexplicable these impenetrable phrases have their place, obscure pools of dissonance at our feet reminding us of everything that it is impossible to know. But somehow from the maelstrom a plot still emerges: it is in no way typical, but it is there, because no matter how absurd and inhospitable something may be we still seek patterns and points of human reference, sometimes forcing them into places they have no business being .
It was an experience to read The Face Hole, and I can’t say that about too many books lately.
March 11, 2022
Gruesome, grief induced insanity and familial collapse
June 7, 2021
Shipley is conjuring nightmares straight to paper.
December 29, 2021
Shaping up to be a new favorite author. Will be looking for other books by Shipley.
July 20, 2023
I don't know how to review this other than to say I liked it and his writing sucks me in, But a lot of the time I get lost in it. I find myself devouring his words and then being left wondering what I just read and having to go back and reread
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews