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Year of the Buffalo
Ernie and his brother, Scott, have never seen eye-to-eye—literally or figuratively. Scott’s a mountain of a man; Ernie’s a meek computer analyst with a shambles of a marriage, who never, ever answers the phone when his brother calls.
That all changes when Scott is introduced as the face of Go West!, a video game featuring his old wrestling persona, Mr. Bison. Now among the nouveau riche, Scott invites Ernie to come live with him and his pregnant wife, Holly, a teacher and aspiring diarist, on their new farm—complete with a living, breathing buffalo, Billy.
When the video-game producers call on Scott to help sell Go West!, Holly orchestrates an American road trip that sends the brothers eastward and into the less-traveled depths of their hearts and memories. What ensues is an episodic tale that examines themes of grief, sibling rivalry, ambition, and the repercussions of toxic masculinity as it follows the Isaacson brothers’ fumbling attempts to reestablish their childhood relationship—or what they wish that relationship had been.
In perfect tune with the complexities of modern communication and with a wry sense of humor, Aaron Burch’s epic debut novel, Year of the Buffalo, explores our stories—the ones we tell ourselves, the ones we tell each other, and the ones we might never tell at all.
That all changes when Scott is introduced as the face of Go West!, a video game featuring his old wrestling persona, Mr. Bison. Now among the nouveau riche, Scott invites Ernie to come live with him and his pregnant wife, Holly, a teacher and aspiring diarist, on their new farm—complete with a living, breathing buffalo, Billy.
When the video-game producers call on Scott to help sell Go West!, Holly orchestrates an American road trip that sends the brothers eastward and into the less-traveled depths of their hearts and memories. What ensues is an episodic tale that examines themes of grief, sibling rivalry, ambition, and the repercussions of toxic masculinity as it follows the Isaacson brothers’ fumbling attempts to reestablish their childhood relationship—or what they wish that relationship had been.
In perfect tune with the complexities of modern communication and with a wry sense of humor, Aaron Burch’s epic debut novel, Year of the Buffalo, explores our stories—the ones we tell ourselves, the ones we tell each other, and the ones we might never tell at all.
- GenresNovels
Paperback
Published November 8, 2022
1 person is currently reading
206 people want to read
About the author
Aaron Burch
29 books153 followersAARON BURCH grew up in Tacoma, WA. He is the author of the memoir/literary analysis Stephen King’s The Body; a short story collection, Backswing; and a novella, How to Predict the Weather. He is the founding editor of Hobart, which he edited from 2001–2022, and more recently he founded and edits HAD and WAS (Words & Sports). He lives in Ann Arbor, MI.
His first novel, YEAR OF THE BUFFALO, was released in November 2022 from American Buffalo Books, which is available here:
https://americanbuffalobooks.org/
His first novel, YEAR OF THE BUFFALO, was released in November 2022 from American Buffalo Books, which is available here:
https://americanbuffalobooks.org/
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 10, 2022
A beautiful, big-hearted novel full of cheap motels, domestic beer, Super Nintendo references, movie quotes, song lyrics, and all the stuff that makes life worth writing about. Burch has such a sharp eye and ear for those weird, passing thoughts that we think are unique to us but it turns out we all share. Like all great literature, this book has the power to make you feel a little less alone in the world.
January 12, 2023
Year of the Buffalo by Aaron Burch is a humorous novel of literary fiction about the lingering familial dysfunction between two brothers. The book description from the publisher describes it best: “Ernie and his brother, Scott, have never seen eye-to-eye—literally or figuratively. Scott’s a mountain of a man; Ernie’s a meek computer analyst with a shambles of a marriage, who never, ever answers the phone when his brother calls. That all changes when Scott is introduced as the face of Go West!, a video game featuring his old wrestling persona, Mr. Bison. Now among the nouveau riche, Scott invites Ernie to come live with him and his pregnant wife, Holly, a teacher and aspiring diarist, on their new farm—complete with a living, breathing buffalo, Billy. When the video-game producers call on Scott to help sell Go West!, Holly orchestrates an American road trip that sends the brothers eastward and into the less-traveled depths of their hearts and memories. What ensues is an episodic tale that examines themes of grief, sibling rivalry, ambition, and the repercussions of toxic masculinity as it follows the Isaacson brothers’ fumbling attempts to reestablish their childhood relationship—or what they wish that relationship had been.”
On the surface, this novel is about the coming together of two brothers who couldn’t be more different and the ensuing road trip that will hopefully bring them back together. But what this novel is really about is what happens in the margins, and the thoughts behind the silent yet awkward moments and the sighs of discontent between two siblings who never really “got” each other. When brothers Ernie and Scott are reunited after Scott is named the face for a forthcoming video game featuring his past alter-ego as a pro wrestler, an idea is hatched that they’ll spend time together on a road trip. The trip is a painful reminder of their familial dysfunction—both past and present.
Much of the novel deep-dives into digressions and asides, where memories and feelings are parsed. Interiority is the prime narrative force and used to maximum effect. For example, a trip to the hardware store turns into an examination of Ernie’s place in the world, his place in his new living situation with his brother and his wife on their farm, what creatures live in the wooded area on the way to the store, questions of his own handiness, etc. The difference between the two brothers becomes very apparent in this marginalia and is the crux to deciding if these very different people can ever find common ground. Do you think a computer analyst and a former pro wrestler can find common ground? Seems practically impossible. These two brothers have had their whole lives up to this point to find it. Can they do it?
Year of the Buffalo is a worthy literary exploration, both humorous and crushing in equal measures.
I really enjoyed this novel and I highly recommend it. I would give this book 5 stars.
On the surface, this novel is about the coming together of two brothers who couldn’t be more different and the ensuing road trip that will hopefully bring them back together. But what this novel is really about is what happens in the margins, and the thoughts behind the silent yet awkward moments and the sighs of discontent between two siblings who never really “got” each other. When brothers Ernie and Scott are reunited after Scott is named the face for a forthcoming video game featuring his past alter-ego as a pro wrestler, an idea is hatched that they’ll spend time together on a road trip. The trip is a painful reminder of their familial dysfunction—both past and present.
Much of the novel deep-dives into digressions and asides, where memories and feelings are parsed. Interiority is the prime narrative force and used to maximum effect. For example, a trip to the hardware store turns into an examination of Ernie’s place in the world, his place in his new living situation with his brother and his wife on their farm, what creatures live in the wooded area on the way to the store, questions of his own handiness, etc. The difference between the two brothers becomes very apparent in this marginalia and is the crux to deciding if these very different people can ever find common ground. Do you think a computer analyst and a former pro wrestler can find common ground? Seems practically impossible. These two brothers have had their whole lives up to this point to find it. Can they do it?
Year of the Buffalo is a worthy literary exploration, both humorous and crushing in equal measures.
I really enjoyed this novel and I highly recommend it. I would give this book 5 stars.
November 13, 2022
I love this book. I love how different it is from anything else I’ve read. The dialogue feels real and interesting. The characters feel real. In general, I love a girly girl book from an Allie Rowbottom or a Mona Awad and I love a manly man book from a writer like Aaron Burch. Is that oversimplifying things? Yeah, but it’s true. This book falls so squarely in the second category that I had to say it.
Although I’m interested theoretically in wrestling, I knew nothing about it. Certainly I knew nothing about vintage video games. Honestly hadn’t given much thought to Buffalo. Now though, I can’t separate those three things in my mind. The world of this book feels so authentic and so compellingly aesthetic at the same time. Unlike so many books that feel like commercial products, this book feels truly like art. That said, I hope the commerce it clearly deserves rightly follows! Definitely would recommend for readers who like Bud Smith, Chuck Palahniuk, and Ben Lerner.
Although I’m interested theoretically in wrestling, I knew nothing about it. Certainly I knew nothing about vintage video games. Honestly hadn’t given much thought to Buffalo. Now though, I can’t separate those three things in my mind. The world of this book feels so authentic and so compellingly aesthetic at the same time. Unlike so many books that feel like commercial products, this book feels truly like art. That said, I hope the commerce it clearly deserves rightly follows! Definitely would recommend for readers who like Bud Smith, Chuck Palahniuk, and Ben Lerner.
October 30, 2022
A road trip novel: following two brothers as they head to Michigan for a conference launch of a video game based on one brother's Pro Wrestling persona, Mr. Bison. I knew I was in as soon as I read that description. Road trips are fantastic story premises, I love complicated siblings, and the weirdness of the Midwest has no end. And this road trip story, Aaron Burch's new novel, did not disappoint. The character development kept me interested, and always a little off balance. In the book, one of the brothers notices that every time he thinks he understands the other, he learns something new that complicates the picture. That's exactly how I felt reading. Throughout, there was this sense I had that there were depths I wasn't understanding yet, a sense of vague dread. And the sense of relief when the pieces came together was well worth the patience.
December 30, 2022
Although I don't number pro wrestling or video games among my enthusiasms, and my knowledge of 1980s movies is embarrassingly limited, I still very much enjoyed this book, which takes inspiration from all of these things and uses them as narrative fuel. Ernie and Scott, 30-something (or maybe late 20-something?) brothers, who are estranged for no reason obvious to either of them and then brought together by the opportunity a financial windfall creates, go on a road trip together and end up exploring the terrain of guilt and regret in the past of each. The book is also a kind of exploration of masculinity and the choices it seems to define for boys as they become young men and eventually adults. I found it both melancholy and hopeful, by turns and also simultaneously. A quiet book that nevertheless has moments of sudden drama.
January 12, 2023
On its face, this a novel about brothers, but really, it's about the way life pulls us away from the people we love and the sometimes backwards methods with which we seek reconciliation.
It's a been a few months since I finished reading YEAR OF THE BUFFALO and what sticks with me are the images this book paints. The sparsely populated hotel pool baking in the midwestern sun. An adolescent bison ambling indoors. A yapping dog running off into the woods at night. They feel as real to me as if I had lived them. This ability is one of Burch's super powers as a writer and it appears on every single page.
The main and supporting characters are lovingly written and the narrative delivers catharsis on par with a book twice its length. It feels both intimate and familiar; a work of wisdom and heart. Something tells me this won't be the last novel I read from Aaron Burch.
It's a been a few months since I finished reading YEAR OF THE BUFFALO and what sticks with me are the images this book paints. The sparsely populated hotel pool baking in the midwestern sun. An adolescent bison ambling indoors. A yapping dog running off into the woods at night. They feel as real to me as if I had lived them. This ability is one of Burch's super powers as a writer and it appears on every single page.
The main and supporting characters are lovingly written and the narrative delivers catharsis on par with a book twice its length. It feels both intimate and familiar; a work of wisdom and heart. Something tells me this won't be the last novel I read from Aaron Burch.
November 26, 2022
No surprise after reading Aaron Burch's shorter form work that he hits it out of the park with his debut novel. A complex adult sibling relationship, a road trip, a former wrestler on the precipice of becoming a father, a literal pet buffalo, a Mallrats reference...I hoovered it in one sitting. I especially loved the insight/interiority we get into the characters, while still being gifted with surprises from them along the way.
June 13, 2024
A story about 2 brothers reconnecting on a cross-country adventure, Year of the Buffalo rolls wrestling, complicated pasts, nostalgia, family, and bison all into one heartfelt, funny tale. I connected deeply with this book and its characters—their reflections, tics, quirks, interests: it’s as if Burch observed my brother and me growing up and even our relationship now as adults, and expertly wrote a novel about it.
June 24, 2024
This novel is beautiful. If you have any siblings you miss, this book will really take you for a spin and make you wanna pick up the phone and call them. I have the pleasure to have him as a professor and it speaks so much to who he is as a writer.
March 13, 2023
A brotherly road trip, written with the intelligence, compassion, and delight that we've come to expect from one of America's true literary treasures. Great read!
May 26, 2023
Why don’t we say what we mean? Why don’t we say anything at all?
Man, I loved this one.
Man, I loved this one.
December 26, 2022
Year of the Buffalo is a novel about brothers. Or maybe it isn’t?
What’s for certain are the uncertainties that seem to drive this narrative. Rhetorical question marks litter the prose. Exclamation points dot a fair amount of dialogue. Characters make decisions, but also they don’t? Maybe they are simply reacting to what’s happened to them? Who’s to say for sure?
Read the rest here: https://www.bridgeeight.com/review-ye...
What’s for certain are the uncertainties that seem to drive this narrative. Rhetorical question marks litter the prose. Exclamation points dot a fair amount of dialogue. Characters make decisions, but also they don’t? Maybe they are simply reacting to what’s happened to them? Who’s to say for sure?
Read the rest here: https://www.bridgeeight.com/review-ye...
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews