Between Nowhere and Happiness

by Daniel Kine

"Finally a writer whose language is not afraid to travel down and in and through--just when I was losing faith, I am reminded how narrative can atomize this culture of pop and death and give our stories back to us." --Lidia Yuknavitch, Author of The Chronology of Water

"This American road novel is authentic enough that you'll swear you can smell the smoke of the thousand cigarettes lit within." --Joey Goebel, Author of Torture the Artist and Commonwealth

"...emphasizes the desperation, loneliness and warmth that human connections can bring." --Broken Pencil

"A stunning debut." --Rhode Island Journal of The Arts

Genres: Fiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Daniel Kine is the Author of the novels, Between Nowhere and Happiness, (2009, Smallhand Press) and Up Nights, (2013, Ooligan Press).

Reviews

[John Scharf · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book from GoodReads and enjoyed it for two reasons: First, author Daniel Kine is an outstanding writer and you often feel as though you're on this drug-laden, often hopeless journey with the characters in the story. Second, it provides a closer (often scary) look at people who take wild risks and let the pieces fall where they may. Kine's characters are void of any grounding and become young drifters seeking only that next high and seem to experience a freedom that most of us will never know. Despite a lack of ambition and seemingly worthless existence, these "friends" strive to find meaning or some kind of connection with another. The characters rely on each other and take comfort in the two things they have in common -- lonliness and a growing drug addiction.

There's a feeling of hopelessness to this book, yes; but it's a realistic one, and it's not completely hopeless. The everyday freedom made me wish I had backpacked through Europe after college or joined the Peace Corp for six months before starting a job and taking on the many trappings of a middle class life. In an odd way, this novel helps me take comfort in my choices and path.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn't something I would have picked out on my own, likely. That said, I think the description of this book is a tad misleading. It is about Arthur's journey with several groups of people who decidedly hail from the wrong side of town, but his "observing of tendencies" of these persons is no different than just recounting what happened. The book description made me think there would be some exploration of why and how these people came to where they were and why they stayed - there was some of this, but not to the extent that I was expecting, and seemed overly self-centered on Arthur. Towards the end, he became a bit more understanding of his role in overall events, though.

Overall, I'm not quite sure what to make of this book. Kine's writing style is unique and colorful in a muted, emo-type of way that is simultaneously beautiful yet saddening. He has a sure gift with words and creates pictures that are incredibly vivid, but still gritty and true. The characters are as relatable as they can be, given that they are all the total opposite of me and my experiences; but I felt like I got to know them on more than a superficial level, which is an impressive feat, again because the characters are basically homeless junkies crashing where they can and then joining up with a new group of people to wander with to their next destination.

Coming back to the book description, I'm not sure what the "uncommon tragedy" of the story was. Addiction? Depression? Disenchantment with life? Same for the "modern dilemma" - what is that? Not that they have to be one, specific thing per se but the book was more vague, broader than that.

Also, the plot was rather weak - delivering a letter to a friend's sister. It was present from the beginning and was resolved in the end, but not really, if that makes sense. It gave the story an overall feeling of aimlessness, which is oddly like the characters were, so maybe that was intentional on Kine's part.

Overall, I think Kine shows real promise. The story wasn't afraid to get ugly and gritty and grimy, making me feel like I was getting an inside look at the life of a wandering junkie. Many of his constructions were unique but delicate, which I found a nice juxtaposition to the main themes.

[Leanne Sarubbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. It felt gritty and honest, and the writing was beautiful and breathtaking at times. I do wish it had been longer, and the print smaller, though.

I can't wait to read more from this author.

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book. I won a copy from the First Reads program, and I never received it. I emailed Daniel Kine about it, and I received the book in the mail in less than a week afterwards. I was really excited about it.

Now, having read it, I still can't figure out what the point of the novel was. To me, it was a lot of aimless, drug-induced hazy wandering. I'm still trying to figure out why it ended where it did. I think that the book could have ended at any other place throughout the story, and it would have had the exact same effect. There was absolutely no resolution to anything that happened throughout the book.

On page 42, the author mentions hydrocodone, and how it has acetaminophen (Tylenol) in it. NOT TRUE. It can be compounded with acetaminophen, but it is not necessarily. It was things like this that also bothered me throughout the book. Authors should research every detail about their work before publishing it - when there are inaccuracies like this one, it really takes away from the merit of the book.

Finally, the prose itself was just okay - it reminded me of my college's literary journal. Decent, but not worth writing home about.

[Marty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a book I would have chosen on my own, but it was a win. I am giving it five stars not because I loved the story, which was gritty and of a class of people I hope I never meet or know, but because it was extremely well wirtten. The story moved along and never give any hint of where it was headed. If you find you cared about the people then get over it because they were just there for the flushing out of the plot. I hope to read more from Daniel Kine. For 25 years old his writing style needs no apologies (except for an occasional redundancy such as using whether or not when whether is only necessary).

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me just start by quoting the backcover: "An uncommon tragedy highlighting modern dilemma, Between Nowhere and Happiness is the story of Arthur, a would-be recluse allocated into the lives of everyone he encounters. By observing the tendencies of sexually repressed petty criminals, sex-workers and drifters of all sorts, he chronicles his time wandering in and out of the many social and cultural quandaries of modern times." ..... WHAT???????

Luckily the content of the book is not as bad as the production quality. I picked it up and read the first 10 pages about a month ago and was so distracted by the terrible typesetting (weird, inconsistent spacing between sentences and odd paragraph indents) and the bad proof-reading (missing words, wrong word choice, misspellings, wrong phrases like "once and a while"), that I put it back down. Quite honestly, if I hadn't won this through GoodReads and felt somewhat obligated to read it, I probably wouldn't have bothered finishing.

Now, the book itself is not as bad as all that. It's very obviously written by a 25 year old, but a 25 year old with promise. The book is one of those lost-generation, wandering, experiencing-but-not-even-looking-for-meaning type of books full of drugs and pointless sex, written by a person who needs to do more living. With more experiences under his belt, I think Daniel Kine has the promise to be a very good author in the future.

[Naturegirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this as a Goodreads firstreads book, and I'm going to start off by saying that the story material is just not my thing. With that said, I want to talk about what a promising writer 25 year old Daniel Kine is. This guy has a really great career ahead of him and even though the subject matter was not something I care ot read about, I really did enjoy reading his writing.

If you like reading about drug use, kids doing drugs, dealing drugs, how to intake morphine tablets in 10 easy steps, evading the governmental rules (or lackthereof) in South America...and pretty much everything involved with the downhill spiral users get themselves into, then this is the book for you.

I really do wish that the editor had done a better job catching spelling and grammar errors. I hit about 4 of these errors and it was like slamming into a wall at the Indy500. Never underestimate the importance of good editing!!!

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Daniel Kine's Between Nowhere and Happiness captures the true nihlistic nature currently plauging modern America's youth. Echoing Holden Caufield, Kine's protagonist, Arthur, is a bleak, troubled young man, secretly searching for a purpose. Along the way, we're treated to the scag, emotionaly unkempt friends and smarmy locales that define his course. The result is a dark, painful exposition, that remains interesting, if not at times meandering, during its 225 pages. Kine's writing itself is impressive and thoughtful; each sentence seems to serve a greater purpose, lost somewhere in the slightly unfocused narrative. But that's what this story is: a truly here, there and everywhere tale, mirroring the feelings of its main character.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC received through the First Reads giveaway program.

There are some lovely sentences in this novel. I'm not surprised to learn that Kine writes poetry. Unfortunately, there's not much of a story here, and I'm not sure that the "many social and cultural quandaries of our time" promised on the jacket are explored much, if at all. I don't know what the "uncommon tragedy" is, either. Poor decision-making is all too common. The language and the last 30 pages warrant the extra star, but I found Between Nowhere and Happiness to be a navel-gazer without much in the way of insight.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very well written, but as I was reading, I felt like something was missing. I really enjoyed the beginning and I wish Kine would have spent more time showing the reader Arthur's daily life before he became mixed up with the other characters. It would have also been interesting to learn a little more about Arthur's past.

Overall this was a very promising debut. The characters seemed like real people and the writing style made the reader feel as if they were an active participant in Arthur's journey.

[Vanessa Bowling · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book through a giveaway. Being that most of the giveaway books are romance or childrens book, I was pleased to win this. Is the drug induced escape from one's life a bit of a cliche now? Yes. But, I still enjoyed this. I thought the ending could have went a bit better. I don't want this to be recieved as invective, but maybe I have to read a few more times to appreciate the characters more. All in all, if you're attracted to characters who are recluses, shallow, druggies or a bit manic, you'd probably like this read.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a dark book. It's one of those books that takes a long time to go somewhere, so if you don't mind that, it could be your kind of book. I was surprised to see that it's fiction because it reads as so 'true.'

This is about a present-day drifter who connects in a peripheral way with all kinds of people. He doesn't have much for values, but neither do the people he calls friends. Not that he seems to care about them like most of us care for our friends. By the end, not much has happened in the way of actual events, but quite a bit has been revealed about the main character.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like all GREAT books, I can see this one being burnt, tossed aside, or banned. It’s a melodic, prosy almost spiritual journey through the reality of America’s drug culture. Kine’s honesty stands out above everything, and the way he has rekindled the spirit of so many forgotten artists and writers is what makes this so memorable. Thank god that there are still a few geniuses left in this genre.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many others have stated, this is probably not a book I would have chosen on my own. That being said doesn't take away from the fact that this book while dark is well written. At times I felt like I really knew Arthur and understood him and his faults. I think Kine really understands his characters and where they are coming from; the book read very true to what I would imagine the characters would feel or think.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this as an early reader copy a long time ago thinking it might be a nice change. After picking it up for the 10th time, I finally started getting into it. The book follows a druggie from New York to Guatemala to San Francisco, providing a tiny bit of insight into him and the people he encounters. I would have liked more insight into his thoughts and/or the other characters. It was a superficial glance at someone wasting his life.

[Kerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first saw what this book was about, I thought it seemed interesting but wasn't sure exactly what it would be about. I thought it was very well written and had a great cast of characters. I was actually pretty surprised that this book was written by such a young writer. I thought it was a great first book and a very interesting story. I look forward to seeing what this author has to offer in the future.

[Kendra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a goodreads giveaway so I feel like I should comment. This was a quick read and the flow was nice. Really descriptive and I did like how the main character's perspective on life and others unfolded. Good book overall but somewhat depressing and had a lot of elicit behavior so just be aware if this bothers you. I would read more of this author's work if the subject material or plot was not so dark.

[Mechele McDaniel Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has larger print than normal and most chapters are only 2-3 pages long. So that makes a really fast read. Basically, it is about 2 friends on drugs, having lots of sex, on the run from the police. On the journey is some self-discovery of why past relationships, friendships don't last for the main character. It wasn't the best book I ever read, nor was it the worse book I ever read.

[Dawn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe I was a bad match for this book, but I had entered the drawing for this book so I tried reading it. I made it to page 74 before I decided to stop reading because of the offensive sexual descriptions, not the mention the profanity. I wish I had never read it. The writing was fair, but all in all it was a bad experience.

[Judy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of goodreads "giveaway' books. I found it depressing so I cannot recommend it. The author did have some good word uses and he did tell a coherent story. However, none of the characters was likeable so I really didn't care what happened to any of them. None elicited from me any feelings for them. I do not recommend this book.

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only bad thing about this book is that it´s not more well-known. It´s undoubtedly one of the most vivid and well-written novels of its kind. Daniel kine has definitely made a name for himself in the underground literary scene that until recentely I was afraid didn´t exist. I look forward to reading everything he writes in the future.

[Rose Himebaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

It doesn't matter what kind of book you usually get in to. Anyone can rapped up in a book like this. The main character has a way of sucking you in and making you feel all of his emotions along with him.Whether he's feeling scared, lonely or sad, you can relate.

[Angela Blanco · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up on this book shortly after starting it. I found that I could not carry any form of interest in this book long enough to keep reading.

[Nick]

This book was ok. It was slow to start. Over all it was a good book.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I t was an interesting read.

[camille ludwig · Rating 2 out of 5]

not bad for a first timer was an easy read