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The Quitters
This hard-hitting collection of creative essays explores the beauty and pain embedded in some of our favorite rough-and-tumble pastimes—roller derby, mixed martial arts, and teaching. Carlo Matos ties it all together with gusto, in a book that will send you reeling to the canvas again and again, and make you return every time for more.
124 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 5, 2017
220 people want to read
About the author
Carlo Matos
13 books19 followersCarlo Matos is a bi+ author, who has published 13 books, including As Malcriadas or Names We Inherit (New Meridian Arts) and We Prefer the Damned (Unbound Edition Press). He also co-edited an anthology with Luis Gonçalves titled, Writers of the Portuguese Diaspora in the United States and Canada. His poems, stories, and essays have appeared in such journals as RHINO, [PANK], DIAGRAM, and HOBART, among many others. Carlo has received grants and fellowships from Disquiet ILP, CantoMundo, the Illinois Arts Council, the Sundress Academy for the Arts, and the La Romita School of Art in Italy. He is a winner of the Heartland Poetry Prize and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. He currently lives in Chicago, IL, is a professor at the City Colleges of Chicago, and a former MMA fighter and kickboxer. He blogs at carlomatos.blogspot.com. Follow him on Twitter @CarloMatos46.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 11, 2018
In his new book The Quitters, author, teacher, and former fighter Carlo Matos shares an insightful collection of essays thematically linked around the concept of quitting. Matos explores these ideas in a fascinating array of contexts: mixed martial arts, roller derby, archery, music, and teaching. This eclectic mix reinforces the broader point that to quit or not to quit? is a question we will be forced to grapple with time and time again in our lives. And often unexpectedly.
The true stories Matos shares are entertaining, enlightening, and beautifully written. He writes of the bond of athletes—the comradery and profound respect for each other's sacrifices. He invites the reader into the private world of the gym, of being backstage before fights, to know not just the work that is put in, but also the culture. The friendships. The nicknames. The unspoken bonds. We see, for instance, a police officer—writing a ticket to a fighter—rip up that ticket out of admiration once he learns the man's cauliflower ears are the result of years of jiu-jitsu.
But we also see the dark side of competition. The Quitters balances the scales with heartbreaking tales of athletes whose quests for greatness are cut short. Sometimes because of something brutal, something that can't be undone. That's the unfortunate part of quitting sometimes: it's not even a choice.
Through each of the collection's essays, Matos provides unforgettable anecdotes, genuine wisdom, and a healthy dose of poetic language. He writes in his essays on MMA: "The truth is sometimes we hide much in our hands: our heads in trouble, our faces in shame, our chins when punches fly free. A hand in a glove can do what the naked hand won't. It can clutch cold without freezing, cure without weakening, and, yes, strike without breaking." In his reflections upon teaching, he makes the impossible ring overwhelmingly true: "Adult time, unlike childhood time, is long in minutes and short in years. Hours last for years, but years go by in seconds."
Matos' skill as a writer shines in The Quitters. Whether you are a fan of sport, or just a fan of good writing, his essays invite you into unique worlds and experiences. To deep thoughts. And fun ones, too. You'll find yourself rooting for the narrator and the entire cast of characters whose challenges have brought them to the question: quit or try harder? It is a relatable collection not just worth reading, but of taking the time to pause, absorb, reflect.
The true stories Matos shares are entertaining, enlightening, and beautifully written. He writes of the bond of athletes—the comradery and profound respect for each other's sacrifices. He invites the reader into the private world of the gym, of being backstage before fights, to know not just the work that is put in, but also the culture. The friendships. The nicknames. The unspoken bonds. We see, for instance, a police officer—writing a ticket to a fighter—rip up that ticket out of admiration once he learns the man's cauliflower ears are the result of years of jiu-jitsu.
But we also see the dark side of competition. The Quitters balances the scales with heartbreaking tales of athletes whose quests for greatness are cut short. Sometimes because of something brutal, something that can't be undone. That's the unfortunate part of quitting sometimes: it's not even a choice.
Through each of the collection's essays, Matos provides unforgettable anecdotes, genuine wisdom, and a healthy dose of poetic language. He writes in his essays on MMA: "The truth is sometimes we hide much in our hands: our heads in trouble, our faces in shame, our chins when punches fly free. A hand in a glove can do what the naked hand won't. It can clutch cold without freezing, cure without weakening, and, yes, strike without breaking." In his reflections upon teaching, he makes the impossible ring overwhelmingly true: "Adult time, unlike childhood time, is long in minutes and short in years. Hours last for years, but years go by in seconds."
Matos' skill as a writer shines in The Quitters. Whether you are a fan of sport, or just a fan of good writing, his essays invite you into unique worlds and experiences. To deep thoughts. And fun ones, too. You'll find yourself rooting for the narrator and the entire cast of characters whose challenges have brought them to the question: quit or try harder? It is a relatable collection not just worth reading, but of taking the time to pause, absorb, reflect.
May 7, 2018
With cage fighting and everyday things reflecting on Portuguese culture, The Quitters takes the reader on a fast-paced trip, in bite-sized, stream of consciousness vignettes of narrative, lessons for life. Standout stories are the one about the gym (adapting nicknames, the gym is a single-masted sloop. . .) and "a fight isn't real until your name is on the white board #9 and #10, the most important part of the fight is the ride over. . .love the metaphors. Truthfully, I was reading it and left it folded open on the couch and my husband stole it,and he's been saying how much he likes it too. Can't get it back from him now.
December 29, 2019
I acquired this book almost 2 years ago when I visited the publisher's table at the annual AWP Conference. (They were at the time considering a manuscript of mine that they ultimately passed on, but no worries, it found another home.) The author of this book was at the table during my visit and he was engaging, the book had an attractive cover (call me shallow), and it never hurts to buy a book from a publisher you might work with later, so I bought it. I buy more books than I can read, so it went into a pile in my study until last week, when I moved some books around and revealed this one. I decided to finally read it.
It's terrific. It is described as creative essays, but I gather they are more or less true. The deal with the author's time as an MMA fighter, move into attempts to learn archery, watching roller derby, and finally being an adjunct composition teacher. The language throughout is fresh, which is what makes the book a winner for me, but also most of the situations (adjuncting aside) are fresh as well.
It's not a long read (I'd tell you how many pages it has, but the pages aren't numbered!), and you can probably get through it in an afternoon. It's worth it!
It's terrific. It is described as creative essays, but I gather they are more or less true. The deal with the author's time as an MMA fighter, move into attempts to learn archery, watching roller derby, and finally being an adjunct composition teacher. The language throughout is fresh, which is what makes the book a winner for me, but also most of the situations (adjuncting aside) are fresh as well.
It's not a long read (I'd tell you how many pages it has, but the pages aren't numbered!), and you can probably get through it in an afternoon. It's worth it!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews