Status Updates From Walk Me to the Distance

The Vietnam War Allegory that has been standing conspicuously, only half-in-the-shadows, this whole time has finally stepped out into the spotlight, or at least threatened to.

I fucking dig it, man. It makes this whole, messy, ugly little novel finally cohere a little thematically in a way that’s actually really satisfying, now that I kinda get the angle it’s taking.

Takes a really special talent to write a story about *this much* of a shithead and have it still be this compelling; have me hanging on all its developments, anticipating all its conclusions; rendering him just as complexly as the colorful cast of small town aw-shucksers.

Some Scorsesian work from Everett here.

Sheep and man……… I cannot say more 😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨😨

“…a man got out of the van…It was the man who had been sitting at the edge of the cliff weeks earlier, the preacher.
‘Hello, brother!’
David waved, watching the preacher approach.
‘You’re still here. It just be the work of the Lord. It is truly a miracle.’
‘I work here.’
‘That’s wonderful. He takes care of us all.’”

Percival Everett is so fuckin funny, dog

A spiky little, thorny little, angry little, cozy little read so far. And just absolutely mooooves. The way Everett writes dialogue, his use of small, precise sentences, his over-perioding: all just masterful, even this early in his career. His dialogue is probably what he hung his hat on in the beginning, like in grad school and whatnot.