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GingerHarman
Posted February 29, 2012
Rob Roberge writes with concentrated raw intensity, honesty, and a modern literary intelligence that has left this reader in complete awe! His book, Working Backwards from the Worst Moments of My Life, is a collection of short stories that had me completely engrossed from the first story. It begins with Tommy Cronin and Pops. Roberge crafts a tale of what to do when a parent loves another child more than one’s own, the act of stealing Bibles, and the ethical dilemma of murder. Readers will also be mesmerized by the tale of Beano and Gary. The Psychological outcome of a journalistic reporter and a boxing chimp that has all the “frustration and angst” and questions what is ones own reality world and that of a celebrity with an existential flare.
Now most of these stories do not give an ending, opinion, nor conclusion but satisfy you and have you wanting more. Not only are these details not needed but are so well crafted that the reader feels that you become one with the author. This is an incredibly rare gift that Roberge has etched with passion. His invitation to the reader is not only as a witness but to become a participant in the novel. For example, when Hank enters into the Psychiatric hospital to end his relationship with Geri he “watches her, studies her for a few minutes. He’ll brand this image into him until it hurts more than it already does. He rocks back and forth with her motions. He starts to hum and hits her pitch and volume. After a few more minutes, when he’s done all he can to remember this, he walks out.” I found myself immediately humming, “Everybody Hurts” by REM. It was at this point that I saw the pure genius of Roberge that life is a conspiracy of raw emotion and relationships that can’t be summarized or wrapped neatly into a story.
All the complex ideas that are presented in each of these short stories awakened the reader to a new purpose of moving forward and backward. Moreover, the author resonates this theme when he wrote, “life is full of scattered moments and fragments, of evidence and events piled up behind him…You follow it, study it, maybe it leads somewhere, maybe it tells you something, like the debris field around an accident.” I truly believe that Mr. Roberge writes with heart and soul. His stories flow easily and he has made the ordinary into something truly remarkable! I highly recommend WORKING BACKWARDS FROM THE WORST MOMENT OF MY LIFE: STORIES by Rob Roberge. I look forward to reading more of his work and watching his success as a writer.
GingerHarman
Posted February 29, 2012
Rob Roberge writes with concentrated raw intensity, honesty, and a modern literary intelligence that has left this reader in complete awe! His book, Working Backwards from the Worst Moments of My Life, is a collection of short stories that had me completely engrossed from the first story. It begins with Tommy Cronin and Pops. Roberge crafts a tale of what to do when a parent loves another child more than one’s own, the act of stealing Bibles, and the ethical dilemma of murder. Readers will also be mesmerized by the tale of Beano and Gary. The Psychological outcome of a journalistic reporter and a boxing chimp that has all the “frustration and angst” and questions what is ones own reality world and that of a celebrity with an existential flare.
Now most of these stories do not give an ending, opinion, nor conclusion but satisfy you and have you wanting more. Not only are these details not needed but are so well crafted that the reader feels that you become one with the author. This is an incredibly rare gift that Roberge has etched with passion. His invitation to the reader is not only as a witness but to become a participant in the novel. For example, when Hank enters into the Psychiatric hospital to end his relationship with Geri he “watches her, studies her for a few minutes. He’ll brand this image into him until it hurts more than it already does. He rocks back and forth with her motions. He starts to hum and hits her pitch and volume. After a few more minutes, when he’s done all he can to remember this, he walks out.” I found myself immediately humming, “Everybody Hurts” by REM. It was at this point that I saw the pure genius of Roberge that life is a conspiracy of raw emotion and relationships that can’t be summarized or wrapped neatly into a story.
All the complex ideas that are presented in each of these short stories awakened the reader to a new purpose of moving forward and backward. Moreover, the author resonates this theme when he wrote, “life is full of scattered moments and fragments, of evidence and events piled up behind him…You follow it, study it, maybe it leads somewhere, maybe it tells you something, like the debris field around an accident.” I truly believe that Mr. Roberge writes with heart and soul. His stories flow easily and he has made the ordinary into something truly remarkable! I highly recommend WORKING BACKWARDS FROM THE WORST MOMENT OF MY LIFE: STORIES by Rob Roberge. I look forward to reading more of his work and watching his success as a writer.
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