Seriously, wake up America. These are the times you live in now. "Heroes, by buying and reading this book, you've proven you get it--and are therefore now members of the nominating committee for The Stephen T. Colbert Award for The Literary Excellence." Use the medallions below to nominate any book that you feel embodies the values of … Continue reading The Literary Excellence
American Dream
Post Season Baseball–Guts
To kick off Major League Baseball's season of glory: a short story about baseball featuring steroids, breast milk, and courage. From Guts, first published by Atticus Review September 2012. That sweet curving thumb of mine put a wild spin on every ball I threw. Curveballs, sliders, pitches that dropped four inches just before the plate. Northern … Continue reading Post Season Baseball–Guts
The Family Hightower–Out Today
Brian Francis Slattery’s keen omniscience delivers the crime story of a century, a tale grounded on history and fact—obscure Americana, strange third world realities—taking the reader from 1995 Cleveland to 1986 Sub Saharan Africa before traveling back to prohibition and a 20th century historical tour of Ukraine and Romania. Where and when are we? We are all times … Continue reading The Family Hightower–Out Today
Review – The Family Hightower
Blood Sport and the American Dream The Family Hightower takes a savage and intelligent look at the American Dream, asserting an inextricable link between capitalism and crime in a voice that borders on the eternal. Appropriate, considering the timeless and unattainable aspiration of Brian Francis Slattery’s characters: to “get out”, to escape the prison of wealth and violence … Continue reading Review – The Family Hightower
Ben East Books 