Ben East Books

Tag: Writing

  • The Big Zero

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    Ben East
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    The latest from Don DeLillo subjects readers to suffocation in a plotless environment hosting flat characters who live out an endless procession of questions about life, death, and the consequences in between. That is Zero-K. Whether or not the flattened nature of this enterprise is intentional—to emphasize confinement, restriction, joylessness, life as a movement toward death—the result is…

  • Peace Corps Writers 2015

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    Ben East
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    The Peace Corps and Returned Peace Corps writing community at Peacecorpsworldwide is seeking nominations for favorite books published in 2015 written by a PCV, RPCV or Peace Corps Staff. I’ve compiled a partial list of the books released last year here, and welcome feedback on additional titles, reviews, and links. Paul Cowan Non-Fiction Award  First given in…

  • Unity Amid Terror

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    Ben East
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    We can look to the barbarians who call for broad, ignorant hatred in response to the specific ignorant hatred behind the tragedies in San Bernardino, Orlando, Portland. Or we can look for unity. While Two Pumps for the Body Man is foremost a satire of the so-called “War on Terror”, it’s also rich in other themes (the odd sexual proclivities of protagonist Jeff Mutton, for…

  • An ounce of hope, a Fifth of futility

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    Ben East
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    Review: God in Neon by Sam Slaughter Sam Slaughter’s collection of stories features protagonists paddling up a great river of booze. Their strokes are futile, the current strong: with beer, tequila, whiskey, Old Crow, Jack, PBR. They struggle under the blurry burden of constant intoxication, their boozing not an act so much as a reality,…

  • MFA Program for RPCVs and PCVs

    MFA Program for RPCVs and PCVs

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    Ben East
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    Reposting this opportunity for the Peace Corps community to earn an MFA. Original content from Peace Corps Worldwide: Are you inspired by your Peace Corps service? Do you have an affinity for writing? Looking to write a memoir or book about your Peace Corps experience? John Coyne (RPCV Ethiopia 1962-64), editor of Peace Corps Worldwide, has…

  • Dark, hilarious, cutting

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    Ben East
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    Exactly the kind of review that makes it all worth the effort. Somebody thought enough of Two Pumps for the Body Man to post this. Mission Accomplished. Came on top of a great plug from killer noir writer C.S. DeWildt (Love You to a Pulp and just last week Kill ’em with Kindness) who said of Two Pumps: “…Full of…

  • Zapped!

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    Ben East
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    As described at Medium, Amazon’s brick-and-mortar bookstore in Seattle sounds like the kind of place where books themselves are mere wallpaper. “The Seattle store features a perimeter lined with packed bookshelves. However, the center (and heart) of the store has been given over completely to digital products… John Mutter — editor of the bookstore-industry newsletter Shelf-Awareness — recently spent 45 minutes observing…

  • Good Deal at Goodreads

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    Ben East
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    Goodreads is hosting a giveaway of Two Pumps for the Body Man. Follow the link at left to win a copy. Book reviewers can contact me directly for an electronic copy. Enter to win a copy of this all-too-real satirical look at America’s diplomats on the front line of the war on terror. Imagine a Sarah Palin-style head diplomat marching to the orders of…

  • Short Fiction–Swimming

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    Ben East
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    Peace Corps Worldwide carried the following review of Karl Luntta’s Swimming from SUNY press. One thing is certain for foreigners at work in much of Africa: the proverbs can be as colorful as they are vague, utilitarian as they are vexing. The truth can emerge—or remain obscured—with a single phrase. Truth, in these proverbs, lies in the…

  • Heroes In Literature

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    Ben East
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    Among the acknowledgements listed back of my debut novel is Barry H. Leeds, Connecticut State University Distinguished Professor Emeritus at CCSU. Hemingway, Mailer, Kesey—these were the writers Dr. Leeds expounded to us, models who wrote tough, lean sentences and big, enduring books. I worked like hell to write the strong prose Dr. Leeds demanded in his…