John Haskell is a performance artist/actor who has written a fantastic series of short stories. I have been threatening to write about this book for a while now and it seems like it’s time that I do. There are two stories that resonate with me on a personal level as well as just an emotional level. Lets talk about these stories first; there is a third person dialogue form Liaka the Cosmonaut dog, then there is a story of Topsy the Coney Island elephant who was electrocuted because of his actions after being fed a lit cigarette by a visitor. At the end of the day though these stories are about love and desire. I spent an evening in tears last winter when I read this book – and I’m better for reading it. you should read this as well just for the ability to see the other side of unspoken feelings.
Stories revolve around Jackson Pollack, Janet Leigh, Orson Welles, Capucine and others.
This book is without a doubt the most important book I read this year.