Amy Hempel

I found her the way I wish I could find more writers:
I read the recent Chuck Palahnuik book Rant: An Oral Biography. (I enjoyed it more than his last few works of fiction.) Rant made me remember how much I enjoyed Chuck's early books: Survivor, Fight Club, and Choke.

I looked Chuck up online. I found a website that listed his favorite books and favorite writers. Every author should have these lists available to their fans. His list of favorite writers included Bret Easton Ellis, who I've read. I tried one of the titles on his list of favorite books, but the novel didn't take with me.

Then I got an Amy Hempel short story collection from the library. It wasn't even the one he recommended most, but it was inspiring. And I usually don't go for short stories.

I can see where Chuck got his flare for unusual events and bizarre descriptions. He took her style and made it more grotesque, and her stories are already disturbing.

Here is an example of Amy's weird detail style: "It was the year I started saying vahz instead of vase..."