Sándor Jászberényi’s debut story collection came out too late in the year to make it onto any of the prestigious ‘Best of’ lists, many of which were already out before its December publication. Besides, most of the translated writing that made it onto these lists were the books that had already received the most buzz – Knausgaard, Elena Ferrante – so putting them on the lists wasn’t exactly sticking a critical neck out.
But The Devil is a Black Dog truly deserves to be among the year’s best, not only for its quality but for how accessible each and every one of its riveting stories is. The subject matter can be brutal and bleak, it is filled with complex ideas, I’ve published the author numerous times yet I use Google to be able to spell his name properly, but in the end these stories are a pleasure to read. Middlebrow critics who complain about this type of thing, take note, you can read this book on a train.
And if you don’t believe me you can see for yourself by reading the stories from the book published in B O D Y as well as my full review of the book.
Read my review of The Devil is a Black Dog here
Read “Somewhere On The Border” here
Read “The Majestic Clouds” here
Read “The Devil is a Black Dog” here
Read “Professional Killers” here
Read “The Blake Precept” here
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