The Red Sox, books, movies, rock music, Koko the gorilla, D.B. Cooper, Roman history, 1980's toys, the latest developments in proton-pump inhibitors, organized labor, and, most of all, this website.
I'd like to meet:
I'm here to meet fellow writers and readers, chat about my book a little, promote future readings and publications, and if anyone's in the mood, maybe parse some obscure Dylan lyrics. If you're interested in having me talk to your book club, do a reading at your bookstore, or recite a Homeric ballad at your child's Bar Mitzvah, please drop me a line.
Now that the book has been out for awhile, I'm back in the Bat Cave and pretty seriously engaged with a couple of new projects, and I'm not checking myspace too often, so please don't be offended if I don't respond immediately to messages.
Finally, for what it's worth, here are some blurbs:
"We’re All in This Together" is hilarious and frequently bizarre but always — somehow — deeply sincere. Beneath the pyrotechnics of his incredible imagination, King never forgets that he’s here to tell meaningful poignant stories.
— Anthony Doerr , author of "The Shell Collector" and "About Grace"
An exceptional debut… Funny and poignant, these stories are textured gems.
— People Magazine (4 Stars, Critic’s Choice)
Growing pains collide with political disappointments which ricochet off affairs of the heart in Owen King’s marvelous novella "We’re All in This Together." With a cast of quirky characters worthy of Anne Tyler and John Irving, this story of familial devotion and betrayal is hilariously funny, devastating, and heartbreaking. The love is so palpable, the pages nearly pulsate. The companion stories — each terrific and imaginative, eerie and tender — complete this introduction to a remarkable new writer.
— Binnie Kirshenbaum , author of "An Almost Perfect Moment"
A powerful exploration of the flimsiness of political moral certainty compared to the strength of the unpredictable emotions that end up motivating individuals’ actions. Newcomer King is a talent to watch.
— Kirkus Reviews
Owen King decisively stakes out his own territory with prose so imaginative and confident and well crafted, he seems to have been down to that midnight Delta crossroads and gotten much the best of the bargain.
— William Gay , author of "Provinces of Night" and "The Long Home"
Owen King knows a thing or two about our yen for hate, and he has made it a potent subtext of his literary debut, "We're All in this Together." Just watch the tornadoes of loathing rip up the flowerbeds and obliterate the crops in these stories. No one escapes unscathed… stupendous…
— Denver Post
Music:
I have to say that one of the great pleasures of this website is that it allows me to now call Wilco my friend. I mean, I always believed that Wilco was my friend, but now it's definitive.
Other favorites: Billy Bragg, the Cure, Steve Earle, Tim Easton, Kathleen Edwards, Ben Folds, Fountains of Wayne, Lincoln Conspiracy, Marah, the Mendoza Line, Nada Surf, the Old 97's, Mr. Elvis Presley, Chuck Prophet, Josh Ritter, Springsteen, the Wallflowers, Gillian Welch, the White Stripes, Lucinda Williams. Oh, and COLUMBIA RECORDING ARTIST BOB DYLAN. He's pretty good.
Movies:
I'm going to break this down according to my personal genre system:
Aliens Want To Eat Us: Alien
Aliens Want To Eat Reeses: E.T.
Animated: Alice in Wonderland
Anthropomorphic: The Fox and the Hound
Bogie: Casablanca
Bizzaro-Bogie: The Caine Mutiny
Capra: It's A Wonderful Life
Documentary: The Thin Blue Line
Hitchcock: North By Northwest
Mafia: Goodfellas
Merchant-Ivory: The Remains of the Day
Musical: The Singing Detective (original)
Nam: Full Metal Jacket
New York: The Apartment
Noir: Chinatown
Bizzaro-Noir: Brick
Bizzaro-New York: The Warriors
Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors (part 3)
Quotable: Slingblade
Superhero: The Incredibles
Bizzaro-Superhero: Darkman
Star Trek: Wrath of Kahn (part 2)
Twenty-First Century: The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Welles: Othello
Western: The Wild Bunch
Bizzaro-Western: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Zombies: Dawn of the Dead (original, director's cut)
Bizzaro-Zombies: Re-Animator
Television:
I'm another one of those irritating people who really only watches the HBO shows. The Wire is my favorite, hands down. Actually, I'm increasingly certain that the Wire is the best television series I've ever seen. It has the depth and scope of a classic novel. You really need to clear a weekend, get Netflix to send you the 1st season, and hunker down with a bucket of cheese doodles or something. Trust me, you'll be glad you did. I also like Lost, although I'm starting to get that Twin Peaks feeling that they're making this thing up as they go along. Oh, and in light of recent events, I have to say that Oprah's pretty awesome. Can she now please turn her Justice Ray on one of these people who don't believe in global warming? Can she take part in the hearings for the next supreme court nominee? Christ, we need Oprah now more than ever. She's our last chance.
Books:
Off the top of my head, some books that have been an influence and/or mean a lot to me. (Don't hold it against them.)
Human Croquet by Kate Atkinson, Josie and Jack by Kelly Braffet, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay by Michael Chabon, The Deptford Trilogy by Robertson Davies, Hard Times by Charles Dickens, Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene, The Cider House Rules by John Irving, Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, Pictures of Fidelman by Bernard Malamud, Terms of Endearment by Larry McMurtry, America's Report Card by John McNally, His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, Straight Man by Richard Russo, Love and Hydrogen by Jim Shepard, Voodoo Heart by Scott Snyder, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington, The Night in Question by Tobias Wolff
Heroes:
By Heroes, I assume we're talking about the super kind. Here's four I really like. (Not a definitive list.)
4. Galactus - Technically I'm not sure he qualifies as a superhero, but he's enormous, he has an awesome purple helmet, and he eats planets. An outstanding combination.
3. Rorschach - Makes Batman look like a sissy and illustrates the obvious point that only someone with serious psychological issues would really think the best way to fight crime was to run around in purple pin-striped pants and a mask.
2. Swamp Thing - Tragic, made of moss and roots.
1. Captain Marvel - Endowed with the powers of six figures of classical mythology (Solomon's wisdow, Hercules's strength, etc.) Captain Marvel is often confused with Superman, but is much, much cooler. For one thing, his transformation hinges on yelling out "Shazam!" which is fun to say. Captain Marvel was also Elvis's favorite superhero.
