Gentle Art

A collection of short stories, it is a book about folk devils; creatures at war with respectable society and the conventions on which respectable society is based. It can also be read as a heartrending account of the permanent degradation of men of great talent due to persistent lack of self-control - often indistinguishable from madness. Gentle Art's diminutive dimensions echo the intent of early devotional literature - an almost disposable object, designed for personal edification and spiritual formation. Referencing Stephen Graham s 1927 work, The Gentle Art of Tramping - a manual for life on the other side - Gentle Art is a departure from standard experimental literature. Its aim is not to be difficult. Kidnapping personas from real life (marvellous George, the petrol-drinker, the ket-head with a woman for a cock and many more!) and entering them into absurd formatting - from Choose Your Own Adventure to a compilation of quotes footnoting the entire text - her stories demonstrate how and why people slip beyond the norms of society and report back on what lies in store when they* get there. *Everyone has a plan til they* get punched in the mouth. Interview: Boxing Biannual, Mike Tyson Gentle Art follows the success of Iphgenia Baal s 2011 publication The Hardy Tree, which sees her nominated for Granta's Best of Young British Novelists 4 to be announced in April 2013.


Genre: Literary Fiction