Greg Hrbek

I initially only read Sagittarius, which was published online, and I found it haunting: a beautiful parable about the tension of having children that are atypical and the joy that they can bring. It was a perfect short story in pacing, in spare but beautiful prose and in rapidly drawn, immediately sympathetic characters.



I liked Sagittarius so much that I bought the collection. Sagittarius is certainly the best, closely followed by the ending story, Bereavement. Both use speculative elements sparingly to highlight unspeakable but universal human experiences.

Otherwise, I thought the stories were pretty good, and since I'm not a short story reader, that's honestly pretty high praise. I think Hbrek really understands the form: short stories are literary playground to pull out the weird stuff that you can't support for a full novel. Some of them are stuffed full of the sort of luxurious prose that would be too obfuscating to use for more than a dozen pages. Others employ literary hijinks, like non-chronologic storytelling that add a twist and a punch to a 40 page chapter. Hbrek also links his stories -- not just characters, but also themes, to good effect. As a result, there's something very satisfying about finishing the work. It felt like the emotional payoff for finishing a novel -- like I'd really gone through the normal emotional sequence of reading a book, despite the disparate themes, tones and genres. Overall, I'll keep an eye out for Hbrek in the future.
… (mehr)

Hrbek sets [b:Not on Fire, but Burning|24869879|Not on Fire, but Burning|Greg Hrbek|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1428087955s/24869879.jpg|44518566] in an alternate reality in which 9/11 did not happen but a similar attack is perpetrated in San Francisco in another year. From its first page, this novel has a gripping squeeze on your heart and your mind. The fears it exposes are so visceral and relevant that you are almost standing in the room with Skyler as she witnesses the 9/11 style attack on the Golden Gate Bridge. And then you are somewhere else.

The strength of this novel for me was in the believablity of its characters. I understood and felt with Skyler, Dorian, Karim, Mitch and Will Banfelder. Hrbek did a great job of showing both sides of a complex situation in very human terms. He did what we always hope an author will do, he made me look at something I have contemplated before and see it in a new light.

If life is a series of decisions and choices, how many possibilities are there that any event might never happen or that any life might be lead in a different direction? Might we ourselves change something major by making some different decision ourselves. When we are faced with the most horrible situation, when we have gone down the wrong path, is there still always a good choice we can yet make?

I highly recommend this novel as one that will leave you thinking long after you have put it down.

My thanks to Melville House Publishing and the very talented author, Greg Hrbek, for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.… (mehr)

There is a theory that multiple universes are created every time one makes a choice to do something or not to do something. This book explores that theory through the experience of one family. I’m still not sure if the author was completely successful but it is an interesting idea for a plot.
The book starts with Skyler Wakefield, a twenty-year-old college student on summer break, looking after a little boy, Noah, in San Francisco. Noah calls out to her to look out the window and she sees an object near the Golden Gate Bridge slicing the supporting cables as if they were made of string. Then there is a bright explosion which turns out to be nuclear. Noah is blinded and cut by flying glass. As Skyler tries to get him to safety a tarry rain starts to fall from the sky. One hundred miles away Skyler’s family is safe from the fallout but have no way to reach her. Eight years later the Wakefield’s are living in Albany, New York. On a school trip to a mosque eleven year old Dorian went into the washroom and wrote hate graffiti on the toilet door. The Muslims have been blamed for the attack on San Francisco and many have been rounded up and placed in the western territories of Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. So Dorian is not alone in his feelings. He tells his parents that he had a dream about his sister and they were very upset. In this world, Dorian never had a sister. Dorian is confused and upset because he clearly remembers her, even her name, but he can find no record of her existence. When the Wakefield’s neighbour decides to adopt an orphan from the Muslim reservation it brings even more confusion to Dorian’s life. The orphan, Karim, has been inducted as a terrorist and he is supposed to contact his cell leader to learn about the action in which he will wear an explosives vest. He knows he will die but has been told he will go directly to Paradise and be reunited with his family. Dorian and Karim manage to become friends of a sort and in so doing perhaps change this reality.
There are several things that just didn’t work for me but I would have to give some major spoilers to talk about them. Suffice it to say that I think the author could have left some things out and explained others better.… (mehr)