Mark Richard (2)Rezensionen

You can tell Richard is a fan of southern gothic and that he has some Faulkner and Flannery O’ Connor blood coursing through his veins. This is pitch-black, hillbilly noir, presented in eleven twisted stories, focusing mainly on outcasts and the downtrodden. There are some stand out tales to be found here but my favorite has to be “The Birds For Christmas”, which feature 2 young boys stuck in a hospital for the holidays, begging the nurses to let them watch Hitchcock’s The Birds, on Christmas Eve. Of course, these stories and Richard’s style of writing my not be for everyone, but if you don’t mind getting your hands a little dirty, give this one a shot.

An uneven collection, but that tends to be the case with most short story collections in my experience. The first two stories are worth the price of admission, but then they get progressively less memorable.

I don't have a copy of the book. So far I've only read "Strays," and it was pretty amazing though depressing as anything.

This memoir is probably not for everybody, but I listened to the audiobook and the narrators deadpan delivery added to the quirkiness of the story. The main character struggles growing up with deformed hips that leave him with a lurching gate as well as the conflicted desire to be a professional writer. The author has a dry wit and self deprecating attitude, and I admire his resilience.

This short story was read aloud to an audience, in the 'Select Shorts' podcast for October 2017, at this website:

http://www.selectedshorts.org/2017/10/funnyscary-with-guest-host-neil-gaiman/?ut... in Books&utm_term=BookRiot_ThisWeekInBooks

Not bad, and a little sad. 3.5 stars.

This is, for the most part, an impressive array of Southern short stories. Each one carved out in their own unique space with distinct points-of-view, expressions and phrasing. "On the Rope" is an account of a man who is hired to drag for corpses and "This is Us, Excellent" is told from the POV of a boy with an abusive father and a petulance for a carnival ride, The Rocket Spin. Both these narratives definitely stood out to me as stellar examples Richard's style. I wouldn't begrudge anyone for giving it five stars or three for that matter, Richard is clearly a writer with an ear for language and depth of story but I think many reader's might be put off by the dense style and language of some of the collection.

This is such a bad title.

Probably my favorite short story collection.

The one about slinging condoms full of water at corny gangsters from the balcony you can't afford is one of the best short stories I've ever read.

very dark...

Mark Richard's voice in this gut-punch collection of stories recalls Breece D'J Pancake's Appalachian darkness (but not its pacing), and McCarthy's inebriated river-sloshed wordplay in Suttree. Of the 11 impressive shorts, "This is Us, Excellent" delivered the most powerful blow; a batterer compensates for his bursts of violence by taking his wife and two young boys to a pizza arcade. It is narrated from the disturbing perspective of the eldest child who, long exposed to abuse, is nearly entirely inured to it. This childhood indifference sheds subtle and interesting light on his long-suffering mother.

Awesome! Very well done and excellent writing.

Awesome! Very well done and excellent writing.

Usually an audiobook read by the author adds extra authenticity and intensity to the audio experience. For this book, however, the unabridged reading by Mark Richard (which was generally in a monotone and flat voice) left me conflicted. I was alternately intrigued by the memoir despite Richard's reading style and distracted by his lack of inflection. The writing itself is good, to the point, and hits you over the head with its directness. Richard's life is fascinating and inspiring and his attitude in the face of such adversity is unapologetic and admirable. At times I longed for further development of concepts and events but was left only with sparse prose. I was also caught off guard to some extent by the use of second person narration which seems particularly strange given that the audiobook was being read by the author. It just seemed an odd choice and it stripped away some of the emotional connection to the author which may have been exactly what Mark Richard was hoping to achieve.

The first thing a reader is going to realize about this book is that is written in second person. Yes, I said it, second person. It sounds strange, even bizarre, but I found it was a wonderful way to tell the story, that it somehow had me more deeply involved in the events than I have ever felt possible in a memoir. My father often told stories of the Crippled Childrens' Hospital and I never thought anyone could put me in that place in the same way. This book did. It also took me through the lives of the family members who had to deal with the issues of having a "special child." Amazing how one story can tell the same thing from all perspectives at once and be so darn good at it!

I don't have a bad thing to say about this book. I loved the way it was written and completely devoured it.

2nd reading: a brilliant, if uneven,collection. Best stories: Strays, Her Favorite Story, On the Rope, Ice at the Bottom of the World, and The Theory of Man. The rest are okay, either just missing the mark (Happiness of the Garden Variety)or feeling misshapen and forced (This Is Us, Excellent).

The best stories here are brilliant, making the book worthwhile.

He was called a “special child”. In the South, this was a term used for mentally and physically challenged children. Born with bad hips and a slow demeanor, raised by an alcoholic, quick-tempered father, the boy’s chances in life looked mighty slim, destined to be another discarded outcast.
This astounding memoir follows this “special child”, growing up in rough-hewn Appalachia, subjected to torments from his peers, going through painful surgeries, to correct his deformed hips and finally landing him in adulthood, aimless and confused.
After stumbling through a series of jobs, like disc jockey, fishing trawler deckhand, private investigator and failed seminarian, to name just a few, he finally settled into a life of a writer. An amazing talent was born.
The book is told in the second person perspective, which is quite daring, somewhat challenging but very effective. For fans of Rick Bragg, this is especially recommended.
Do not just add this to your wish list, go out and find a copy…now!½

When I first picked up House of Prayer No. 2, I wasn’t sure I would like it. It’s a memoir written in second person, which, let’s face it, is weird. But after a few pages, I started to get into the rhythm and poetry of his voice and I ended up connecting with it in a way that I’ve rarely connected with memoir. Because of his use of the second person, everything that happened to him, happened to me. I felt more deeply invested in his flawed life than I have for any person (real or fictional) in a very long time.

I also loved his strange journey, from oft-forgotten broken child to bad boy to coming around to a really beautiful sense of faith (without losing his edge). Richard writes with a lot of humor, humility, and a sense of knowing where he came from and being thankful for the difficulties.

I don’t think this is a memoir for everyone. A lot of readers might be turned off by the odd style and eccentricities. But those who can embrace his writing will find a striking memoir that will stick with them for a long time after they put the book down.

Read my full review here: http://letseatgrandpa.com/2011/09/23/book-review-82-house-of-prayer-no-2-by-mark...½

I've tried and tried to like this book. It sort of reminds me of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time the way he explains his story. I still just didn't love it. It was interesting and at times reminded me of the Glass Castle poor child dealing with the antics of parents making bad decisions.

WOW what a story Richard has to tell!! If being "special" means you can write this well, than all authors should want to be "special". I loved how Richard didn't let his being "special" keep him from doing all of things he wanted to do, and even some things he didn't want to do. It would be a struggle to find another author who could say that Jackie Kennedy Onassis paid his doctor bills! This story is worth reading just for the snippet about the smokebus and the baby pigs! I loved that the author rebuilt his church. What a legacy that he has left for his sons!!

"Satan demands to sift us like sand through his fingers, and God, knowing everything, allows it."

A Must Read!!

I for one loved the second person narrative that Mark Richards has written his memoir in. It's like standing back and looking at something from a little bit farther away than you normally would, turning your head slightly and in doing so you see even more. He tells his story with humor, honesty and just a basic truthfulness that is endearing, funny and at the same time sobering. He does not gloss over the truth and tells it like it was growing up the 'special child' in the South. Due to deformities in his hips he is forced to go through several horrific surgeries from what he must recover from in full body casts, in the summer, in the south with NO air conditioning. Ugh. Despite severe pain through most of his life he enjoys many adventures (many of them drunken and drug infused), and comes to terms with the tough things life has thrown at him. Specifically his father. I highly recommend this book. It is a life well documented and beautifully described. It is not a pretty life but it is an honest life.½

If you love gritty, surreal southern writing riddled with imaginative and haunting imagery (which I do), this is the book for you.

I received House of Prayer as an Early Reviewer book. I signed up for it originally because the tag line is 'A Writer's Journey Home,' and I always like to read writers writing about writing.

House of Prayer, No 2, is indeed a memoir written by Hollywood screenwriter, Mark Richard, about his childhood and early adult years in the deep South. His childhood is colored by his problems with his hips, which cause him to go through awful treatments as doctors try to fix his bones. Lying in body casts, he is a vociferous reader, but once out of the casts, he becomes the kind of troublemaker that you warn your daughters away from.

When I started reading House of Prayer, I had just finished Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes, which is about Viet Nam. The styles were so very different. Matterhorn is written in the typical past tense while House of Prayer is written in the present tense. It was a jarring distinction and at first I didn't like it, and in fact, found it rather pretentious, but eventually it started to grow on me and by the time I reached the middle of the book, I didn't notice it anymore.

I found myself sympathizing with the young Richard at the beginning of the book, deemed a "special' child by teachers, forced to endure agonizing remedies for his hips, and dealing with a father who grows increasingly cold. As Richard grew older, however, my sympathy started to wane. Each page related another story of rebellion and lawlessness, as Richard's life spirals out of control. At one point I remember thinking that I didn't really want to read anymore about a guy who couldn't follow the rules, caused himself and others a lot of grief, and then wrote about about it and got rewarded for being such a jerk. And then the story turned and became a story of redemption and it totally changed the way I thought of Richard and his book.

Nicely done! Recommended!

While second-person narrative is difficult for most writers, Mark Richard's House of Prayer No. 2 is so compelling that the tale wouldn't sound right any other way. His memoir of being born with deformed hips in mid-50s rural Virginia is rich with description, reflection, resentment, astonishment and gratitude. From his long body-cast stays at Crippled Children's Hospital in Richmond to hauling nets on a fishing boat on the Outer Banks to an NYC writing workshop where he meets his future wife, he never stops searching for faith, for signs, for direction. It leads him back to where he began, the small southeastern Virginia town where, while financing a new church for his mother's congregation at House of Prayer No. 2, the deliverance Mark has sought is finally delivered, in all its marvelous glory.

Unfortunately, I was unable to finish this book. I started it several weeks ago and after struggling to finish the first 44 pages I just couldn’t do it anymore. The author’s use of 2nd person narrative is distracting from the story. I didn’t like reading “you” when I couldn’t relate to his story. He talks about tragic events and terrible things in such a nonchalant way that it feels so impersonal. I read a book for insight into the way things make other people feel and the author mentions these things in passing like they are inconsequential when to me they seem so tragic. So I found it very unrelatable. I think the writing is great and the author’s story is one worth hearing, but the style of the book bothered me too much. I would like to give this book another try later, especially after reading some other reviews that say it’s worth finishing, but right now I’m ready to move on to something else.