The Show that Smells is a book for when you start feeling like you'll never read anything that surprises youThis book is insane. I didn't know books could be like this. It is a mirror maze of a book. It is a string of dead baby jokes and high fashion references. it is a vampire love story, loaded with gay sex and the monster hunting, gospel singing Carter Family. I have never read anything like it.I think Derek McCormack is easily the best writer in Canada. Here's a snippet of my Torontoist review:Only a few pages into this sprint-paced novella, it's immediately apparent that McCormack has created something innovative, entertaining, and quite possibly ground-breaking. With its biting beats of refined prose and inventive storyline, it would certainly be easy to label this release as one of the best books of the year. To sum it up as a vampire story is to belittle its complexity—it's a pleasurable mash-up of high experimental literature and low Hollywood pulp, packed with the kind of crooked humour, wit, and style that invites readers in rather than confusing and excluding them. Beyond that, the book is a hell of a lot of fun. The Show that Smells is a showcase for an innovative writer who has perfected his technique, and there is no denying that McCormack is an extraordinary talent.
What do You think about The Show That Smells (2008)?
McCormack is the love child of Dracula and Houdini.
—shybutterfly
