In this collection of short stories Hoppe confronts some of the nastier elements--landlords, bad hotels, drunks in the hall, brutal poverty, etc. Occasionally he breaks into Kerouacian euphony and beatitude, but for the most part it's beat dead on. No melodrama, no romanticization, Hoppe is a man unafraid to witness the horrors in front of him for what they are and then bring it home in our face. To say he lives his work is a gross understatement--there appears to be no difference between the two. In case you haven't noticed, if you turn off the TV there's a real world out there. These are tales of that world.--Jake Berry
This review originally appeared in TapRoot Reviews #2,
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