This is the story of a man named Milo. Well, frequently a man, but sometimes a woman, a rabbit, a tree, a fish, a bug- any number of things. Sometimes he’s on earth: the Midwest, Japan, Africa, a top-secret lab in the great plains- and sometimes he’s in space. He’s always in love, but usually in love with Death. Not dying- just one of the many personifications of Death. She’s usually a woman named Suzy, but sometimes she’s a witch, or a candle maker, or the wind itself. Milo and Suzy are tangled up in the kinds of knots that require scissors to undo. There’s true aching romance in some lives, and unadulterated horror in many others. Milo’s story is frequently funny but also equally distressing.
Michael Poore writes like he too is an eternal combination of nearly 10,000 living beings; the rate at which this book flies between genres is like a carnival ride; dizzying, mesmerizing, and terrifying. The minuscule connections from life to life are countless and clever. Obviously, I absolutely adored the ride and dreaded reaching the end. While this book is wholly original, I saw frequent flashes of favorite authors, including but not limited to: Kurt Vonnegut, Scott Hawkins, Neil Gaiman, and Helen Oyeyemi. The most prevailing sense of familiarity comes from strong Tom Robbins vibes- which I wholly enjoyed. No one can be Tom Robbins, but Michael Poore comes awfully close. There were moments that, in style (and some substance- but nothing derivative) made me awfully nostalgic for old favorites like Still Life with Woodpecker, Jitterbug Perfume, and Villa Incognito. This was my first dance with Michael Poore, and I look forward to many more in the future. Should you wish to check this out, be sure to read through his author bio on Amazon- this dude definitely practices what he preaches.