And the Soft Wind Blows Lance Umenhofer 9780988206106 Books
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Timmy Enosh is a peculiar, small man fivethree, onehundredandfifteen pounds, and is a pharmacist in Ashton City, Tennessee. He finds himself at fortythreeyearsold as his life starts to fall apart his threehundred pound wife disappears, his romantic interest has lost interest and has gained hatred toward him, his coworkers harass him, customers verbally assault him, and he has the strange urge to adopt his foulmouthed, eighteenyearold coworker, Alex. When things start to pile up, Timmy must find a way to deal he turns to Alex to supply him with marijuana, starts sewing an elaborate Mr. Mistoffelees costume, finds solace in the wild, etc., etc., etc. And the soft, constant wind of change blows him on, on, and on.
And the Soft Wind Blows Lance Umenhofer 9780988206106 Books
Sometimes, just sometimes, you open up a book and start reading, and you're utterly hooked because you just have absolutely no idea where the story will go. In And The Soft Wind Blows, everything is where it's supposed to be, but there's an unpredictability over-riding everything. And it's the business.THE STORY
Timmy and Mandy married young, and Timmy was filled with the wonder and joy of eternal love. But while Timmy stayed smaller than his curiosity of spirit may indicate, Mandy got bigger and bigger, and filling up the house with her growing dissatisfaction. Timmy works two jobs, and gets by creating himself a fantasy girl in Roxy, the lady who works at his local diner.
One day, things start to fall apart. Roxy gets upset with Timmy, and Mandy doesn't come home in the evening. Timmy realises that life is tenuous, and you can't rely on everything to go on the way it should. Timmy embarks on a spiritual journey into the darkness of his soul, in the hope of making some sense of the mess his life has become.
THE STYLE
On Lance Umenhofer's website, he refers to his style of writing as poetic fiction, and this isn't a misnomer. Some of his phrases run together with no spaces, linking up like natural verbal speech. All the dialogue is written with a heavy accent and emphases, and Timmy's thoughts are magical and commonplace all at once. It's stunning stylistically, and the poetic nature of the writing conjures a dense and vivid reality.
I suspect it's this heavy realism in the characters that makes it so difficult to figure out what's going to happen next, which makes the plot all the more fascinating. Right up to the end, it's like being on a ride blindfolded, and I don't mind saying that when I did hit the twist at the end and the story finished, I was devastated because I just wasn't finished with it yet! It was more like a snapshot and I wanted MORE. But I also have to admit that the ending adds to the realism; since when is life complete? It's a series of snapshots. Furthermore, And The Soft Wind Blows is only 155 pages long, which means it really is a snapshot. So it's a breeze to read, but by the time you hit the end you're so invested in the story that left saying "No! More!".
And The Soft Wind Blows reminded me of Something Happened by Joseph Heller (but a heck of a lot shorter), which just happens to be on my list of the most amazing reads ever. So, I heartily recommend this lovely story.
WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?
Lance Umenhofer suggests it's a hipster read, but I'd like to think it has broader appeal than that. It's very short, so even if you're intimidated by books this is fantastic. Furthermore, it will enrich your life with its poetry, so just read it already. Jeez.
IF YOU LIKE THIS BOOK YOU WOULD ALSO LIKE...
Something Happened by Joseph Heller! Unless, of course, you don't have that much time to invest. If not I'll excuse you, but maybe try and get your hands on something else of Lance's. He has a website, as mentioned above, which may enlighten you.
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Tags : And the Soft Wind Blows [Lance Umenhofer] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Timmy Enosh is a peculiar, small man: fivethree, onehundredandfifteen pounds, and is a pharmacist in Ashton City,Lance Umenhofer,And the Soft Wind Blows,Free Lance Enterprises,0988206102,Fiction - General,Fiction General,General,Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)
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And the Soft Wind Blows Lance Umenhofer 9780988206106 Books Reviews
Lance Umenhofer shares a character study in his novella, And the Soft Wind Blows. The main character, Timmy, is a middle aged man whose wife is nothing to be proud of and his life is, to say the least, not a full one. He lacks the love that we all desire, the pride that we all strive for, and the strength to reach for more.
The entire novella covers a very small section of Timmy's life. The reader gets an in-depth glance at a man who settled for a woman who doesn't love him and a job that doesn't make him happy or proud. As the life he tiptoes around crumbles, Timmy succumbs to nothingness, choosing to erase his entire life and pharmaceutically invent another one. Readers will be able to connect with Timmy based on his hope that someday he may achieve what he dreams of. But by that same token, I think readers will wonder if Timmy's choices actually align with those dreams, or if he takes the easy way out of a difficult situation.
It asks the question how easy or difficult would it be for the average person, whom I think Umenhofer based Timmy on, to mentally re-create the life they've always wanted. If you could take a pill that would let you forget your life and replace it with one you've made up, would you do it? I think the spur of the moment answer would be yes, but in all reality could you so easily give up what you've spent your entire life building?
And the Soft Wind Blows is a study of the character that lives inside of everyone. The character that bargains for more. The character that we all can connect with and never understand.
Writing a novella is a unique challenge. In a short number of pages, the author must create an intriguing story that features well-developed characters. In his debut novella, And the Soft Wind Blows, author Lance Umenhofer chooses to focus mainly on one character, allowing readers to delve into his psyche and really begin to understand his motivations.
The story itself balances on the edge of convention. The main character, Timmy, is a skinny, middle-age pharmacist who works at the local Walgreens. The opening portion of the story sets up the monotony that is the life of Timmy Enosh. Each day, he wakes up before dawn, and heads out to pick up Alex, a high school student who tosses newspapers from Tim's truck. After their morning paper route is complete, he drops Alex off at the bus stop and proceeds to have breakfast at Roxie's, a small diner.
We learn of Tim's obese wife who seems to use him as a personal butler more than a husband. It is no wonder then that Tim finds himself attracted to Roxie, the owner of the diner where he eats his breakfast each morning. In his mind, Tim fantasizes about the life he could have with Roxie, but per routine, he doesn't act on these feelings. Instead, he goes to his job at Walgreens, continuing the monotony that is his life.
Soon this predictability becomes too much for Tim to handle. In a radical shift of self-discovery, he begins to do things that make him happy. He buys marijuana from his paper route partner, Alex, decides to act upon his feelings for Roxie, and moves back in with his overprotective mother. But is all this change for the good, or is it the early signs of Tim's slow descent into madness?
I was very impressed with this novella. By following the actions of one character, Umenhofer creates a story that maintains a strong focus, while still being engaging. The story follows Tim chronologically, broken down by each day. I was reminded a bit of the 2002 film, One Hour Photo, where Robin Williams plays a photo technician at a store, similar to Walgreens. In the movie, he too becomes disenchanted with the routine of his life and turns violent. In Umenhofer's tale, readers are guided into the mind of Tim the pharmacist and become so involved that it is hard to discern reality from fantasy. The story ends with a kind of twist ending that made me question every conclusion I had drawn to that point. With this novella, Umenhofer has proven his competency as a writer, and I look forward to seeing what he produces in the future.
Sometimes, just sometimes, you open up a book and start reading, and you're utterly hooked because you just have absolutely no idea where the story will go. In And The Soft Wind Blows, everything is where it's supposed to be, but there's an unpredictability over-riding everything. And it's the business.
THE STORY
Timmy and Mandy married young, and Timmy was filled with the wonder and joy of eternal love. But while Timmy stayed smaller than his curiosity of spirit may indicate, Mandy got bigger and bigger, and filling up the house with her growing dissatisfaction. Timmy works two jobs, and gets by creating himself a fantasy girl in Roxy, the lady who works at his local diner.
One day, things start to fall apart. Roxy gets upset with Timmy, and Mandy doesn't come home in the evening. Timmy realises that life is tenuous, and you can't rely on everything to go on the way it should. Timmy embarks on a spiritual journey into the darkness of his soul, in the hope of making some sense of the mess his life has become.
THE STYLE
On Lance Umenhofer's website, he refers to his style of writing as poetic fiction, and this isn't a misnomer. Some of his phrases run together with no spaces, linking up like natural verbal speech. All the dialogue is written with a heavy accent and emphases, and Timmy's thoughts are magical and commonplace all at once. It's stunning stylistically, and the poetic nature of the writing conjures a dense and vivid reality.
I suspect it's this heavy realism in the characters that makes it so difficult to figure out what's going to happen next, which makes the plot all the more fascinating. Right up to the end, it's like being on a ride blindfolded, and I don't mind saying that when I did hit the twist at the end and the story finished, I was devastated because I just wasn't finished with it yet! It was more like a snapshot and I wanted MORE. But I also have to admit that the ending adds to the realism; since when is life complete? It's a series of snapshots. Furthermore, And The Soft Wind Blows is only 155 pages long, which means it really is a snapshot. So it's a breeze to read, but by the time you hit the end you're so invested in the story that left saying "No! More!".
And The Soft Wind Blows reminded me of Something Happened by Joseph Heller (but a heck of a lot shorter), which just happens to be on my list of the most amazing reads ever. So, I heartily recommend this lovely story.
WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?
Lance Umenhofer suggests it's a hipster read, but I'd like to think it has broader appeal than that. It's very short, so even if you're intimidated by books this is fantastic. Furthermore, it will enrich your life with its poetry, so just read it already. Jeez.
IF YOU LIKE THIS BOOK YOU WOULD ALSO LIKE...
Something Happened by Joseph Heller! Unless, of course, you don't have that much time to invest. If not I'll excuse you, but maybe try and get your hands on something else of Lance's. He has a website, as mentioned above, which may enlighten you.
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