|
|
 |
Reader Feedback on "James"
Woof Woof! I love this story, and I love Bruce Benderson--what a doll. Most authors who write about the underworld seem to cheaply romanticise it, while others merely rely on the shock or entertainment value of it. Bruce pulls off that rare thing in writing about wayward peoples. He humanizes them without the gloss. When I read Bruce's stories I get a real sense of his characters. When I'm done reading, I feel I understand and know these characters' quirks, neuroses, strengths and weaknesses. Their relationship, as fucked up as it is, makes sense--but i'm not forced to sypathize with it, like it or hate it. No judgement is needed. It just is. They just are. Furthermore, Benderson as protagonist, a white guy with money, takes these walks on the wild side--the seedier side of society--but doesn't come off as a tourist, or some dandy slumming it. He fits right into to the fabric and never judges or condescends the waifs that he takes in. He treats them as emotional equals. And his lesser-classed and -educated paramours reciprocate.
--JH
06/19 |
I was a drug-addicted hooker for 10 years, but no john was ever that nice to me. Pay for my methadone? If only. And that photo of him is to die for. Bruce, honey, come to me.
--JZ
06/11 |
A great, stunning even piece of writing. Makes the hairs stand up on the back of your neck, and I'm not talking about the author's recklessness - then again, maybe I am. Clarity and poetry in one honest package is a very difficult trick to pull off, but Benderson does it with apparent, blissed-out (if tortured) ease. I'm going to look up some of his other work now.
--SF
06/11 |
It's true. I've been reading Benderson's fiction and essays for about 10 years, and no matter how creepy the situation, he seems to discover the humanity in it. Also, I like his clear prose. But it is a wonder how he keeps his head above water, given the subjects he chooses. Way to go, Bruce.
--PL
06/10 |
If this is a true story, I like this person. Despite the sordid involvement, he's not afraid to face his own feelings and he seems very caring. If only I could meet a man out there like that. Bruce, if you're reading this, e-mail me. (LBingo@aol.com)
--ep
06/10 |
Very colorful and articulate. You've absorbed me.
--CG
06/06 |
LOVED it. Except the part about the leg...all that nasty mortification doesn't really happen, does it? You just get a few bruises, and, you know, maybe an overall jaundiced yellow...
--COPI
05/30 |
"James" speaks about every john who's ever been hooked on a contact high. is this an excerpt from Benderson's USER? seems to cover the same masochistic / co-dependent territory .
--jHan
05/30 |
okay, okay, already! enough with the anti-drug messages that seem to stitch up each and every one of the contributions to the sex and drugs issue. Dirty, The Night Visitor, and now, James - they all leave the aftertaste that drugs are evil, (which any thinking person knows isnt true. drugs just *are*, its the people using/abusing them who are positive or negative). surely there are some well-written folks who have had some *positive* experiences with sex and drugs. how about publishing some of those?
--bk1
05/30 |
send feedback on "James"
back to "James" |
|
|
