Forensic Songs

Forensic Songs Synopsis

This story collection by a Man Booker Prize nominee ';effortlessly weaves Raymond Carver's lucidity together with Franz Kafka's otherworldly absurdity' (Library Journal, starred review). Amid much hollow laughter, a prisoner is drawn from his cell in the middle of the night to play a video game. Two rural guards ponder the security threat posed by the only man in Ireland not to have written his memoirs.

A child tries to offset his destiny as a serial killer by petitioning his father for a beating. Two men turn up at the door of a slacker to give him news of his death and recruit him to some mysterious surveillance mission. An older brother worries about the health of his younger sibling.

A late night American cop show becomes a savage analysis of a faltering marriage in the west of Ireland. A prodigal son returns to reveal the fear and hypocrisy that lie at the heart of his brother's life. From the acclaimed author of Solar Bones, ';Forensic Songs is a striking work of cross-genre virtuosity, where hints of speculative fiction and fable bring a surprising spark to McCormack's serious literary sensibility.

These pieces are clever, touching, timely and at times prescient. A distinctly Irish story collection, perfect for fans of George Saunders's Tenth of December' (Shelf Awareness).