Chris Offutt has written seven books and
Country Dark is the 7th and may be his finest —
although I am partial to Kentucky Straight, as well, his first book.
Everything is lean and a little mean and quite supreme in Country Dark
so one may be surprised and even disappointed that there is an
unnecessary "epilogue" at the end of this novel.
It certainly doesn't kill the book but we have become
so used to figures — human and animal — in the novel
taking off for the hills on-foot,
free and clear, and maybe
the story should have
been left that way.
[ BA ]
Grove Press
2018
