"Ovenman" By Jeff Parker TinHouseBooks Price: $14 Pages: 250
Meet When Thinfinger, protagonist of "Ovenman," Jeff Parker's debut novel.
The teenager has had a strange life. Thinfinger has a rocky relationship with his stepfather, who gave him his unusual last name. His live-in girlfriend has occasional nightmares of him murdering her. And if you're wondering about Thinfinger's first name - the story behind it involves his 16-year-old mother passing out during birth and the only word she could spit out before losing consciousness was "When."
The tragically off-kilter name represents the entire mood of this coming-of-age novel. It's one part tragedy and one part biting comedy. And perhaps the novel's quirkiness can best be summed up by a sign in the pizza shop where he works: "Make Food, Not War."
Novels come and go nowadays, and there aren't many that stick in your mind long after you've read one. "Ovenman" isn't like that. It finds humor in situations that aren't necessarily funny and manages to tell a story about how difficult growing up can be.
The novel chronicles the youth of Thinfinger, who works as an ovenman at a local pizza store in Central Florida, "Ken's Barbie-Q."
Parker's novel is an enjoyable read because it's not all about tragedy and a series of unfortunate events in the anti-hero's life. It's also a tale of how convoluted teenage life can be.
Parker, a Syracuse graduate, tells the story of the so-called "un-cool" kids and what their lives are like - those are the best aspects of "Ovenman."
The plot of the novel revolves around Thinfinger's life going south once he's promoted to store manager. His problem is that he's not used to ordering people around and organizing worker's shifts; he wants to return to simpler times and be the ovenman again.
It's a strange slice-of-life novel, but it's one that keeps the reader interested throughout the entire story.
Thinfinger deals with the bizarre world around him, including his eccentric girlfriend, his disciplinarian stepfather and his unruly friends.
For example, Thinfinger's relationship with his stepfather features the typical push-and-pull between stepfather and son. When Thinfinger comes home covered in tattoos and a myriad of piercings, he is promptly kicked out of the house.
Thinfinger also happens to be in a punk-rock band, which adds to his nonconformity - and level of cliche. Though the character is written well, it can be stereotypical at the same time.
Parker writes his characters so intuitively as though he were once one of them, and it's important to note the author grew up in Central Florida and remains an avid skateboarder.
As a result of Parker's strong, intriguing characters, "Ovenman" is frenetic at times, but ultimately a funny, sad and intelligent read.
Jeff Parker, a graduate from Syracuse's creative writing program, recently published his first novel, "Ovenman," a dark comedy centered around a tattooed skateboarder who works the oven at a popular pizza parlor in Central Florida.
Parker, a Florida-native and creative writing professor at the University of Toronto, swears he has nothing in common with the main character - other than the setting and Parker's partiality toward tattoos and skateboarding. Parker will give a reading from his new book at Syracuse University this afternoon as part of the Raymond Carver Reading Series.
The Daily Orange had the chance to talk with Parker last week:
The Daily Orange: In the middle of your book tour, you tore your ACL. How did that happen?
Jeff Parker: In the city where I live, which is Toronto, a little skate park by me, which I ride in frequently, it has a bowl or cement pool and I was just doing something I've done a million and a half times, and I stepped off wrong and my 33-year old ligaments couldn't hold me.
Skateboarding and authoring novels seems like a strange combination - how did those two interests come together?
I think it's just skateboarders as a lot tend to be into underground things, whether it's literature, art, music or film. And nowadays, all of us are growing up. So maybe taking more seriously those underground things, and also still trying to be kids and tearing our ACLs.
How did Syracuse help you along as a writer?
I was lucky enough to get in (to the creative writing program). Then I just went up (to Syracuse) for three years trying to write a novel, and I'd put trying in italics because I wasn't really with it. I was just spinning my wheels. … (SU professors like) Arthur Flowers and George Saunders - they sort of instilled in me some kind of belief system.
You've been receiving strong reviews for "Ovenman." Did you expect such a strong response?
No, I didn't know what to expect. (The book was) published with an independent press, so on one hand, it's a good thing. You got people who really care about the word behind you other than the corporation, who would care more about the bottom line. I didn't know what's going to happen. So far, so good.
After growing up in Florida, how's living in Canada?
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