All the Old Haunts

Rating:
Summary: Deliciously Edgy, Dark and Beautiful...
Review: Is Chris Lynch really a 'Young Adult' author? The thought boggles my mind, as I am far from a Young Adult, and find his work tremendously captivating and cutting-edge, much in the vein of Stephen King in his early days or Poppy Z. Brite, but Lynch's work is not in the "Horror" genre. It teeters on the edges of the Abyss, explores the darker, more absurd, moments of the human condition, not unlike filmmaker David Lynch...I draw the parallel in that Chris Lynch's work is certainly visionary and almost surreal, while speaking about the realities of everyday, smalltown America. It certainly would captivate anyone who loves great literature, regardless of age.
I first discovered his work in "Whitechurch", the brilliantly twisted novel about a girl and two boys in a small, stagnant, semi-self destructive whirlpool of a town. The novel just sucked me in, and 'All The Old Haunts' is certainly following in that type of atmosphere.
In this collection of 10 brilliant short stories, Lynch covers the gamut, from a difficult father-son relationship, to abortion, grandparent-grandchild generation gaps (of a sinister nature), the boredom of a daily reality, death, stalking, semi-voyeurism.
His style in itself is gorgeous, and he doesn't wrap everything up in a tidy ending. If anything, I can say that if a reader wants a tightly wrapped story that has a definite beginning, middle and completed conclusion, this isn't for you. Lynch wants us to read between his lines, to fathom for ourselves what the true meaning or outcome of the story is or may be. His verbal style is sharp, witty, it made me laugh out loud at times, when I felt I shouldn't be laughing.
I can't really even begin to describe the stories, since they are somewhat surreal, but the typical book reviews seem to miss the point. They tend to 'dumb down' the themes...was the protagonist of 'Off Ya Go, So' an innocent figure, or a slightly incestuous 2nd cousin? Was he speaking of abortion?
Is 'Womb to Tomb' really about an 'evil brother', or is it a single teenager coping with Schizophrenia or some other mental illness that causes him to see himself as two different people?
What about 'Good-bye is Good-bye'? Is it really a friend visiting his friend's funeral, or is it about the suicide (or accidental death??) of one person? Lynch's work is so gorgeous in this way...there's a subtext that ripples underneath and forces you to think...
And this, I believe, is the sign of a truly great writer. 'Horror Vacui' really reminds me of Stephen King also, the surreal quality of a single person stuck in a small, hot July town, with almost no neighbors around, his thoughts, memories and senses the only thing that exist in his world, besides the buzzing 'buggy' bugs...
On a silly side note, Lynch seems to be a Beatles fan and works this into a few places, in both "Whitechurch" (through the 'Ophelia Lennon' character, a chapter in that novel titled 'Love Me Don't', and in 'Off Ya Go, So' in this collection)...and for me, as a Fab Four fan, this is really cool!
Hope to see much more from this electric author! I'm hooked!