In his introduction to Jeff Parker's wonderfully weird debut about a skateboarder working in a pizza parlor in the '90s, fellow writer Sam Lipsyte says, "Welcome to Ovenman. This excellent novel comes in many flavors, or, better yet, toppings: stripmall bildungsroman, punk-skater picaresque, comedy of (bad) manners, quasi-love story, service industry send-up, and military-industrial satire among them." Which might sound like hyperbole, but it's kind of true.

The frenetic and wickedly funny story follows When Thinfinger, a skateboarder who sings in a crappy local band, dates a girl who covers their apartment with small animal skulls, and has a family who isn't speaking to him because of his myriad tattoos. He likes to drink. A lot. So much that he has to rely on Post-It notes-to-self to compensate for his lack of short-term memory. The end result is an entertaining book about a well-meaning underdog that will make you snort out loud and then really think. So maybe you shouldn't bring it to the gym.

You can order your copy of Ovenman here. Read it, love it, and then mark your calendars for Wednesday, November 14th, when Parker will be in town at Books and Books (265 Aragon Avenue, 305-442-4408) for a reading and signing!

- Caroline Stanley

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