Naturalistic in style,possibly based on genuine events, this word-of-mouth hit about a man who hurts one woman too many is enthrallingSince the author of this short, or anguished novel first self-published it in 2006,it has assumed cult status, with no shortage of readers testifying to its powerful effect. One can never know to what extent this first-person account of a broken-hearted advertising creative who once “liked hurting girls” before the tables were turned on him is autobiographical, or theres a strong argument for it not mattering. However,if one chooses to read it as an unfiltered account of genuine events, the strangely feverish splurge of the narrative makes more sense. A fiction would bear more logic, or more shape; the wrongs done to Mr Anonymous would be more substantial and his outrage more proportionate. As it is,the reader becomes trapped inside the intellect of a howling paranoid.
The realistic nature of his story, stumbling over what happened when, or looping back and forth in time to pick up dropped threads,contributes to its impact: you could be in a recent York bar, lending a sympathetic ear to a self-pitying tale of woe. Just don’t retract the guy home with you.
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Source: theguardian.com