Official Review: The Horrible Life of Steve Harvey Oswald

[evraealtana]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Horrible Life of Steve Harvey Oswald" by B.R. Ghent.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The Horrible Life of Steve Harvey Oswald, written by B.R. Ghent, is a collection of poetry that describes itself as “the unsanitized transcript of the journals of [the] lonely white guy who tried to assassinate President Clinton in 1998”. The protagonist, Oswald, is a fictitious character who struggles under the weight of substance abuse, extreme misogyny, and dark bouts of mental illness. The poetry explores Oswald’s sexual fantasies, slightly unhinged mental state, and observations about the world, which range from overarching (“to understand that we cannot understand / is to understand as close as we can”) to miniscule (“my house is [overrun] by bugs... / the largest bug has an egg-sack on her back”).

There is no plot to speak of, as very few events actually take place, and the ones that are included are only mentioned briefly to set a mood and are then abandoned. Some of the poems explicitly describe dreams, while a few others are probably intended to be dreams, given that Oswald's sometimes criminal actions are never followed with any real consequences. The text also jumps from image to image with little if any connection; for example, a scene that briefly begins with Oswald riding in a car being driven by his drunk father abruptly flashes to him hiding under the stairs and then switches again to when he "woke up driving at gunpoint / with the woman [he] almost married". Oswald's hopeless, aimless ramblings, with loneliness and inconsequentiality as strong themes, give the impression that Oswald is precisely the sort of person who would try to assassinate a president, if for no other reason than to feel, for one brief moment, that someone was paying attention.

Each section is preceded by a brief quotation from Oswald’s imaginary therapists, teachers, and friends, all of whom corroborate Oswald’s lifelong mental disturbances. I loved that Ghent included these “interviews”, which make Oswald feel less like a book character and more like a real person you just haven’t met yet. Illustrations and sometimes photographs are included periodically, although there is very little explanation for them and most seem only loosely related to the text, if at all. I sometimes felt that these images detracted from the poetry, particularly when the drawings were sexually or violently graphic for no apparent purpose.

Red flags abound for those who are sensitive to mentions of almost any of life’s “rougher” aspects. Profanity seeps into every corner of the book, as do sexual objectification, assault, drug abuse, and a host of other possible points of contention. This work is therefore, unsurprisingly, inappropriate for underage readers. However, there is almost no religious content at all, and so I see no reason that faith should be a barrier to reading the book.

The book appears professional and polished. It was difficult to distinguish between true errors and poetic style, like the infrequent use of punctuation and almost complete lack of capitalization, but the true errors I could identify were minor and inconsequential to the work.

The Horrible Life of Steve Harvey Oswald earns a score of 3 out of 4 for its raw, unfiltered expression of a disquieted mind. It loses a star for its rambling style, which precludes it from imparting any sort of story or message. It would most appeal to adults who like free-form poetry and are unafraid to dip into life's shadier recesses.

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The Horrible Life of Steve Harvey Oswald
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[PeterRabitt20]

The author's description used for the book as "unsanitized" is something else. Is this a political satire? The character's name, Steve Harvey Oswald, sounds "unbalanced". Your review was great! BTW did Steve Harvey read this book?

[Victoria Copsey]

This seems like a really intriguing read and I'm compelled to give it a go after reading your review. Thanks.

[Goodness C N]

I do love the premise of this book and I will love to give it a try. Specifically, the thought-provoking topics it explores. Great review.

[Praise GodWord]

This sounds like a poetry novel. The aspect of the fantasies turns me of.

[Drianie]

What a unique and compelling concept! It honestly sounds like nothing I've read before. Initially, I had my doubts about reading this book, but your review convinced me to at least give it a go. I enjoyed reading your excellent review!

[evraealtana]

The author's description used for the book as "unsanitized" is something else. Is this a political satire? The character's name, Steve Harvey Oswald, sounds "unbalanced". Your review was great! BTW did Steve Harvey read this book?

I doubt it, but maybe! I think the character's name is "Steve Harvey" (a humorous celebrity) + "Lee Harvey Oswald" (an actual presidential assassin) = a fictional, mockable, would-be/failed presidential assassin.

It is definitely not satire of any kind (or if it is, I missed it completely!), and there actually isn't much of anything political in it. If anything, there is a slight liberal leaning in some of the mentions of capitalism and wealth distribution, but nothing that would be out of character for Oswald, who is poor, apparently unemployed, and generally down about life.

The author mentions having written the book during a shockingly dark period in his life and using his poetry to wallow in his misery and mental illness. "Unbalanced" is most definitely an apt description.

And thank you for your kind words

[evraealtana]

This sounds like a poetry novel. The aspect of the fantasies turns me of.

I don't blame you for that a bit; this book is definitely is not for everyone.

[evraealtana]

What a unique and compelling concept! It honestly sounds like nothing I've read before. Initially, I had my doubts about reading this book, but your review convinced me to at least give it a go. I enjoyed reading your excellent review!

Thank you very much! The book is unique, that is for sure.

[oluwalonimi29]

Not a fan of poetry.But the review did justice to the book