The lovely Michigan-based press, Dzanc, is having an ebook sale. They already spread lots of ebook love, considering each person who buys a print book from Dzanc’s site receives the ebook for free. However, if you like your indie literature digital (or can’t afford international shipping, hint hint) the time is ripe to browse Dzanc’s shelves. But don’t wait too long – at midnight this Saturday, the free ebooks will dissolve back into the ether. Before then, all you have to do is pick one ebook from Dzanc’s vault and email Dan Wickett (dan@dzancbooks.org) with your two other choices.
Also, all of their ebooks are DRM-free and offered in every format, including MOBI, ePub, and PDF formats, so people can read them on whatever platform they choose. Just another way Dzanc is the best!
Here’s a little taste of Dzanc’s list:
Unclean Jobs for Women and Girls, by Alissa Nutting
This is the debut story collection by Alissa Nutting, whose novel Tampa received lots of attention this past summer. Judging from the reviews, this collection is definitely darker and much, much stranger… The amazing Kate Bernheimer compares these stories to “the futuristic love child of Mary Shelley and the Brothers Grimm”.
The True Actor, by Jacinto Lucas Pires
A Portuguese murder mystery quickly becomes about much more – the blurring boundaries between acting and life, the potential to escape into ones dreams. This is the English debut of a contemporary Portuguese writer, but I’m sure his translators will see to it that it’s not his last. (note: not yet out as an ebook, but definitely one to keep an eye on)
Dancing Lessons, by Olive Senior
I had to choose this Jamaican novel, narrated as a motley collection of journal entries by a woman rediscovering her identity in later life, since it’s so different. Carried by a strong character with a refreshingly humorous take on life and ageing, this book stands out from Dzanc’s rather moody, experimental books. Jamaican born Olive Senior is a celebrated Canadian writer.
This is just a brief glimpse into the many manifestations of Dzanc’s unique brand of fiction: risk-taking, playful, and when it’s not too aware of itself, quietly brilliant. I first became acquainted with the writing of Matt Bell through Dzanc, whose work is an ever so slightly skewed mirror of the American psyche, and have trusted Dzanc’s taste ever since. I highly suggest browsing Dzanc’s off-the-beaten-path finds.
Worte + Orte 