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"Fight like you are not who you are and that'll keep them on their toes."
In THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL, legendary NBA guard turned infamous general manager Isiah Thomas told the pope of sports nerds Bill Simmons the secret of basketball: "The secret of basketball is that it's not about basketball,'' he said. He couldn't have been any more right, really, but it's the secret of sports in general. It's not the sport you play, but how you play it, who you play it with and for what reasons.
This is the reason why I'm a picky bastard with boxing/martial arts fiction. Some of it can't see beyond the sport (lifeless), other only see beyond the sport (romantic, masturbatory), but linking the athletic and should I say, metaphysics of sports together in a meaningful way is extra rare. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS, by Michael J. Seidlinger takes an honest swing at the boxing novel, yet it's a boxing novel that's not about boxing. That's why I think it is quite successful at what it's trying to do.
"Sugar" Willem Floures is a legendary boxing coming off a loss to a younger, hungrier opponent. He's always been a smart boxing, not a knockout artists, but a savvy technician with a gift for wearing out his opponents. The agony of defeat is pulling him down and ultimately confront him to his greatest, most durable opponent: himself. The ring has always been Willem's escape valve throughout his life, but now that a shadow has been cast on his career, he'll need to confront the very reasons why he's been trading punches for a living. That is darker and more terrifying challenge than any opponent.
So, there you go. I said it: THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is not a boxing novel. It is though, the entire life of protagonist Willem, so it is embedded in his habits, his imaginary and in his vernacular. It's the prism through which he understands existence. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is very much a novel about identity. About understanding oneself without embracing a cultural or racial heritage. I gotta say I identified very much with that ambition because I'm a white, catholic man from German descent, so embracing my cultural heritage would pretty much turn me into a neo-nazi.
Lazy Fascist Press, who published THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS in 2013, is known to release books that don't quite fit anywhere, written by and for people who don't quite fit anywhere precise, too. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is not the kind of novel that calls you off the rack, but it's a book that finds its readers one way or another. There's no mildly enjoyment of it to be had. You'll either be completely into the book or you won't even finish it.
Fighting is the most primarily existential thing there is. Someone you punch in the face can't deny your existence. You have to be his absolute priority. It's that idea that ties THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS to the world of the living. I'm not sure anyone who hasn't been punched for sport can quite understand this to its fullest extent, but Michael J. Seidlinger's novel breaks the idea down as well as any fiction on the market today.
"Sugar" Willem Floures is a legendary boxing coming off a loss to a younger, hungrier opponent. He's always been a smart boxing, not a knockout artists, but a savvy technician with a gift for wearing out his opponents. The agony of defeat is pulling him down and ultimately confront him to his greatest, most durable opponent: himself. The ring has always been Willem's escape valve throughout his life, but now that a shadow has been cast on his career, he'll need to confront the very reasons why he's been trading punches for a living. That is darker and more terrifying challenge than any opponent.
So, there you go. I said it: THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is not a boxing novel. It is though, the entire life of protagonist Willem, so it is embedded in his habits, his imaginary and in his vernacular. It's the prism through which he understands existence. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is very much a novel about identity. About understanding oneself without embracing a cultural or racial heritage. I gotta say I identified very much with that ambition because I'm a white, catholic man from German descent, so embracing my cultural heritage would pretty much turn me into a neo-nazi.
I can't just be Willem Floures.
I have to be "Sugar".
I can't own a name without an alias.
Strip away "the fighter" and I'm no close to being Willem than you.
THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is not a novel for the masses. If you're looking for a boxing novel, you're going to be disappointed. It would've never made the Fight Card series and it's fine that it wouldn't have. Michael J Seidlinger's writing has this disembodied quality, and the plot of the book, revolving around Willem Floures fighting his past, his regrets and his contradictions is abstract and sometimes hard to follow. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS has Beckettian ambitions and isn't shy about it. If you've read THE UNNAMABLE and lived to tell about it you'll probably enjoy this more contemporary and accessible novel.
Lazy Fascist Press, who published THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS in 2013, is known to release books that don't quite fit anywhere, written by and for people who don't quite fit anywhere precise, too. THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS is not the kind of novel that calls you off the rack, but it's a book that finds its readers one way or another. There's no mildly enjoyment of it to be had. You'll either be completely into the book or you won't even finish it.
Fighting is the most primarily existential thing there is. Someone you punch in the face can't deny your existence. You have to be his absolute priority. It's that idea that ties THE LAUGHTER OF STRANGERS to the world of the living. I'm not sure anyone who hasn't been punched for sport can quite understand this to its fullest extent, but Michael J. Seidlinger's novel breaks the idea down as well as any fiction on the market today.
