 Obviously a short book, it could have been better by being shorter, more selective, but this a minor consideration. When there are so few books that have quality of this kind, one accepts readily what the author gives us. And what Rasmussen gives us is mostly splendid indeed.
Reviewed by Bob Williams
Come Raw
by Lars Rasmussen
Serving House Books
2009, ISBN 978-0-9825462-2-2, $10.00, 71 pages
Lars Rasmussen is an antiquarian bookseller in Copenhagen. Serving House Books has four other titles by Rasmussen available and refers to them as being in English. One may conclude that the original text may have been in Danish although, since no translator is indicated, this remains a speculation.
As a man who earns his living from something other than writing, it is reasonable to speculate that he is not fully dedicated as a writer and allows himself more latitude than if his livelihood depended on his writing. This may not be a general law, but there is about Come Raw an occasional touch of the dedicated amateur.
One can assert as a general law that an author who responds with such lively fervor to the literary influence of other, greater authors needs special consideration. Is he a mere imitator or is he something better and more interesting?
Slavish imitation reaps no rewards but Rasmussen falls into another class. Yes, there are obvious inspirations from Kafka, Borges, and Calvino, but the impression is that Rasmussen serves up what they could have thought of but did not. He thus does us a favor as a continuator of talent and the reader finds his works fresh and ingenious.
Some of Rasmussen’s concepts are too lacking in promise to succeed. ‘In the Imperial Stables,’ a sketch narrated by the straw in the imperial stalls, has about it the effort of an idea worked out in detail that should have been suppressed as unworkable. There are some examples of this kind of authorial self-indulgence, but when he is good he is very, very good – and surprising in his imaginative inventiveness.
This short book contains twenty ‘stories.’ The lengths are notably uneven with short offerings that push the boundary between prose and poetry. Early sketches involve the obvious admiration that Rasmussen has for Rimbaud and the story told by a sailor who comes across Rimbaud at various stages of his life but is unaware of Rimbaud’s importance or identity is skillful and telling. ‘A Thief of Fates’ examines the result of men and women whose destinies are stolen: they lead ordinary lives, cheated by the thief of grand careers. ‘Fighting Toads’ studies greed, the stubborn male ego, and the fatality of unbalanced dedication to sporting events.
Obviously a short book, it could have been better by being shorter, more selective, but this a minor consideration. When there are so few books that have quality of this kind, one accepts readily what the author gives us. And what Rasmussen gives us is mostly splendid indeed.
About the Reviewer: Bob Williams is retired and lives in a small town with his wife, dogs and a cat. He has been collecting books all his life, and has done freelance writing, mostly on classical music. His principal interests are James Joyce, Jane Austen and Homer. His writings, two books and a number of short articles on Joyce, can be accessed at: http://www.grand-teton.com/service/Persons_Places
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