I saw Jeff read from this book in Chicago recently at Quimbys bookstore - I had kind of heard of him but I'd never read his zine, The Inner Swine, before. He was hilarious! The book's supposed to be a collection of articles from his zine, but it's got a pretty strong theme, which is the title: The freaks are winning! It sounds kind of mean but he's got a point: there are so many weird people in the world you start to feel like you're the only normal person. Of course, everyone feels that way, so we're all freaks, and Jeff's very aware of that.

Anyone who likes cynical, sarcastic, and sometimes bizarre humor will dig this book. It's thick too, so for [$] it's a good bargain. He's got a wonderfully self-effacing style, so even when he's telling you how genius he is, you're not put off by it. Definitely recommended.

If you've ever thought, "Gee, if Jeff Somers would just stop torturing us with his fiction and keep on delighting us with his cranky rants on things like zines, wedding receptions, freaks, and bastards my world would be a much sunnier place," then _The Freaks are Winning : The Inner Swine Collection_ will brighten your days considerably.

If you're familiar with Jeff's well-respected zine, _The Inner Swine_, you know what you're in for: Jeff's funny, irreverent commentary on seemingly every aspect of middle-class Jersey life, tied in with anecdotes of his drunken antics, real and imagined. ... This book, actually, is a great place to catch up on some of Jeff's better essays. ....

Jeff Somers is one of the very best fiction writers who hasn't signed a major publishing deal yet. This anthology is a fine compilation of his "lighter" material.

Jeff Somers is the voice of the Jersey dive bar. Big Time Success may elude him, though, for his fiction often relies on endings that are far too real for mainstream consumption. They lack the glam of Hollywood final scenes, which, by coincidence, are also absent in the lives of actual people. Then again, this may be the very reason Mr. Somers achieves big time success, allowing him to spend his days wallowing in hundred dollar bills, champagne cognac, and plastically enhanced women. Life can be funny that way.

_Lifers_ is funny in different and more subtle ways. In the novel, three New Jersey pals, Trim, a bad poet, Dub, an unfulfilled employee at a publishing company, and Dan, a recently unemployed drunkard, decide to alleviate their suffering by robbing Dub's place of employment.

These are typical Somers characters (one may find Mr. Somers's fiction in abundance in his entertaining quarterly, _The Inner Swine_): slackers, drinkers, smokers, with some Jersey charm and wit thrown in. They are gritty Jersey real. They are likably flawed. One of Mr. Somers's biggest triumphs in this novel is that Dub, the narrator, has an insightful, self-conscious nature which allows the reader to root for him. Were he simply a lazy oaf, the novel would not nearly be so enjoyable.

Another delight is the author's ear for dialogue. It rarely rings false. He manages to maintain character differentiation and continuity, with a combination of subtlety and humor. Mr. Somers's choice of setting (mainly Jersey dive bars) reflects the desperation of his three main characters.

"The Plan" itself is a metaphor for Mr. Somers's generation: while it succeeds (they are not caught,) it has no real positive impact on the participants' lives. Things go on largely as they did before. In the end, all it gets them is rid of each other.

While Hollywood may miss out on Mr. Somers's style, I'm not so sure that is a bad thing. There are a growing number of people who are fed up with typical Hollywood shlock anyway. And I for one celebrate writers like Jeff Somers who eschew that path for one more dear to a working-class reality.

Three of the most fortunate people the world has ever known - healthy young white American males with Manhattan jobs and apartments- who feel bored and discontented. This can certainly happen but needs more comment than the author gives it. The only reasons for their despair are that they don't like their jobs (one of them loses his job but finds temporary work) and would like more money and are frustrated writers. I wanted to understand more. They party and drink and plan a not-very-major crime (stealing some office furniture). There are some good confrontations (with the professional criminals they ask to help) and funny episodes. (For example: They realize that the truck they are going to use has a standard shift and none of them knows how to use it. They have ask a girl-friend to give them emergency driving instruction). The whole thing read like an amusing half hour television sitcom. Good entertainment but not much more than that. I felt there was more important novel in there trying to get out.

I read this book in a weekend, it was so fun to read. I felt like I'd met people just like the characters, and really appreciated the whole story. I've felt the same things these characters have felt. Mr. Somers has written an entertaining book that I'm loaning to a friend of mine, which I don't often do. I loved the narrator, Dub - his attitude was very funny! Definitely a recommended read.