Burning Girl: A Novel

by Ben Neihart (Weisbach Books) 245 pp. $ 24.00
by Thomas Christian

“Drew peeled his sticky, flushed face from the sweaty seat. He opened his eyes, slowly, against the bright light. His leg tensed outward onto the gravel driveway; sun fell on his bare ankles. For a moment he rested, undisturbed.”

“He thought he could hear what she wanted from him, thought he could hear her brain making words she wouldn’t say out loud. She wanted comfort, he thought, she wanted solace. Maybe a back rub, maybe just a soft kiss on her bare back. He hovered there, blind for a ticking moment.”

“He fell forward, his open mouth fell forward and landed, wet, on the back of her thigh.”

“Weak sun broke against the bottle-glass windows. It felt like the bottom of a well. Dank air hung in dusty layers.”

“He knew that there were reasons to be alone, contemplating an act. There was a time for living in your head, building your will. But you had to know when to switch to action.”

“If you waited just a minute too long, your chance disappeared. This life wanted battle. This life wanted now.”

“A gust of wind picked up a net of cold streamwater and lifted it over the dam summit. It felt like an icy rain across his back, but this once he didn’t shiver.”