David F. Hoenigman is the author of the experimental novel, Burn Your Belongings.
Hoenigman's novel is placed in a nameless city, but if you were trying to guess it, you might have a go at Tokyo, where David read and performed this past month. David shared this excerpt for our readers:
He questioned me. an obvious outsider. violently onto the floor. cut the palm of his hand. to pride oneself on anything. the stupidity. words clumsily in the air. we’re rotting here. I hardly recognize him. I stuff a handful into my mouth. I’ve made a nuisance of myself. I hope to be wrongly identified. returned. my case is one of the mildest. spun from boredom. ineffectiveness. any foray into this kind of complacency. I stood before it and pondered what it might bring. gentle and soothing. into her dingy surroundings. I feel like I’ve been away for months. what I throw away. what can be salvaged. my things just where I’d left them. what she calls dry spells. always pictured in that doorway.
Continued...
the last thing I needed. what I on occasion long for. that I could go and meet her there. arriving alone. thirsty. they’ve probably burned it to the ground by now. either way I must believe. not as happy as she could be. an image growing smaller. turning around. all of them are gray. spread across our vision. determined to not remain strangers. searching for each other in the steady stream of faces. didn’t have a choice. I was envious of their certainty. those who people these buildings. make it function. left alone together. the least of his worries. nothing to be alarmed by. looking down to see my fists clenched. considering ourselves lucky. no exit wounds. color in our cheeks. I’m afraid of discovering the source of this hum. of finding nothing there. is this the beginning of new troubles. of what will eventually sink me. why do they insist that I haven’t understood. why are they so defensive. he’s no help. I see a potential enemy. I’ve begun gathering things to use against them. does everyone feel this same anxiety. pacing back and forth in want of direction. the tension that never allows him to sit still. shouldn’t this be expected of each of us. a noise that sounded like everything was ending. like the roles were reversed and the bars of the cages would drop uselessly onto the ground.
My eyes open. I rub them until there’s feeling. at what moment do I realize. no work today. she’ll still sleep for at least another hour. I give her the covers back. close the door softly as I leave. I’ve already begun comparing myself to him. how different it’ll be if all goes according to plan. I set something in motion. what if I had his problems. what if that’s what’s waiting for me. she looks at me as if I were someone else. as if we’d gone backwards in time. I can’t lift myself up from this. I’m in everyone’s way. I tell them I trust them but I don’t. he’d agree to anything. I have greater responsibilities. others I must answer to. it was the wrong decision. I mustn’t push back. I leave home. she looks at him and sees hunger. Hoenigman is originally from Cleveland, Ohio but has lived in Tokyo since 1998. You can visit him at MySpace.
Burn Your Belongings. has just been released by Six Gallery Press. You may purchase a copy at Amazon.
Last update : 27-07-2008 12:10
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