Cottonwood

Just as Charles Willeford did before him, Scott Phillips writes darkly comedic novels punctuated with shocking acts of violence. In Cottonwood, Phillips continues this tradition but does so in the context of a well researched story that unfolds in a day and age well beyond the memory of anyone now alive. Cottonwood, a small fictitious Kansas farming community, sees itself boom when the prospect of a future as an important hub in the cattle trade materializes a few years after the end of the Civil War. Narration is provided by the book's main character Bill Ogden. Ogden is a man of many talents. A very incomplete list of his skills would include farming, saloonkeeping and photography. He also is quite adept when it comes to sexually pleasuring a diverse demographic of women, one which ironically does not include his own wife. Ogden is a bit of a paradox. Sometimes his actions seem heroic but more often than not the word scoundrel fits him better than anything else. What is the book about? A number of things. Greed, jealousy, infidelity, lust, murder, the pioneer spirit, the human capacity to do whatever it takes to survive. Throw in a tornado and a German speaking family of serial killers and you have a novel guaranteed to entertain the most jaded among us. As he did in his second novel, The Walkaway, Phillips shows an amazing ability to transcend time frames. The second half of the book takes place a full 17 years after the first and only a few details about what transpired in the interim are spelled out. Surprisingly, this unconventional structure does not detract from Cottonwood's appeal one bit. This novel is written with a healthy dose of dark humor and it unfolds in a way that gives the reader credit for having a modicum of intelligence. An enthusiastic 5 stars.

Great characters, a dry and cutting sense of humor and grisly murder -- all served up against the swirling chaos of a Kansas boomtown. The plot surprises as do the many colorful and darkly comic characters, making this tale feel both authentically period and modern in tone. Scott Phillips writes like no other noir author I know; I've read all his stuff and very much look forward to his next piece of fiction.

I am not much of a reader of novels, nor was I particularly familiar with Scott Phillips. I only picked this novel up because I am originally from Labette County and I was interested to see how he would incorporate the actual historical events of the region into his story.Having finished a book that was very very hard to put down, I find myself anxiously awaiting Phillips' next effort while simultaneously seeking out his previous two novels, which as I understand were set in 20th-century Wichita.Phillips has a gifted eye for the absurd (which occasionally veers into the realm of the obscene, so be warned) accompanied by a talent for good dialogue. There were several times where I literally had to struggle not laugh out loud (the baby had just fallen asleep, after all), and I often found myself repeatedly reading passages to my wife so that she too could appreciate one ludicrous scene after another. It was great fun.The novel can get dark at times, and is often downright gruesome, but for the most part it is ribald Western satire featuring a very interesting protagonist & narrator, Bill Ogden, who is wonderfully amoral --- for the most part, until the chips are down --- and irreverent. Circumstances of his own doing (and some beyond his control) come to pass which force Ogden to flee Cottonwood for almost 20 years as a much-maligned individual, until other events come to pass that induce him to return to the scene of the crime (so to speak) and confront his past actions, as well as dispense justice.Most of Phillips' strengths lay in his skill with dialogue & character development. He does not spend much time describing the countryside as other authors might do. Some readers may consider this a liability & others may see it as an asset --- all I can say is that I would not have recognized Labette County from any other region in Kansas based on Phillips' descriptive powers. However, his characters are so entertaining as to make you not care particularly. What matters is the story in any case, and this is a good one indeed.

I continue to be impressed by Scott Phillps' versatility. This western/horror/crime novel is simply fantastic. The "vibe" stayed with me a long time after I finished reading it. I really like the characters, setting, everything. The author does not pander by using "best-seller" techniques. He remains true to his vision. I've been a fan since ICE HARVEST and I plan to buy every single thing this guy ever writes.

COTTONWOOD is that rare read, lean and rich. A novel with a startlingly different sensibility; by turns- casually sensual, nerve hammering, and rictusly hilarious. In the American West of Mr. Scott Phillips, life-or- death decisions are forced by events without benefit of the facts, ever. A place where an evil whim, rotten luck or worse weather are as likely to kill as stupidity or bad judgment. Where the difference between lust and love is perhaps only a matter of the duration of the impulse. A land where death can be more deliverance than a threat. If COTTONWOOD was nothing more than this, it would still be great entertainment, but what makes this novel special is its powerful, almost off-hand observation of human decency even in the worst of its population. Thanks to the author's informed and enveloping style the Old West is made real in a new way.