Peck & Peck by Bonnie Garmus review
This offbeat tale of machinations at an eccentric poetry magazine in 80s New York is laugh-out-loud funny – and a paean to the power of poetry
TL;DR
- Lessons in Chemistry, Garmus's debut, was a global sensation, selling 9m copies and becoming an Emmy-winning TV series.
- Peck & Peck features Batter Gray, a boy obsessed with poetry, who lands a job at a prestigious but dysfunctional poetry magazine.
- The magazine's editors are locked in a bitter feud, and failed submissions are incinerated by prison parolees.
- The novel is described as a zany office comedy with shades of Hogwarts, celebrating poetry's value in a profit-obsessed society.
- Despite some narrative sag, the book is a passionate case for poetry and features sharp wit and offbeat characters.