PUNCH

Kate North (Cinnamon)

Punch’s title summarises the spirit of these short stories: they are punchy, pack lots of it, and like the character of the same name seem to mock, subvert or otherwise satirise what we assume to be ‘real life’. The banal often takes a surreal twist here, and there are plenty of holes poked (or revealed) in our assumptions of normality. So an ornamental mask may actually bite; a hand may grow a tongue; but, also, we learn about the lost genitalia of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, and of the many unusual museums all around the world – because, as North makes plain, reality itself is imbued with an inherent strangeness. Insistently bizarre, wonderfully imaginative, and always beautifully written, this is a collection of quirky gems by a truly masterful writer. 

Price: £10.99. Info: www.cinnamonpress.com (MJ)