Book Review: "McSweeney's, Vol. 9"

McSweeney's 9 (2002) contains twelve short pieces (nine stories, a play and three essays). My favorites were the three non-fiction pieces: William T. Vollmann's "Three Meditations on Death," Val Vinokurov's "Talking Fiction: What is Russian Skaz?" (followed by Isaac Babel's "Salt"), and Jeff Greenwald's "My New Best Friend," about a trek to a remote Himalayan mountain sacred to Hindus and Buddhists. The latter was bizarre, and amusing.

The fiction here I found just a bit too edgy for my liking, but I'm sure others will enjoy it.