Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones Published by William Morrow on May 10 2016
Genres: Adult, Horror, Coming of age
Pages: 300
Format: Finished paperback
Source: Purchased
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The nitty-gritty: Shocking, brutal, funny, and heartbreaking, Mongrels is my new favorite werewolf story.
This is the way werewolf stories go.
Never any proof. Just a story that keeps changing, like it’s twisting back on itself, biting its own stomach to chew the poison out.
I’m making an attempt to catch up with some of Stephen Graham Jones’ backlist after reading and loving The Only Good Indians earlier in the year. Mongrels is the first of those titles I’ve decided to tackle, even though my list of review obligations makes me feel guilty for reading one of my own books. Hey, you know how it is! Nevertheless, I picked it up on a whim and decided the timing was perfect. Reading a story about an unconventional werewolf family right before Halloween? What could be better? I have to admit, Mongrels was not what I expected, but I ended up loving it anyway.
The story follows a very odd family of werewolves and is told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator, a young boy who is impatiently waiting to see if he is going to “wolf out” once he turns sixteen. Our protagonist is only eight when the story begins, and he’s already lived a most unusual life. His mother died during childbirth, so he lives with his Aunt Libby and Uncle Darren. Crisscrossing through the American South and never staying in one place for long, the three experience run-ins with locals and police, all while trying to keep their secret from outsiders. But things go wrong, people die, and then it’s time to move on. Bound by their fierce devotion and love for one another, Libby, Darren and the boy make their way through a harsh world that wants nothing to do with them.
Mongrels sits firmly in the category of literary horror, something Stephen Graham Jones does really well. Yes, this is a story about werewolves, but it’s also about growing up in poverty and all the horrors that come with it. The story is full of dark violence and anger and scattered bits of unexpected humor, but it also has a pervading air sadness. The narrator and his family are vagabonds, never staying in one place long enough to settle in. Libby and Darren take on odd jobs that barely pay enough for them to eat, and their nephew enrolls in the local schools only to repeat grades because he’s missed so much school. They steal change from vending machines and gather loose coins hidden beneath car seats, enough to buy hot dogs from the corner convenience store. When there isn’t enough change for a hot dog, the narrator steals ketchup packets and sucks them dry. But despite this, their little family is a tight knit group who protects each other at all costs. They seem to take their poverty in stride, just like they accept their violent lifestyle as werewolves, and I think it’s one reason I ended up loving these characters so much.
This is a fairly linear tale, but it does dip back into the past now and then. It’s almost like a series of vignettes or short stories that all revolve around the same characters, and I thought that format worked really well. The story spans about eight years as the narrator grows up, goes through puberty, all the while waiting to change into a werewolf like his aunt and uncle. Jones injects plenty of blood, gore and violence into his story, but he leaves room for his characters to grow and develop, especially the narrator who is coming of age while trying to survive. At first I was turned off by the rough characters, especially Darren and his obnoxious love of strawberry wine coolers and raw meat. But they all grew on me as the story progressed, to the point where each heartbreaking moment they experienced was a punch in the gut.
This book is not going to be for everyone. There are plenty of trigger warnings here that I need to mention, most importantly that there is a lot of animal cruelty depicted in living, bloody color. You know me, I’m a huge animal lover, but I am able to separate that love when I read a story where the animal cruelty fits with the story and isn’t just added for shock value. This is one of those stories where it makes sense: these are killer werewolves who eat raw meat, and because these characters are dirt poor, their options are often limited to catching whatever food they can. Bunnies, deer, and even an owl are caught and devoured—raw, no less—so do be aware of this before you dive in.
There’s also a fair amount of body horror, as Jones goes into minute detail describing how werewolves change from human to wolf and back, how bullets affect werewolves, and maybe the worst, how werewolves are born. Some of the myths are true: silver just happens to be deadly to werewolves, and even a small cut with a silver weapon results in an incurable infection. You may not have imagined every scenario possible when it comes to the life of a werewolf, but Jones has. Mongrels has a cinematic, Tarantino-worthy quality to it that was both hard to stomach but impossible to look away from. I recommend staying away from wine coolers and hot dogs while you read this, just saying.
Jones ends his tale on a poignant yet hopeful note, and yes, I got chills reading the last few pages. Readers who appreciate literary horror and coming-of-age stories with teeth are going to love this book.
I love a good werewolf story, and I haven’t read any Stephen Graham Jones before. I think I’ll go about picking this one up.
Cat recently posted…Night Shoot by David Sodergren
Definitely check him out, his books are very different but so good:-)
I just saw SGJ on an authors’ roundtable (via Zoom) last night. He comes across as very cerebral. I’m not surprised that Mongrels is such a sophisticated werewolf novel. Great review!
Priscilla Bettis recently posted…Normal Dreams vs. A Horror Writer’s Nightmares
I’ve seen him speak too, in fact he’s so interesting! He could be a serious literary writer if he wanted to, he’s that good.
You had me at unconventional werewolf family! But damn it sounds like a really great horror book. Perfect for Halloween for sure!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…Can’t-Wait Wednesday: Fossil Men: The Quest for the Oldest Skeleton and the Origins of Humankind by Kermit Pattison
It was good timing reading this, ha ha.
Lovely review, Tammy. I am really intrigued now. When you say the author has considered every possible scenario of being a werewolf , I do need to check it out.
Debjani recently posted…An Unusual Boy by Fiona Higgins – Review | Blog Tour
Some of the things he comes up with are really crazy!
This sounds like quite a powerful story. I like the idea of literary horror. And though I don’t seek out stories that depict harm to animals, etc, like you I’m ok with it if it fits the story. It’s similar to loving song birds but being ok seeing a hawk swoop down on one, or a fox jump up at one. It’s a part of life. But I can also understand those who just can’t read things like that. We go to fiction sometimes not to relive all the difficult parts of life but to have a brief respite from them. I enjoyed the review and I’d love to read this one.
I definitely wouldn’t choose to read anything with animal cruelty either, but because of the author, I’m willing to read it, I guess.
Love Love LOVE this book
Oh good! It really surprised me:-)
I don’t really know if this would be right for me, because I am not a huge fan of horror and even if sometimes I enjoy them, coming of age stories are not always my thing. Sometimes I love them, sometimes I couldn’t care less. But what you wrote about the cinematic quality, and about the characters draw me in… And your review was a pleasure to read!
Thank you Susy:-)
Fabulous review, Tammy! I’ve been going back and forth about reading this one and you’ve convinced me to read it.
Laura Thomas recently posted…Books From The Back Log #54 ~ Island Of The Forbidden
Oh cool, enjoy:-)
I loved The Only Good Indians and this is the next SGJ on my list. Great review, Tammy!
Thanks Kyra, hope you enjoy it!
Great review. I have The Only Good Indians and Night of the Mannequins on my TBR already — this may have to be added to the list!
The Only Good Indians is still my favorite of his, but this comes close.
The werewolf myth is one that I always found fascinating, and this is probably the first one I’ve heard of that focuses solely on them instead of following various supernatural creatures. And I like the angle on the coming of age of the young protagonist, despite your warnings about some problematic issues.
A very intriguing review, thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…THE HALLOWEEN BOOK TAG
Thanks Maddalena, I’m glad I finally read this:-)
Sounds like a very raw take on the werewolf trope. This is a new author to me so shall be checking it out!
Yes, very raw. If you enjoy horror you have to at least try his books.
I am glad you really like this author, I wanted too but I just don’t think he is for me…lol. I think it’s because his books always go somewhere you don’t expect and I want what I was expecting…lol. 🙂 Great review! 🙂
Ha ha I totally get it!
I’m glad all his books have been such winners for you, I guess I need to keep trying 😀
Hey, he isn’t for everyone. This was pretty tough at times.
I want to read this because I loved The Only Good Indians but the animal cruelty scares me!
It was tough, I have to be honest. But if you think of it as animals eating other animals, it’s easier to get past.
I like the sound of this one and in actual fact a few years ago was approved a copy – but, it was archived on the same day I was approved so I couldn’t download it. I will add this to my wishlit.
Lynn 😀
This very firmly sounds like one not for me but it sounds like a good read for some people!
Interesting!! I still have my copy of Only Good Indians waiting for me on the shelf!