Vampires in the Lemon Grove

Karen Russell is so bizarre and fabulous that I wish I could hang out with her at Starbucks. (Except Starbucks is probably far too trendy for her, so it would more likely be a coffee house in a dusty basement with rickety tables and a hairy muscular barista named Basha.)

Vampires in the Lemon Grove is an odd mix of stories, and I liked them all for very different reasons. A few highlights:

The title story is about a married vampire couple who lives in a lemon grove in Italy and drink lemon juice instead of blood. (What?) There are some laugh out loud moments, but really, it's a sad little tale about hope and longing.

Reeling for the Empire is a gruesome story about girls who are transformed into silk worms to provide silk for the Japanese empire. (Um.) I think it's supposed to be a commentary on consumerism, or animal rights, or Japanese culture, or something. It's really powerful in an angsty hipster sorta way.

Dead presidents are resurrected as horses (really!) in The Barn At The End of Our Term. It's a scathing mockery of politics and power with some very warped humor.

Morbid, gothic, and twisted are the best words to describe Proving Up. Homesteaders in Nebraska are required to have windows in their homes before they can receive a title of ownership from the government. The problem is there is only one window in all of Nebraska so the neighbors share it and place it in the home that is scheduled for inspection. A young man has a very - unpleasant - experience when he is in charge of transporting the window.

Karen Russell's brain. It amazes me. Where does she come up with this stuff? And her writing skill? Top notch.