Order HASHTAG here
(also reviewed)
Order DIRTBAGS here
I barely remember what the world was like before the internet . If you do, you either a liar or in the twilight of your existence. It ain't all bad though, the keyboard made me a much more interesting person, even in real life. Today, internet has snaked its way so deep into culture, it has become part of reality and whoever isn't plugged on the web is looked upon as a weirdo. This world changing technology isn't old enough to make people like me wonder things like: would it have happened if internet didn't exist? or did social media and internet made someone go on a killing spree? Fortunately for me, this is the overarching theme of Eryk Pruitt's novel HASHTAG, a crime saga with an online audience (well, sort of).
Ladies and gentlemen, we might've underestimated the power of internet to help create fun and reckless new fiction.
There are three protagonists in HASHTAG: Odie Shanks, the manager of a dead end pizza joint in Virginia, who gets kidnapped during a holdup which sets up the chain of events the novel is actually about; Roy Rains, the lazy and incompetent police deputy investigating the crime, looking for an easy way to close the file; and Sweet Melinda Kendall, fugitive and heartthrob of America on Twitter on hashtag #SweetMelinda. Our protagonists are each going in their own directions and chasing their own desires, but their lives are about to collide somewhere in the violent heart of the American South.
I know what you're dying to understand: what part does the internet and social media actually have to play in the plot? Not all that much, therein lies the creative genius of Eryk Pruitt lies in the fact that he didn't write a crime novel about social media, but a crime plot that exists because of social media. Its influence is subtle, often imperceptible, but that's why HASHTAG is so much fun. Whenever it goes overboard (and Pruitt has a knack for over-the-top action scenes), you have to keep reminding yourself that it all began because Odie Shanks spent too much time on the internet, dreaming of becoming famous (well, almost).
That said, I believe HASHTAG might test the patience of readers who are new to Eryk Pruitt's fiction. I was already sold to his writing after reading his first, more straightforward novel DIRTBAGS, but HASHTAG can take you on a ride and require patience. It's a very winding novel and Eryk Pruitt is very good at concealing his intentions. I'm a cerebral and patient reader myself, so I can enjoy this kind of narrative games, but after reading negative reviews of HASHTAG on social media, I disagreed with them but I understood where the frustration was coming from. HASHTAG requires time and commitment, but it is ultimately very rewarding.
I don't know any author who writes stupid people better than Eryk Pruitt. Of course, he's making fun of them, but he's also writing them with a tenderness that other writers don't have. Pruitt understands their thoughts and dreams without judging them and HASHTAG is his sort of his love song to the simple minded. It's a reckless, violent and sometimes hilarious American odyssey that features the two best aspects of Eryk Pruitt's writing: uproarious dialogue and epic, urban legend-like storytelling. It's an unlikely combination, but it's an original and satisfying one if you're a patient, active reader like I am. HASHTAG is crazy, winding and deceptively smart.
