On "Jukebox Hero" by Erik Wennermark (2959 words) ***

I found the first several paragraphs of this hard to follow, but about page 2 everything kicked in, and like many a story, you can go back to the early paragraphs and understand more--only in this case, not so much. I had to read it again, identify the cultural references, and then I was in--and I could enjoy that first page. But the first page is a setting for what happens in the rest of the story, which is easier to follow. It's a setting insofar as it establishes tone. This is a character who is trying very hard to be a tough guy, very hard to be cool, to be a lady's man, and it's rather fascinating to follow his thoughts. This isn't the kind of guy I'd particularly want to know, but it's the kind of guy I suspect I am--I suspect all of us are at some level, where our thoughts are ours and where no one else has to know them. Sure, everyone's nice when you get to "know" them--and then again maybe not if we really know them. Read the story here at Fawlt.