Torch Writer

Even as a woman, I'm a little intimidated by A.M. Homes. I just finished her 1999 book "Music for Torching." Think William Burroughs meets Richard Yates. It's that good. The novel, which I picked up in the bargain bin for $1.98 (!), is a satire, a sometimes brutal tale, about a husband and wife who feel "stuck" in their lives in the suburbs. Homes manages to make this story completely absurd but at the same time believable. There's something really aggressive and a little sadistic about her writing. Is that why I felt threatened by her? Am I a closet sexist? Perhaps Homes knows that even women would feel that way, and that's why she writes under a gender-neutral name. In any case, I can't deny that the book is at times, hilarious, right on the money, and tragic. (Image via NYMag.com)