Catapult Soul by Brian Celio

Catapult Soul Reviews

• 
  Lisa

  This was one of the longer and more involved books I've read. The love story hit home because I went through many of the same things with my ex. The mental breakdowns were also interesting and believable. I'm still trying to piece together the broader picture of the story. I was told it's a dark satire. However, though it has it's funny parts and characters, the story comes off as serious, especially since it insists on being taken seriously. Maybe that's the satire itself. All in all, it's a well-balanced emotional story with a beautiful combination of poetry, prose, psychology, and philosophy.
• 
  Seth

  I liken this work to a "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" mixed with the collective consciousness of the alternative community and the dry humor of Oscar Wilde. The story includes several backdrops, e.g. the lives of tortured artists, the life of Jesus Christ, the beginning of the Industrial Age, the end of the Pittsburgh steel mill area, and ultimately the post-9/11 world where the main story is set.
  
  In the first chapter, you learn about a little-known fact in a disputed history of the steel-making process involving the rich vs. the poor, circa 1850. Then you move into the life of the protagonist and narrator, Vincent "V" Vallano, circa 1999, who is about to move from Pittsburgh to attend a private college in Northern Maryland. V is a sarcastic toughguy with a penchant for the arts. He was raised by a bibulous steel-miller (his father) and a Sicilian immigrant (his mother). Because of his friends' indulgence in drugs and violence, and his desire to get away from it, V constantly feels alienated, with the exception of his best friend, Pessi, who V feels never got a fair shot at life. Although the story begins with V yearning for a better life---"to have a million dollars to roll around in"---he is still very much a reflection of his lower-class environment. He is violent, hooked on drugs, and angry at the world.
  
  At college, V becomes close with his English professor, Dr. Rosenbaum, who is a funny wisecracker with a youthful heart. From V's perspective, Dr. Rosenbaum is an aged and wiser version of himself who, he believes, can provide him with the direction he needs to become successful. V also meets Ivy Pineda, coincidentally at a party in Pittsburgh. She lives next to the college and is also a freshman. V falls for Ivy, while Ivy's best friend, Teresa "Squawk" Cazzata, pairs up with Pessi, who moves down to Maryland to live with Teresa. They embark on a reckless drug journey, while Ivy seeks to straighten out V. Meanwhile, demons from V's past start sneaking up on him. There's a steady rise in the pressure on himself to become an Ubermensch, a superhero figure in society. Then 9/11 occurs and V's burgeoning call to become a writer finally breaks through, pushing him to escape the chaos of the world to transform into what he believes will be an eternal artist like his literary hero Stephen Dedalus. What follows is an emotional, delusional, and realistic portrayal of the makings of an artist who defies everything, sometimes comically, sometimes seriously, in his defense of art.
  
  The work itself is brilliantly weaved together with Nabokovian prose, Nietzschean vs. Christian philosophy, Romantic poetry, postmodern and anti-postmodern devices, multi-layered puns, catch-22s, and at times, anti-establishment ranting. Although not short on humor, the story strikes the reader as something to be taken seriously. But there's an outer-contextual element, stemming from the questionable narrative voice, that seems to say this might not be so serious after all. In other words, a cleverly disguised satire that will leave you wondering "What's this book really about?", "Whose story really is this??" and ultimately "Should I laugh or cry?"
  
  No matter how you read "Catapult Soul," you'll be engaged in a beautifully detailed story about family, friends, love, and insanity.
• 
  Ricky Rx

  I want 5 Vs in my life. I would send the first V to beat the crap out of the cast of "Jersey Shore." I would send the second V to berate the academic elite. I would send the third V to outwit all the meaningless postmodern writers. I would send the fourth V to make fun of all the trite commercial writers. I would send the fifth V to destroy drug dealers, wife beaters, and racist assholes.
  
  All of this more or less happens in the story. But call it wishful thinking for the future.
• 
  Marissa

  the punk rock anthem for literary hearts. i kept wondering if the author was a fan of the refused then towards the end there's a reference to "the shape of punk to come." that sealed the deal for me. awesome love story. awesome punk rock ethics. never read anything like it before. i'll be reading it again in the near future.
  
  "a naive young secret for the new romantics:
  we express ourselves in a loud and fashionable way"
• 
  Maria

  love love LOVED this book! took me about three months to finish it but the ending was well worth it. got closure and a better understanding of what was actually going on but still many interpretations left open and meanings to explore. loved that the book is constantly tricky and layered while being so heartfelt and engaging. never read anything like it. beautifully detailed!
• 
  Live for This

  pretty damn good and crazy. pretty funny at times too. wins award for the most cussin i've read in a book. only drawback was its longer than what i'm used to and i felt pretty beat up by the end.
• 
  ♥ღ AIDA ღ♥ Rodkouli

  very good book