Second Skin

By John Hawkes

Book Overview

Second Skin is perhaps the finest achievement of one of our most remarkable American writers. It is the story, at moments comical, at others horrifying, of an 'unlikely' man's survival in a destructive world.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 045102768X
• ISBN13: 9780451027689
• Release Date: January 1965
• Publisher: Signet
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 5.0" x 1.0" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

More than skin deep

Second Skin is a lyrical, difficult but ultimately rewarding novel. It focuses on Skipper, the narrator, who simply tries to survive a series of life tragedies ranging from being the victim of a mutiny to losing his wife and daughter to suicide.To say these things is not to give away the plot. Because Skipper does not tell his story in a linear fashion, we know what will happen from the beginning. The pleasure is in listening to the narrative voice tell his "naked history" (as Skipper calls it).John Hawkes is an under-appreciated writer and a brilliant prose stylists. For anyone who loves to read beautiful sentences, this book is highly recommended.