Author Archives: Caleb Coy

Dave Eggers’ The Circle, part 1: SECRETS ARE LIES

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In his novel The Circle Dave Eggers branches out into dystopian fiction. You’d think a writer like Eggers wouldn’t bother with a genre many contemporary literary writers might find too cliche, commercialized, and predictable. “Society looks perfect, but it all goes downhill. Seen it before.” But Eggers doesn’t go for a distant, war-torn future. He takes us back to the roots of modern dystopian masterpieces: 1984 and Brave New World. What we get is a glimpse of the near future that is—I’ll admit—more relevant than one of my favorites, The Hunger Games.
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Avett Brothers 9-11 Virginia Tech Concert Review

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“We tune because we care.”

Back in 2002, about to record A Carolina Jubilee, The Avett Brothers were hired as a wandering band during freshmen orientation at Virginia Tech. Nobody wanted to listen to them. They kept following people around trying to find an audience.

Seth and Scott told this story to their VT audience twelve years later, as if to say, “look where we are now.” In all the shows I’ve seen since 2007, the band has inflated and changed their style, but they have not lost what makes them who they are. I saw the same energy, passion and soul.
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Kirkus Reviews Takes on My Debut Novel

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“Spot-on satire or earnest picture of youth in transition?…”

41LZSXEGPFL“Coy’s voice is strong and sure; he captures Neil’s voice and tone with specificity and confidence. However, readers’ tolerance for Neil and his impressions of the Nashville scene may strongly depend on whether they see the novel as a satire of the hip, ironic detachment and self-reflexive views of the millennial generation or an earnest attempt to capture their thoughts and hopes in the second decade of the 21st century. Those who see Coy’s work as being meant seriously will likely find the characters vacuous and talkative to a fault, and the thrust of the narrative will be greatly diluted. For those who see a satirical purpose to Coy’s prose, the narrative will likely carry more resonance, and the end result of Sedgwick and Oberlin’s relationship will have a particular melancholy weight, even when seen through the satirical lens.”

“A well-defined social milieu and articulate characters make Coy’s is it/isn’t it novel an interesting, if uncertain, experience.”

–Kirkus Reviews

[Bold emphasis mine]

You can find the full review here

Or Order my book on Amazon!

What Will Happen if Someone Says Something Politically InCorrect Today

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WHAT WILL HAPPEN THIS WEEK IF A PUBLIC FIGURE GOES TO A GATHERING, GIVES UTTERANCE OF SOMETHING POTENTIALLY OFFENSIVE OR MISLEADING, AND THEN MAKES HEADLINES
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Baby Turtles Hustling to the Ocean: Like Baptism

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It was a Sunday morning. We were down at the beach before going to worship. A baby turtle had just broken through the sand after hatching and was making his way down the man-made path toward the ocean, helped by the guiding hand of a volunteer “turtle person.” My 3-year-old son watched with us and cheered the palm-sized turtle on as he scuffled.
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