after reading this wonderful collection i hoped to find other fountain works here. i have a new favorite author. emy in michigan

The stories in Brief Encounters with Che Guevara by Ben Fountain bring us to Haiti, Sierra Leone, 19th century Vienna, and the American south: each place and its people are fully drawn through exact yet nuanced observations, making for excellent reading. The stories are genuine, true, and captivating. Fountain's prose is perfectly created and yet very fluid and natural. I didn't feel I was reading the works of someone trained by a writers' workshop but rather the words of a true writer. Fountain is talented and disciplined; he is also obviously sincere about sharing true stories of humanity, and a master at using fiction as his vehicle for conveying truth. There is not a character that rings untrue in any of his stories, (except for the last story in the collection, "Fantasy for Eleven Fingers", that is supposed to read as some kind of monstrous fairy tale).

Every story is different (and wonderful), in viewpoint and narrator, and yet the same basic truths are presented: humans do survive and cope and even flourish briefly, in the face of often crushing, or numbing, or repetitive, reality. Set in scenarios where utter grimness and hopelessness would seem appropriate (and would be so easy to portray), Fountain instead shows us a realistic optimism, which is, after all, the mechanism for survival. To achieve the touch of optimism in stories that are so real and so sad is a gift, and Fountain is beautifully gifted.

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this book SUCKS. It was written by a guy in Texas that has never been to south america yet all the stories surround themes of revolution (and dissillusionment of revolution) and south america. This book lacks any real kind of insight (because it is not based on any real kind of truth) and is so obviously steeped in the white eurocentric perspective and relies on all the contrived conventions of modern short stories.

Fascinating stories. I really enjoyed this book, partly because I enjoy books that take me to another place or time. The writing was engaging. I had trouble not believing the last story, "Fantasy for Eleven Fingers", wasn't a real account. I will look forward to more books by Ben Fountain and hope he continues to push the envelope.

I really enjoyed Brief Encounters With Che Guevara by Ben Fountain. The stories take place in exotic locales like Haiti, Columbia, and Myanmar and they all have some sort of epiphany that enlightens the protagonists. Some stories are more compelling than other and Fountain knows more about Haiti, so that country has prominence in being the setting for three of the stories. My favorites were the opening story of the committed bird watcher, "Near-Extinct Birds of the Central Cordillera", the story of the opportunist golf pro, "Asian Tiger," and the collection's namesake: "Brief Encounters With Che Guevara." I look forward to more from Fountain. One note about the Harper Perennial edition-it had a really interesting section at the end called P.S., with interviews, essays and a selection of book reading suggestions from the author-I wish all books had these extras.