RaveNew York Journal of BooksVanessa Veselka’s gritty frenetic writing serves up an exciting new flavor among today’s literary menu of MFA influenced prose; not a conventional, well-crafted tale but a streaking flash of barbed satire and 21st century malaise ... Zazen is a powerful novel because it points out the sheer amount of uncertainty and distraction surrounding any person in the modern world ... The burning question in Zazen is whether revolution could be the answer. Echoing Paul Bowles’ anguish and Tom Robbins’ comedic flair, Ms. Veselka’s answer is unconvincing, but the irony is unmistakable: How did the country that was founded on revolution end up watching 999 cable channels and shopping at WalMart?
