MixedThe Chicago TribuneThe stories that don't work as well feel forced...But even those stories are filled with sentences jam-packed with memorable phrasing. They deliver some payoffs, despite being perhaps too cerebral, too much about ideas rather than events and character development … Russell is a quirky writer. Her work may be too outlandish for some, too reflexively alternative, but those very qualities translate into a dependable stream of admirable originality. What makes Russell so delicious for her fans is the constant trade between the fanciful and the routine, between stories you can live with and stories that are true. Less ambitious than Swamplandia! and even more experimental in its overall tone, it is likely that this work is at heart a book between books.
Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich
MixedThe National Book ReviewAmong the most luminous moments in the book is the passage in which the dead boy’s mother Lorilei argues in court for mercy for her son’s killer: 'As sure as I hear my child’s death cry, I too, can hear Ricky’s cry for help.' At least some of the author’s desire to blend the two stories comes from this woman’s remarkable compassion, a mystery the author tries to plumb ... Marzano-Lesnevich’s work falters, dramatically, when she dishonors the distinction between the two stories and conflates the narrative threads...By the latter half of the book, a kind of ventriloquism takes over. The word 'maybe' is used to usher in all kinds of scenes that might have occurred, but never did, at least never did with any evidence ... And yet, and yet, and yet: despite serious missteps in some of the story-telling choices, what remains for the reader of The Fact of the Body are two separate tales that possess undeniable power — though it would seem, more so on their own.
