Kockroach (P.S. Series) Book

Much more than mere homage, Knox has created a work capable of being read entirely divorced from its literary antecedent. That the publisher chose to mention Kafka on the dust jacket is unnecessary yet no less understandable. In a nutshell: a cockroach in a cheap motel assumes the form of a suicide, whilst retaining full memory of his origins'knowledge which allows him to quickly rise to the top of the criminal underworld, and later the no-less cutthroat corporate jungle.

So, this is a hilarious book about ethics and what it means to be human. Questions of fidelity are probed and the differences between wants and needs are delineated. There is a little bit of chess, yes.

A few quibbles: the main character is referred to as "Kockroach" throughout (which becomes kumbersome at times) & in the "correct" German translation, Kafka wrote about a dung beetle, not a roach. But, just as Pluto is in a certain sense a planet, the popular Anglostanding of Gregor Samsa's changed form is and always will be that of a roach.

& the description of the language-acquisition process which Kockroach undergoes is interesting and warrants serious evolutionary/epistemological/entomological/etymological thought which shall not be done in this here space. Suffice it to say that there were parts of that early part of the book that bristled me almost as much as a flying roach in my hair.

The smart, cheeky tone of this book reminded me of another NYC neo-noir, The Wrestler's Cruel Study'that both books exhibit a diminutive supporting character who "trains" the protagonist (in addition to narrating alternating sections) is a further similarity. Though where the sometime-narrator of The Wrestler's Cruel Study is a modeled after Nietzsche, Knox names his character for a parasite that lives off of a cockroach. (Further note on noir as genre: Knox's is set in the early 20th century and is "neo" in its use of more "literary" conventions whereas The Wrestler's Cruel Study is set in the early 1990's while using a similar literary standard.)

Kudos to Knox for this highly enjoyable, inventive, and well-researched send-up. Highly recommended for all fans of noir and any Kafka devotees with a sense of humor.