“Austin playwright Lynn makes his fiction debut with a novel, told entirely in dialogue, about a group of teenage squatters who have convinced themselves they’re revolutionaries. The book combines humor, horror, pop culture references, and a healthy dose of satire.”
—Men’s Journal, The 7 Best Books of October
“Funny, dark, weird and addictive . . . A unique, engaging way to tell a story and a fresh way of looking at American culture, youth and class.”
—LitHub, The Great Booksellers Fall Preview
“Lynn’s compelling debut novel is a parable about loneliness, violence, and modern malaise. It is one of the first post-recession, post–housing crisis American novels of truly alienated youth and suburban fear.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Lynn is strongest when he illuminates the urge to break free from convention in the face of threats… An offbeat glimpse into how resistance to conformity breeds its own kind of conformity.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“You get caught up with these people. You take sides. And then Kirk Lynn confounds your expectations at every turn.”
—Greil Marcus
“Novels are supposed to give you pleasure. So many don’t. But Rules for Werewolves does, in a big-time way. This is a brilliant first novel by the playwright Kirk Lynn and it soars. It’s quirky, innovative, hilarious and menacing. Every chapter has a nice little crunch to it and a bit of astonishment. How he pulled this off I have no idea; it’s a true high-wire act.”
—James Magnuson, author of Famous Writers I Have Known
“Kirk Lynn has a pitch-perfect ear for dialogue and a sixth sense for finding the exact point at which absurdity mutates into heartbreak—or vice versa. Rules for Werewolves is a dark, delirious, innovative riot of a novel; a grand blast of chaos across the front lawns of America, and a truly outstanding debut.”
—Justin Taylor, author of Flings and The Gospel of Anarchy
