Birds of a Feather

Denise Denomme is a library assistant at the Laurentian University
Library.

This book starts with a death and ends with a death. In between, we are
introduced to the weak and the oppressed, the rapist and the victims,
the abusers and the abused.

After reading the cover blurb, I expected a collection of humorous
events surrounding the women who worked at Beadleman’s Poultry
Processing Plant. I was startled from the beginning. This collection of
short stories is about the underside of a small community, of weak women
and, for the most part, weaker men, with a touch of the occult thrown in
for good measure. Violent images—such as red vomit on green walls, a
locked booth with dead chickens piled to the rafters, young girls with
studded dog collars, and a mangled body minus heart and
boots—underscore the author’s need to possess your attention, to
underline the seamy side of life. And Jansen does grab your attention.

This book is a quick read, but not a terribly uplifting one. It leaves
you with a bad taste in your mouth, and with graphic disquieting images
in your mind.