Reviews of Stump

“A slice of sadistic sleaze…another example of the baleful influence of Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh. But Griffiths is his own man…” —The Los Angeles Times

“Like its protagonist, Stump is beautiful, flawed, rageful and lyrical…A pulse-quickening, unique work.” —Minneapolis Star Tribune

“A novel about addiction, damage, and grace, told in vibrant Liverpudlian dialect...A portrayal that is richly embodied.” —Antioch Review

“The characters are so well drawn and the reading itself is so fun that you can’t wait for the impending brawl to begin.” —Minneapolis Observer

“Griffiths is best when he captures those small moments that punctuate the boredom of intermittently savage lives.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Griffith’s characters come straight out of a British gangster film mixed with Irvine Welsh’s druggy street squalor.” —Library Journal

“Griffiths’ voice seamlessly enters to describe the dystopia-scape of suburban London and the breathtaking terrains of Wales. The effect is cinematic, like a camera panning over the landscape to the audio accompaniment of Darren and Alistair’s uncouth bickering and bantering.” —Minnesota Literature

“An inebriating concoction of suspense, lyrical violence and lacerating introspection, Niall Griffith’s fourth novel will reacquaint readers with the plangent horror of Sheepshagger while introducing a rising murmur of optimism.” —Times Literary Supplement

“This is a compulsive, brief, and important read. Its power stems from Griffiths’s ability to ventriloquise characters who do not normally make it into ‘literary fiction,’ and from the daring mix of registers which has become his trademark.” —Observer

“[Griffiths] attacks the core of experience like few other writers in Britain.” —Metro

“[Stump] comes as an unexpected and welcomed visitor to American bookshelves … Griffiths can make even simple tasks, such as going to the grocery store, into mesmerizing scenes … Stump is a remarkable novel.” —Big Muddy: A Journal of the Mississippi River Valley