The male-centric focus of Craig Davidson’s writing, coupled with his penchant for graphically depicting scenes of violence and bodily mutilation, are factors that will either garner readers to – or repel them from – these short stories. The first, “A Mean Utility”, tells the tale of a young couple who attempt to solve their marital problems by raising prize-winning (illegal) Rottweilers who fight to the death in the brutal dog-fighting ring; the second story, “Life in the Flesh” deals pointedly with issues of guilt and responsibility and even male egoism through its central protagonist, an ex-boxer, who flees to Thailand in order to escape his demons after killing an opponent during a boxing match.
The unabashed clichés of exaggerated masculinity (the fascination with violence, the inability of Davidson’s male characters to express simple feelings, as well as the overtly “proud” natures of his protagonists who are seemingly unjust, unloving, intemperate, and at times, adolescent) are on the one hand quietly frustrating, and on the other, invigorating. Ironically, these very traits of machismo work to emphasise the pathos, humanity and underlying subtlety of both stories, rather than perturbing them.
