The Circle

Readers who view women as objects of horror%E2%80%94possessed of heartless greed, foul excretions, faked intelligence, loathsome curves, and demonic souls%E2%80%94may experience some frisson while perusing this novella; others will merely be disgusted. In part one, childless Helen allows a strange young boy into her house and is astonished when he deposits diamonds into the toilet. Part two follows eighth-grader Frank and his friends, who ardently wish to know what cunnilingus is like and are willing to dare a witch%E2%80%99s shrine to find out. Part three is the first-person account of Frank%E2%80%99s father, Gil, who is drawn by one of the screaming boys into an encounter with the witch herself: %E2%80%9Cthat lady professor... hugely fat.%E2%80%9D Little (The Haunted) employs competent prose without flair, which does nothing to mitigate the absurdity and tedium of this catalogue of %E2%80%A8repulsive bodily functions and injuries. (Oct.)