Congratulations On Everything reviewed in The Globe & Mail

"These are believable creations. They speak and fail and contradict themselves with the regular inelegance of real people. The day-to-day pleasures and pains of the service industry are also rendered with fine-tuned realism, an ear for the strange within the mundane. Whitlock is a very smooth, competent stylist, in an understated way. There’s no flash or bang here: His characters propel the action, calling attention to narrative style only with metaphor and image – which are always arresting, always right."

The whole thing here.

Service Industry Hell

Dear Former Bartenders, Waiters, and Cooks:

I am in need of funny, ridiculous, and/or disturbing true service industry stories for a thing I am doing next month for Open Book. Tales of bad bosses, "eccentric" customers, hellish shifts, exploding kegs, etc. What are some moments you'll never forget, no matter how hard you try?

They need to be short - 100 to 200 words, max. Just the gist. Unless you say otherwise, they'll be anonymous. Send as many as you like.

Please email them to [my first and last name, all one word] AT gmail dot com.