The rot beneath our feet: Bad Foundations by Brian Allen Carr
A Review by Joseph Edwin Haeger
Cook, the main character in Brian Allen Carr’s newest novel Bad Foundations, simultaneously seems like he has it all figured out while also being completely lost in life. It’s like a Coen brothers’ movie that focuses on a confounding character who is sort of content with his life but tries—in a somewhat futile way—to take it to the next level. Admittedly, he’s the kind of character I can watch and read again and again because I can’t help but be charmed by him, even when it’s watching him sink further and further into depravity.
Cook has gone through a few different careers, including being a college professor, which gives him a unique perspective on the blue-collar work he spends his days doing. At this point in his life, he’s a foundation inspector and salesman. Essentially, he crawls under houses to ensure the foundation isn’t failing and, if it is, he sells the solutions to keep the house upright for the foreseeable future. He’s a realist, probably often confused with a pessimist, who’s overly transparent with his clients, letting them know that in time everything will fail. Nothing is forever. And this is the ongoing theme in Bad Foundations. There’s an underlying assumption, coming primarily from Cook, that he’s bound to fail and relapse with his alcoholism. He’s waiting for the moment he has no choice but to go on a bender and end up in prison, letting his wife and kids down. This underlying narrative is at work while he also tries to better his life, searching for the clues that will turn his luck around.
There are shenanigans in this novel, but at its core, we have a man trying to be the best person he can be for his family. There are multiple scenes of him going on walks with his oldest daughter, usually finding themselves at the cemetery and talking to an old man who lays flowers at a grave where the name has been shaved away. It’s clear that Cook is someone who cares about his family, and even when he finds himself in jail, the first person he calls is his wife. The way she reacts tells us so much about their relationship: she simply tells him to be home within the time frame he originally told her or to not come home. It sounds harsh here, but there’s no disappointment, scolding, or tears coming from her. It’s just the way it is. This is the man she chose, and she knows his potential—she loves him despite his shortcomings—but that doesn’t stop her from drawing the necessary boundaries. We can see they’ve been through the wringer, and she still loves him while realizing it’s not without a cost. On Cook’s side, he does what needs to be done, even as he works through his issues. I think a lazy interpretation could be to say they have a callus relationship, but I’d push back on that. What we have here is two people who recognize the faults in their relationship, yet still choose to be with one another, which is an inspiring, deep, and enviable love.
There are absurd elements in Bad Foundations that complement the human elements. Sure, we get some definite strangeness with the front desk employee at a hotel Cook stays at, but even before we meet her, Cook gets warnings from his ragtag group of co-workers. They tell him not look for ghosts in the laser (the tool they use to verify if a foundation is level). Throughout the book, Cook talks about his JP curse—a man named Juan Pablo died in a crawl and Cook’s been having shit luck ever since. After doing this kind of job for long enough, the presumption is he’s slowly losing his mind and looking for connections that aren’t there within the solitary spaces beneath the houses he inspects. This is also the catalyst that gets him eating Delta-8 candies (a drug derived from cannabis) and driving from Ohio to Texas only to look at the house where JP died. He’s calling his luck a curse, but it’s clear to the reader that the bad vibes are coming from the way he’s approaching his own life.
Bad Foundations is another example of why Brian Allen Carr is one of the best writers working today. This book is a breezy, hilarious romp but when we get to the end, we realize we’ve been reading a far heavier story about a guy who’s trying to come to terms with his life. He’s simultaneously trying to deconstruct it while also making sure it stays solid (you know, just like his job as a foundation inspector). The language and voice feel like we’re hearing Carr tell us this story around a fire pit while we’re hanging out a backyard BBQ. The amount of care it takes to make a story like this feel improvised is more than impressive, and I hope Carr continues spinning his tales because I’ll continue picking them up.
Bad Foundations
By Brian Allen Carr
Published by CLASH Books
256pgs, 4.5 x 7.50
Paperback: 978-1955904865 | January 2024 | $16.95
Joseph Edwin Haeger is the author of the experimental memoir Learn to Swim (University of Hell Press, 2015) and the novella, Bardo (Thirty West Publishing, 2023.) He writes fiction, essays, poetry, and screenplays. As a litmus test, he tells people his favorite movie is Face/Off, but there’s a part of him that’s afraid it’s true. He lives in the Inland PNW.