Check out the latest reviews on Goodreads!
Browse all books by Otis West
Mountain View
“A fast and easy beach read that is also, as Colin would say, fun as hell.”
Read the full review on Goodreads
The style is reminiscent of Raymond Carver or Richard Ford—plainspoken but emotionally precise. It’s a subtle, reflective book that’s a pleasure to read.
Read the full review on Amazon
I love books that can transport you back to a specific time and place. Mountain View is one of those books. An immersive coming of age story with relatable characters and great dialogue. For me it was reminiscent of Stoner by John Williams. Check it out!
See this post by Ryan’s Reads on Instagram!
Kato
“The book feels like a time capsule, recalling brilliantly what it felt like to be young and disaffected in the early 2000s.”
Read the full review on Goodreads
I didn’t realise until I was halfway through Kato that I’d missed novels like this. The early 2000s feels like a very different time to now, you had to knock doors to find out if your friend was in, you didn’t have access to every one you know at all times and Otis does a great job capturing that feeling.
Read the full review on Goodreads
“Kato by Otis West will be enjoyed by readers of writers such as Lee Cole. It captures a young male perspective.”
—Camille Osborne, Librarian, Cambridge University Library (via NetGalley)
I really enjoyed reading ´Kato’; an unexpected page turner. I really enjoyed the first-person perspective of a character that I didn’t particularly like, but can imagine that I’d enjoy going for a beer with. The action unfolds over about a fortnight and includes two changes of address, a new car, adultery, theft, a resignation, and various other shenanigans. I particularly enjoyed the nostalgia of not everyone having a phone, no internet at home or on mobile devices etc.
—Chris Richards, Educator (via Netgalley)
Another time machine gem from the Otis West vault. Like Mountain View we get an authentic and honest glimpse into day-to-day life in an earlier era. Unlike Mountain View, in Kato the plot starts benign but gradually twists unexpectedly dark and gritty story arc reminiscent of the delicious movie Parasite as characters and circumstance collide into carnage.
Read the full review on Goodreads
This was a great nostalgia read for someone who grew up in the PNW in the early 2000s.
Read the full review on Goodreads
It reminded me of friends I had in school and made me wonder what they’re up to now. It made me want to listen to Blink-182 and play Tony Hawk. Highly recommend!
Read the full review on Goodreads or watch his on TikTok!
Firenze
West brings an authenticity to the voice of the protagonist and brings us to a time and a place that is both nostalgic yet unfamiliar all at once. The dialog is superb and the characters nuanced. … As a guy who studied abroad myself in Florence in the late 80s, I loved the detailed accuracy which took me right back to a special moment in time.
Read the full review on Goodreads
Firenze by Otis West captures a young man living abroad and how he can’t seem to fully appreciate the experience at the time. Fresh, raw and relatable.
—Camille Osborne, Librarian, Cambridge University Library (via NetGalley)
This is so short and so propulsive that I read it in one sitting. … Kevin starts out as someone I would have maintained a polite distance from at that age, but by the end, I just wanted to wrap him up and protect him from himself. … This is such a layered little novel that contains much more than you’d think at first glance. It speaks of a time when the world was less homogenised, and a different country might as well have been a different planet.
Read the full review on Goodreads!
What begins as a seemingly unreflective voice gradually reveals itself to be anything but. The narrative works on multiple levels, using the protagonist’s surface-level observations to expose deeper truths about isolation, cultural discomfort, and the particular vulnerability of young men who’ve never had their worldview challenged.