John Darnielle Releases a Second Novel, Universal Harvester

by Erik Henriksen
“WE LIVE IN A WORLD NOW where people see things all the time, all kinds of things, and they think nothing ever leaves a mark on them, but—”
So says a character in John Darnielle’s second novel, Universal Harvester—a book about loss, mothers, and rural America’s particular brand of ominous dread. It’s partly set in Video Hut, a tiny video store not-so-proudly serving the residents of Nevada, Iowa. Its bored employees—renting and sh