The Ugly

"Muscular critique of conflicts both intellectual and physical. A surprising treat."

— Publishers Weekly

"Like a boisterous Borges ignoring the delete key or an angry Celine forced to write in a language he hates, Alexander Boldizar plays with our minds by mixing fact with fiction in The Ugly... Borrowing from every fabulist he knows he turns Conrad's Heart of Darkness on its head. Kurtz's 'horror' has become Boldizar's 'Ugly'... It's as if the Harvard Lampoon turned on itself...Kurtz has returned from the jungle and the horror is our institutions."

— Buffalo News

William L. Morris

"Consistently hilarious...[The Ugly is] a bizarre but delightful sendup of illogical arguments."

— Kirkus Reviews

"Comedically absurd but also introspective, The Ugly challenges dogmatic clinging to the letter of the law...a globe-trotting tour de force that examines the complex relationship between words and actions."

— Foreword Reviews

5 stars · Editor's Pick

"Boldizar's debut successfully recognizes the chasm between youthful idealism and the reality it's often mired in."

— Booklist

Poornima Apte

"Intelligent and emotional, existential and comedic, the satirical novel takes on the irrational trappings of our supposedly rational world."

— Poets & Writers

"The Ugly is an ambitious, deep, hilarious work that exists somewhere between the real and the absurd. Boldizar is able to balance humour and deep meaning to comment on law, thought, and how we construct meaning."

— Softcover

"Hilarious, intelligent, challenging, and entertaining...This decade's A Confederacy of Dunces."

— Clash Media

"The Ugly breaks the mold on books set in law school."

— Harvard Law Bulletin

"The Ugly is often laugh-out-loud funny...I definitely recommend [it] for fans of insightful law school satire. If (for some reason) you are a fan of Senator Ted Cruz, you will definitely not enjoy The Ugly."

— Above the Law

"Oddly unforgettable debut...Boldizar's strength is his ability in writing confidently and intimately of these two drastically different, and equally foreign, worlds."

— Heavy Feather Review

"One of the strangest, craziest, funniest, most interesting and most different novels anyone has ever put out."

— Slovak Spectrum TV

"The Ugly is the funniest, smartest novel I've read in a long, long time."

— Pete Duval

Author of Rear View: Stories

"Seldom does one encounter a book that balances so much intelligence with so much heart. Muzhduk the Ugli belongs among the great heroes of fiction, alongside Bellow's Augie March and Dostoevsky's Alyosha. The Ugli is like a great professor entertaining with larger than life stories. It's only after you stop laughing that you realize how much you've learned."

— Mark Powell

Author of The Sheltering

"A picaresque novel about mountain people, Harvard lawyers, the heft of rocks, and the power of words. The Ugly brims with intelligence and humor."

— Laila Lalami

Author of The Moor's Account · Pulitzer Finalist

"This is a strange and bold novel, original in its scope, story, and point of view. A wild fictional ride that will leave you wanting more."

— Nina Swamidoss McConigley

Author of Cowboys and East Indians · PEN Open Book Award Winner

"Boldizar has opened a door into the parallel universe of myth. Out of it has stepped a modern day Beowulf."

— Alan Stone

President, American Psychiatric Association

"Alexander Boldizar's The Ugly, the hilarious and inventive and unforgettable story of Muzhduk the Ugli, is a work of kinetic absurdism infused with deep intelligence and feeling. A gift of a debut from a wholly original new voice."

— Laura van den Berg

Author of Find Me