Joe Stretch is an English writer born in 1982.

His first novel, Friction, was published by Vintage Books at Random House in 2008. His second novel, Wildlife, was published in 2009. His visceral, savage writing style has led to comparisons with French novelist Michel Houellebecq

Michel Houellebecq

Michel Houellebecq , born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1958—or 1956 —on the French island of Réunion, is a controversial and award-winning French author, filmmaker and poet. To admirers he is a writer in the tradition of literary provocation that reaches back to the Marquis de Sade and Baudelaire;...

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In his review of Wildlife in The Independent

The Independent

The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...

, Lee Rourke

Lee Rourke

Lee Rourke is a writer and editor. He is the author of the short story collection Everyday and the novel The Canal published by Melville House Publishing...

 describes the book as "a serious meditation on technology and individualism."

In 2010 Stretch wrote the first ever Choose Your Own Adventure

Choose Your Own Adventure

Choose Your Own Adventure is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actions and the plot's outcome. The series was based on a...

 audio novel to appear on Spotify

Spotify

Spotify is a Swedish-founded, UK-headquartered DRM-based music streaming service offering streaming of selected music from a range of major and independent record labels, including Sony, EMI, Warner Music Group, and Universal. Launched in October 2008 by Swedish startup Spotify AB, the service had...

. It was read by the actress Anna Friel

Anna Friel

Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...

 and marked the release of the debut album by the band Hurts

Hurts

Hurts are a British synthpop duo formed in 2009, consisting of singer Theo Hutchcraft and synthesist Adam Anderson . Their debut album Happiness, which was released in September 2010, has reached the Top 10 in 12 European countries, and has sold over 800,000 copies worldwide...

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Stretch grew up in Burton-in-Kendal

Burton-in-Kendal

Burton in Kendal is a village and civil parish on the extreme southern edge of Cumbria, England. It contains around 600 houses and has a population of 1,411...

. He studied politics at Manchester University and sings in the band Performance.

He lectures in Creative Writing at Keele University

Keele University

Keele University is a campus university near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as an experimental college dedicated to a broad curriculum and interdisciplinary study, Keele is most notable for pioneering the dual honours degree in Britain...

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External links

• http://www.randomhouse.co.uk/catalog/author.htm?authorID=56832
• http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/friction-by-joe-stretch-801555.html
• http://www.academicworld.net/academic-leben/reviews/buch/joe-stretch-widerstand.html
• http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/talent-issue--the-novelist-joe-stretch-766036.html
• http://nuke.ilsottoscritto.it/Recensioni/RecensioniS/StretchFriction/tabid/1153/Default.aspx
• http://www.manchesterconfidential.co.uk/Culture/Architecture/Joe-Stretch--Manchesters-next-major-novelist_3898.asp
• http://www.aaamusic.co.uk/2010/08/31/joe-stretch-and-hurts-collaborate-on-interactive-novel/