[1] Utilizing two different narrative perspectives, it follows a drug dealer and his counterculture friends in Portland, Oregon, as well as his tempestuous ex-girlfriend who has fled to New York City after the dissolution of their short-lived relationship.

"[5] Karen Karbo in reviewing the book, wrote: "No one writing today walks the line between glamour and pathos better than Michael Hornburg.

"[5] In their review of the novel, The Seattle Weekly said: "There is no grunge bodice-ripper [in the novel]; it sticks close to the theory that life is never simple and people always suck.

Bongwater is written from first-hand experience, simple prose touched with just enough witty embroidery to seize the imagination.

"[5] Leslie Holdcroft of The Seattle Times, however, gave the novel a negative review, writing: "Hornburg brings us the struggling-artists' guide to Portland, including cheap sex, drugs, strippers, drag queens, an accidental house fire and air that "smells like worms."