The Apocalypse Reader--Justin Taylor (editor)
As the name would suggest, The Apocalypse Reader is a collection of 34 short stories dealing with the apocalypse. Justin Taylor defines the term very broadly, so readers will be disappointed if they're looking for a book about zombies or robots that take over the planet. For every story about the living dead or alien invasions, there's one about Jews escaping from the Inquisition or marriages falling apart. I came to this book hoping for stories in the same vein as The Road, World War Z, and "After the Plague". As far as I'm concerned, too many of the stories in The Apocalypse Reader were off-topic.
There were a few good ones, though. Here are my personal highlights from the book:
-
"These Zombies are Not a Metaphor" by Jeff Goldberg was one of the best stories in the collection. It's the only story in the book that featured the brain-eating living dead. Unfortunately, it was only three pages long. Boo!
-
Jared Hohl's story, "Fraise, Menthe, Et Poivre 1978" was another of the highlights. It's about a group of friends slowly starving to death in Paris. According to the brief biographical blurbs at the end of the book, this was the author's first published story. I look forward to his second.
-
"Crossing into Cambodia" by Michael Moorcock was also a favorite. I thought it was going to be the usual, run-of-the-mill Vietnam story, but I soon realized it was much more than that. It featured a chilling ending that I'm sure will haunt me for awhile. I'd love to see that closing image on the big screen.
-
"An Accounting" by Brian Evenson tells the story of a man who accidentally becomes a "Midwestern Jesus" to some post-apocalyptic rubes. He inadvertently makes cannibalism one of the tenets of their new religion. This was probably my favorite story in the book.
-
I also liked "The End" by Josip Novakovich. It featured a non-traditional apocalypse, but was still a quality story. Much of the action in "The End" took place in my real-life neighborhood.
In addition to the stories mentioned above, the ones by Nathaniel Hawthorne and H.G. Wells were also worth reading. I'm going to be honest, though. The rest of this collection was a disappointing waste of my time. Some of the stories were flat-out garbage. Dennis Cooper's contribution, "The Ash Gray Proclamation", was basically 30 pages about boys selling their bodies for heroin. I now know what "fisting" means, but I really wish I hadn't read that story. Let's talk about comics.
The Best American Comics 2006--Harvey Pekar (editor)
I read and largely enjoyed The Best American Comics 2007 earlier in the year and decided to go back and read the 2006 edition. The worst part of The Best American Comics 2006 was Harvey Pekar's introduction. For some reason, he felt the best way to introduce the book was by spoiling the endings for all the stories he'd selected. Seriously, he went through the stories one by one and basically ruined them all. If you read this book, save the introduction for the end. You'll be better off.
My favorite comics in the book were "The Amazing Life of Onion Jack" by Joel Priddy and "Adventures of Paul Bunyan & His Ox, Babe" by Lilli Carré. The former features Onion Jack, a stickman superhero who'd rather be a chef. The latter features a melancholy Paul Bunyan who'd prefer to stay inside and read Proust than go out for drinks with Babe after a long day spent kicking down trees. Paul also bemoans his inability to find an appropriately-sized woman. Both of these comics managed to be funny and sad at the same time.
Other personal highlights were "Dance With the Vultures" by Jonathan Bennett, "Thirteen Cats of My Childhood" by Jesse Reklaw, and "Passing Before Life's Very Eyes" by Kurt Wolfgang.
Of course, in a collection this size, there are bound to be some selections that I didn't care for. The blabbermouth editor could have left out "La Rubia Loca" by Justin Hall, "Wonder Wart-Hog" by Gilbert Shelton, and the incredibly stupid "Busted!" by Esther Pearl Watson. Overall, though, The Best American Comics 2006 was a worthwhile collection and slightly better than the 2007 edition.
Deadeye Dick--Kurt Vonnegut
I bought a very old hardback version of Kurt Vonnegut's Deadeye Dick. It came with the dust jacket, but there was absolutely nothing printed on it that even hinted at what the book was about. There was no plot synopsis and not even a single reviewer's quote. There was, however, a full-body photograph of the author napping on a couch. He's wearing a beautiful button-up sweater, a brimmed cap, and no shoes. There's a tiny dog resting on his lap. I don't think Kurt Vonnegut was faking for the photographer. I think he was really sleeping. I liked the picture so much that I bought the book even though I had no idea what it was about.
I think that if you have any interest in reading Deadeye Dick, you should approach the book as I did...without knowing anything about it. I also think you should look around and get an old copy with the picture of Kurt Vonnegut sleeping on the back. It'll be worth it, trust me.
The Postman Always Rings Twice--James M. Cain
I read James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice because it was mentioned in the introduction to the Dashiell Hammett books I recently read. Also, at 117 pages, it was the shortest book I hadn't read on the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels list. Having read it, I have no idea how it made the list. It was a well-written novella about a drifter and an unhappy young wife who team up to commit the perfect murder--and how even the best plans can unravel if a cat decides to climb up a step ladder. It wasn't a bad book by any means, but I can't imagine that the Modern Library couldn't have come up with something with more substance to it. If I had a section on my bookshelves labeled "Pulp Fiction", I'd place The Postman Always Rings Twice right there.
I've now read 74 of the 100 books on the Modern Library's list. I'm going to read The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow, but then I'll probably retire the list. There's not much left on it that interests me.
CURRENTLY READING:
- Death and Restoration--Iain Pears
- The Pillars of the Earth--Ken Follett (audiobook)