McSweeney's 41

Edited by Dave Eggers

It would seem I don't get tired of the type of contemporary fiction and reportage on offer in any given issue of the McSweeney's Quarterly Concern.

Issue 41 starts off strong, with a story by Thomas McGuane about a couple of old friends who have gone off on a fishing trip together.  They have kind of come to hate one another, and their crotchety old guide is a real handful - this is a nice exploration of character in a difficult terrain.

Jess Walter has perhaps the best story in this collection with 'The Wolf and the Wild', a story about a white collar convict who ends up volunteering as part of a program that has cons working in schools with children (because that sounds like such a good idea).  It's sensitive and remarkably well-written.

Deb Olin Unferth tosses some life-long tourists into a difficult situation in 'Stay Where You Are', which showcases how Western arrogance can play out, even among people who have spent decades travelling the globe.

Henry Bean's story 'The Virago' is a fascinating character piece about a Hollywood agent who will do just about anything to keep ahold of her tenuous grasp on her career, clients, and empty attempts at happiness.  It's both scary and sad, and very powerful.

In 'Robot Sex', Ryan Boudinot portrays a future where humans and robots work side-by-side, but where relations between robots are illegal.  It's an unlikely future, but the story is fun.

There is an excerpt from John Brandon's new novel, A Million Heavens, which really makes me want to read this book.

This issue ends with a collection of four pieces of Australian Aboriginal short fiction, and all are excellent.  They tend to explore inter-racial relationships a fair deal.  Tony Birch's 'The Promise' is narrated by an alcoholic who wants to get his wife and kids back, but wants his next drink more.  In 'S&J', by Ellen Van Neerven-Currie, a pair of girlfriends pick up a German hitchhiker who has never met Aborigines before, and is intent on exploring quite a bit of at least one of them.  Tara June Winch wrote 'It's Too Difficult to Explain,' a story about a young Aboriginal man who excelled in sprinting, but found failure in all other things, and eventually that too, as he tried to negotiate a relationship with a white girl from an educated background.  Finally, there is 'Tonsils', a wonderful story by Melissa Lucashenko, narrated by a woman who has taken in her daughter's friend, because the girl's mother is a drunk.  This story has one of the best endings I've read in a while.

In terms of non-fiction, there are two pieces of note.  The first is 'A Land Rush in Tehran', wherein Viveca Mellegard explores her memories and the modern reality of a formerly quiet, empty section of Tehran which is now filled with skyscrapers.

J. Malcolm Garcia, my favourite of McSweeney's regular non-fiction contributors, has written 'What Happens After Sixteen Years in Prison?', which follows two sisters who spent that long imprisoned for a robbery which they probably never committed, and which caused no harm if it did happen.  Garcia doesn't come out and indict the American justice system; he lets the story do it for him.

Each story in this book is illustrated quite beautifully at the beginning, and as with most issues of McSweeney's, this book is a pleasure to hold and open.

McSweeney's 37

There is so much great content in this McSweeney's, but I want to talk about the design of the book first.  Looking at the image to the right, this latest volume looks like it's just a regular old hardcover book, yet that image is taken looking at the book straight on.  It's designed to look like a 3D image, with the upper left and lower right corners cut out accordingly, reminding me of the papers on Battlestar Galactica.

Inside the reader is greeted with a booklet that contains four chapters of John Sayle's A Moment in the Sun, which I didn't read because I'm working my way through that book now (it's amazing).

The book has a ton of great writing.  Jonathan Franzen contributes Ambition, a story about an aging couple.  Nelly Reifler's The Grove is about a rabbit who moves into the wider world, and discovers just how difficult life can be.  It jumps around a lot, but is a very well-written piece.

Etgar Keret's story, 'Cheesus Christ', is an exploration of causality, as it plays out in a cheeseburger fast food joint, encompassing such topics as the Butterfly Effect, depression, and suicide.  'Take Care of that Rage Problem', by Edan Lepucki, examines the life of a woman whose parents have split up, and while they're okay with it, she is not.  Keeping with the divorce theme (it's pretty common this time around) is Kevin Moffett's 'Lugo in Normal Time', about a sad sack father trying to stay relevant in his daughter's life, while imagining that he has some control over the passage of time, or at least his ability to process it.

I've never been tempted to read a novel by Joyce Carol Oates, but I do like her shorter pieces.  In 'A Brutal Murder in a Public Place', the narrator (the author?) finds a bird flying around in an airport in New Jersey, and spends a chunk of time thinking about it.  Joe Meno's story 'Lion's Jaws' was terrific.  It is about a man who has a few dates with a video artist who dreams of being killed by a lion.  Funny and strange, I quite enjoyed it.

In terms of non-fiction, there are five excellent pieces (two of which will be discussed in my Kenyan paragraph below).  In 'Now Ye Know Who The Bosses Are Here Now', J. Malcolm Garcia explores an unsolved murder that happened in Northern Ireland in 2007, after the ceasefire.  It seems very likely that the killing was done at the hands or the orders of the IRA, but nothing has happened to prosecute the case.  This piece depicts all aspects of community life there, and is very sad and effective.

Closer to home is Jess Walter's 'Statistical Abstract for My Hometown, Spokane, Washington', in which he details, in fifty numbered sections, what life is like in this mostly forgotten town.  There are lasting images of grown men riding childrens' (stolen) BMX bikes, and the proliferation of womens' shelters in the area.  This piece is very evocative of the place, and where the author fits within it.  It's probably my favourite piece in this whole book.

In 'Still Looking', John Hyduk writes about his struggles in finding a job in the new American economy.  He has had a number of low-paying and dead end chances over the years, but is now really struggling to find something that pays a living wage.  I love this sentence:  "sweat labourers are the kids from the first marriage, and just about as welcome."

 The book ends with five pieces of contemporary writing from Kenya; three that are fictional, and two that are memoirs.  The first memoir, 'The Life and Times of Richard Onyanga' tell of how the painter got his start in life, and the source of his recurring subjects of buses, Land Rovers, and his first girlfriend, a domineering muzunga who was significantly older than him.  It's terrific.  

Annette Lutivini Majanja's piece, 'It Is Only The Best That Comes Out' is a highly amusing accounting of the rules and regulations at Precious Blood Riruta, the secondary school she attended.  There are discussions of which biscuits to purchase, and how to hide extra food in laundry buckets or where they incinerate sanitary napkins.

Binyavanga Wainaina's story 'Boonoonoonoos' reads as the opposite of Majanja's piece, as it is a story about school girls who sneak out to meet soldiers, and to generally cause havoc.  It provides a nice notion of what life was like in Kenya in the 80s.  Billy Kahora's story 'Urban Zoning' is an interesting look at how a man on a month-long bender (it's all about staying in The Zone) is able to manipulate his bosses into letting him keep his job.  There is another story in this section, but it is the only thing in this book that I didn't enjoy.

In all, this was another excellent edition of McSweeney's.  I increasingly am only interested in reading short pieces of fiction or gigantic, sweeping novels.  I love how the fine people at McSweeney's are handling both of those needs this summer.