Iggy's Book Nook

[Shit Dickface]

I also reeeeally want the new David Foster Wallace book written by the Rolling Stone interviewer.

I caved and bought this shit today. Pretty glad I did.

[IggytheBorg]

I literally just finished "Dangerous Red", the collection of the short horror fiction of Mehitobel Eilson, which I mentioned above.

Wow. Just. . . WOW. This is really, really good stuff. I cannot recommend it more highly.

Ms. Wilson shows off some impressive versatility in this collection; there's body horror (a splatterpunk standby, but with some pretty unique twists), psychological horror, a zombie story (of sorts), sexual sadism, and even a Lovecraftian tale. I read somewhere that it's sort of a rite of passage for horror authors to write a Lovecraftian tale. Much as I enoy how against the grain & icnoclastic she can be, I am very pleased to see that despite all that, Ms. Wilson has as much respect for the classics as she does. Of course, the story has her uniques spin on it, and it's delightful indeed. There's also a dark, wry sense of humor apparent in some of the stories. And there's a real sense of sadness in others. I even liked the story notes at the end, which contained blurbs on how the stories were conceived. In fact, the only part of the book I didn't like was the intro by David J. Schow. I've always found his writing to have an air of arrogance about it. . . and this intro is no exception. But anything Bel herself wrote is nothing short of a delight.

It's noted that many of these stories rec'd "Honorable Mention" in some "Best Of" anthology series. It is nothing short of a crime that none of these stories ever made it into a best of anthology. I mean, seriously, Ramsay Campbell appears in every edition of the Mammoth Book of Best New Horror (mainly, I'm sure, due to the fact that he edited the series with Stephen Jones way back when the series started, and he & Jones are no doubt friends). The fact that mediocre shit by him gets in every year, while Mehitobel Wilson goes all but ignored, shakes my faith in the ediitor of that anthology a bit.

Seriously, I hven't been this escited bout an author since I reviewed the "American Morons" collection by Glenn Hirshberg. Pick up "Dangerous Red"; help enrich a deserving, if oft overlooked author financially and yourself in a literary sense. You'll thank me later.

[Bobby Bear]

Finished The Bell Jar the other night. Loved it like a cold Magners after a long, hot day. Is it wrong of me to want to date an Esther Greenwood-esque girl?

[Shit Dickface]

Is it wrong of me to want to date an Esther Greenwood-esque girl?

Absolutely! But I know what you mean.

[IggytheBorg]

I'm sorry a new posting by me hasn't been forthcoming, but I'm currently stuck in the middle of a collection of old horror fiction. The stories were referenced in Lovecraft's famous essay on the genre, so I got it mainly for historical significance. It contains the entire short novel "Turn of the Screw" by Henry James, which I was kind of glad of when I bought it, as I have never read it. But it's proving to be slow going, and I often can't muster up the desire to read it; the language is so oblique and repetitive it's flat out annoying. But I refuse to give up; it's now become a matter of pride that I finish this motherfucker. I've thrown myself into it & made some significant headway, and once I clear this obstacle, the rest of the stories in this anthology should be a breeze.

[IggytheBorg]

I finally finished "H.P. Lovecraft's Book of the Supernatural: 20 Tales of Terror Selected by the Master HImself".

Lovecraft devotees will recall that he wrote an essay on "Supernatural Horror in Literature" which has, since its publication, been regarded as a seminal discourse on worthy horror stories written to that time. This book is a collection of some of the stories he names as being particularly noteworthy examples of the horror genre. This is the second such book I have, both containing different selections. From an historical perspective, this is an incredible find. As I fancy myself something of a horror historian, I was immediately interested in reading this. There's stuff by Arthur Machen, William Hope Hodgson, Washington Irving and Poe in here. Much of it is, I imagine, hard to find today. And (except for the Machen) I hadn't read any of it.

If you like Gothic horror, most of which is the ghost story or something very much like it, you'll like this. Some good examples of that type of story to be had here. A few approach more modern themes (The Hodgson story, for example, is a type of body horror, and the best of the 3 tales I've read by him so far). If, however, you aren't enthused about this kind of story, it may strike you as mainly boring & quaint. Lord knows I didn't love everything in this book (It took me months to finish a book I should have polished off in about 2 weeks because "The Turn of the Screw" was such a disappointingly long & tedious slog of a read). Overall, I'd recommend it to fans of the ghost story, or anyone who has any curiosity about the roots of modern horror.

[Timothy225]

I'd read that book many years ago (I agree with you re: Turn of the Screw - I recall that one being a bit of a trial to get through), and I have to get my hands on a copy for a re-read one of these days. Thanks for this, Ig!

[BillyG]

Here is where I am too honest: I hate Lovecraft. Every time I try to read anything by him it is a huge fucking chore.

[IggytheBorg]

I can see how one could feel that way about HPL. He can be kind of oblique at times. I hated his stuff the 1st time I tried reading any, too.

[Abraham Smashington]

Lovecraft definitely take a bit to get used to, but I enjoyed what I've read by him.

[IggytheBorg]

Just finished a book called "Monstrous: 20 Tales of Giant Creature Terror!" DM8 from that-other-site-that-shall-not-be-named would probably have LOVED this. As the name implies, it's stories about giant monsters, a subgenre that I think is somewhat neglected in horror, particularly in written form. I have toyed for years with the idea of writing a giant monster story and taking it seriously, rather than succumbing to "The Godzilla problem", as I termed it in a discussion thread way back when (i.e., not being taken seriously because when an American audience thinks "giant monster", they inevitably think of Godzilla, who has gotten increasingly sillier over the years). I mean, when you think about it, the idea of a creature physically large enough to level a city is pretty fucking terrifying, right? So I was really looking forward to this book, to see if anyone else had the same idea. And did they? Well, sort of. The vast majority of these stories were about larger than normal creatures, but not GIANT creatures (eg., bugs the size of Volkswagens rather than city stomping kaiju monsters). And many of them had an almost self conscious sense of humor about them. Nifty reads, but I don't see why it is that authors sometimes seem incapable of writing a story about a giant monster with a straight face. It's almost like they have to peek out from behind the curtain and wink at the audience as if to say: "Yes, I know this is silly; see me laughing along with you?" rather than playing it completely straight. Only a handful of the stories were actually about city destroying rampages, and ALL of them were played for laughs to at least some degree. So while this was a fun read, and one I'd recommend to any giant monster fan or horror connisseur, it was a liiiiiiiiittle bit of a let down for me, personally.

[V]

Then write your story... I'd be more than happy to offer military advice/tactics/liquor preferences.

[Timothy225]

Fuck. Yes. Get to writing, Ig! Make it the story Cloverfield SHOULD have been!

[Bobby Bear]

Nifty reads, but I don't see why it is that authors sometimes seem incapable of writing a story about a giant monster with a straight face. It's almost like they have to peek out from behind the curtain and wink at the audience as if to say: "Yes, I know this is silly; see me laughing along with you?" rather than playing it completely straight.

In my second (I believe you cats call it "sophomore") year of university, I took a module called "Writing Short Fiction"* It was a great chance to develop what we'd been doing in first year, getting into the finer points of concepts like theme and metaphor and what have you. The Best of McSweeney's Volume 1 was on our required reading list. I found most of the stories pretty interesting, if a little "quirky for the sake of being quirky" in some cases. One I unabashedly loved, though, was Tedford and the Megalodon by Jim Shepard. Imagine a skilled genre fan writing a tale not unlike The Call of Cthulhu for a non-genre audience. It's a less self-consciously "spooky" obsessed journey tale that doesn't skimp on the atmosphere, pace, or watery jeopardy. Not to mention a big-ass creature (the eponymous "Megalodon.") Well worth a read, if you're unfamiliar.

If you don't enjoy Tedford, at least you can say you own a collection with a story called Fat Ladies Floated in the Sky Like Balloons.**

* I was hot for teacher.
** Also that story's first line. This was the kind of thing Hottie McTeacherson encouraged in said class. She liked that kind of thing.

Then write your story... I'd be more than happy to offer military advice/tactics/liquor preferences.

Get to writing, Ig! Make it the story Cloverfield SHOULD have been!

I agree with both these men, Ig! I'd be all over an Iggy's Book Nook sister thread ("Iggy's Writer's Room?")

[IggytheBorg]

Just finished a nonfiction work called "The Last Three Miles", by Stephen Hart. This was the story of the construction of the Pulaski Skyway, which was a crucial component of America's 1st superhighway, according to the author. It also tells of how union corruption and the involvement of mayor Frank hague, the legendary leader of the uber-powerful Hudson County Democratic machine from 1911 thru 1947 affected the project. If you've never had the pleasure of driving this particular stretch of roadway, it's an ugly, steel and concrete bridge, impossibly narrow, with no shoulders and exit/entrance ramps in the most improbable of places (some one the left and one in the center of the road). Its purpose was to efficiently disperse the traffic coming thru the Holland Tunnel thru Jersey City to kearny and Newark, and roads connecting to points beyond. It rises like a fossilized dinosaur skeleton 135' over the marshes of the sothern portion of the Meadowlands, and rns above US Rt 1&9 for part ofits length.

I grew up in Jersey City, and local history (especially stuff dealing with the elusive Mayor Hague) fascinates me. And I can say from personal experience that referring to the Skyway as "Death Alley", as the Jersey Journal (our local paper) did almost as soon as it opened due to the number of fatal crashes it produced, is a very apt description indeed. I HATE driving the Skyway, & avoid it if I'm at all able. This book explains why these seemingly obvious errors of design were allowed into the project. The answer would surprise you, but is elegantly logical once you learn what it is.

It's a very short book, and doesn't pay nearly as much attention to Mayor Hague as I'd have liked. This is the 3d book on him (or at least, devoting substantial content to him), and none of them has been really in depth or clear about what he was up to. I was very disappointed in that. It sems all the really good studies of this almost mythic figure are long out of print. I may have to hunt one up in a Jersey City library. For those who don't know of him, Mayor Frank Hague was the mayor of Jersey City from 1911 to 1947. He established one of the most powerful, cohesive political machines ever seen, ruling Jersey City with an iron fist (he once quipped, when an aide told him something he wanted to do was against the law, "I AM the law!"). He was an unparallelled master at getting people to vote for him and those candidates he supported. Jersey City is the second largest city in NJ, and nno democrat could hope to win office on a county or state level without Hague's support. In return for a bribe from the soon to be elected official (to be tithed - at 3% of the office's salary - yearly), Hague would get his neighborhood organizers mobilized & get out the vote for the candidate. Never mind that some of the names appearing on the rolls belonged to people who had been dead for years.

His influence was such that, even though FDR despised him, Roosevelt needed to carry the electoral votes from NJ, and grudgingly gave Hague's county a plethora of WPA projects, turning a blind eye to his heavy handed graft. He was instrumental in the selection of governors and judges, so much so that he & his cronies were all but immune to prosecution. The Jersey City police were legendarily brutal thugs, at his beck & call as private enforcers. Dissent of any stripe, no matter how small, was swiftly punished (even talking badly about "Duh Mare" in a bar could get you a beating at best, or fired from your job & run out of town in financial ruin at worst).

He accumulated vast wealth, and was skillful and ruthless i his use of government patronage, making his friends wealthy in the process (in exchange for his tithe, of course, which most were glad to give him, since they wouldn't have the cushy job if not for him, and the rest were too afraid to deny him for fear of the consequences).

Like most Jersey City residents who know anything about him, I have a sort of love hate relationship with Hague. One has to admire the skill it took to amass such an impregnable power base. And one of the ways he got the vote out was to make sure residents in need who came to him for help got what they needed (which made many grateful - & beholden - to him). He got the Jersey City Medical Center built, which was one of the finest hospitals in the world at the time; damn near every baby born in Jersey City from 1932 to 1979, including me, my brother and both my parents, was born in the Margaret Hague (named after his mother, appropriately) Haternity Hospital. And Hague, a former amateur boxer and low grade street criminal before turning to poitics, never shrank from a physical fight, even into his 80's. One of my favorite Hague stories: Right after the Holland Tunnel opened, he was made aware of NYC gangsters planning on coming thru the tunnel to set up a "satellite office" in Jersey City. he had the cops stationed at the tunnel exit keep an eye out for them, and pull them over when they came thru. Hague was summoned, and had the gangsters lined up against a wall. he then proceeded to personally kick each of them in the balls, telling them to stay the hell on their side of the Hudson. Sure Jersey City was as corrupt as the day is long, but it was HOME GROWN corruption, dammit! Ya gotta respect that. I recently took a dep in an atorney's office on the 1st floor of 2600 JFK Blvd. in Jersey City, where Hague used to live. In the lobby is a nearly life sized photo of Hizzoner standing in front of the building, with the caption: "Frank ague, Mayor of Jersey City, 1911 - 1947. I am the Law!"

Sadly, Hudson County politics is still a hotbed of corruption, and the Democratic organization, while a lot more fragmented at times than Hague ever let it get, can be a force to be reckoned with if it gets its act together. Very little goes on without its support. I worked a couple elections (albeit reluctantly; it was sort of a tacit requirement of my job at the time, as an associate at a Hudson County law firm), and while I wanted as little to do with politics as possible after I left, I was fascinated, in the way we're fascinated by the fierce beauty of sharks, by the glimpse of the political process I got. And I learned one very important lesson, which I put into practice daily in my professional life: take care of those who take care of you. While I don't resort to bribes (I don't have the scratch, or the desire to lose my attorney's license), a kind word, or a bit of affable banter or honest compliment to a court official, your own or someone else's office staff, other attorneys (both allies and adversaries), and not forgetting Christmas or Secretaries' Day, goes a long, long way in making the practice of law easier.

So to come back 'round to the original purpose of this diatribe, while I enjoyed this book, I get the sense that information on the events surrounding the relevant time period are scarce. After all, Hague controlled just about everything, inclusing media outlets, and by the time the book was written in 06, very few people around at the time were still alive to provide direct information to the author. So it seems a little sketchy and quick at times, and is short on detail. It's almost as if Mayor Hague is still scowling over our soulders as we read, preventing his image from being tarnished even from beyond the grave. I may never unravel his enigma to my satisfaction, but I continue the quest nonetheless. I'd recommend it to anyone from Jersey, or who has an interest in organized crime or politics. The anachronism that was Jersey City (and to only a slightly lesser extent, the rest of the state as well) is a fascinating chapter in US Political history.