Customer Reviews

The Eternal Footman

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

James Morrow has a formidable reputation among fantasists. This is the man who's willing to take on the Old Testament (Bible Stories For Adults), the idea that lying is better than telling the truth (City of Truth), the atom bomb (This is the Way the World Ends), and even God Himself (Towing Jehovah and Blameless in Abaddon). It's my pleasure to report that James Morrow's deepseated grief and anger with how unpleasant people, and philosophy, can be to other people is still alive and well (unlike, of course, God, in this third book of a trilogy). There are a few familiar faces from Morrow's other work that turn up in this book- both friendly and not so friendly. The book is surprising- and at the risk of spoilering slightly, it's unlikely that you will anticipate the ending-- though it is impossible to imagine the book (and the trilogy) ending any other way. A truly wonderful book, from a truly questioning mind. Mark Twain would be proud.

This is the final work in Morrow's excellent trilogy on the "death" of God. Unlike the wacky and satirical "Towing Jehovah" and the extremely intellectual "Blameless in Abaddon," this third installment takes on the tones of Stephen King or Dean Koontz in a slightly creepy doomsday scenario. Here God's giant corpse from the previous books finally decomposes, with the skull ascending to the sky and orbiting the Earth, constantly reminding all of humanity that God is really gone. A psychosomatic plague of death wipes out most of the western world before people come to their senses and embrace a new age of rationalism. Once again this is all a vehicle for Morrow's highly structured Atheist theories. He's not an agnostic who believes nothing, but an intellectual who has arrived at Atheism through reason and research. This novel continues to represent Morrow's theology, which is surely thought provoking regardless of your religious persuasion. Unfortunately, this installment is the weakest of the trilogy, with Morrow's post-apocalyptic wasteland showing little imagination or creativity (see King's "The Stand" for a better example), followed by visions of a politically correct future world of enlightenment that are too rosy for belief. Also, the conclusion takes way too long wrapping up too many subplots. But still, Morrow's highly articulate and visionary trilogy will never cease to provide food for thought.

THE ETERNAL FOOTMAN is possibly Jim Morrow's most scattershot and esoteric novel. Not really happy with only satirizing one topic, Morrow takes on everything from breakfast cereal to art critics in 400 pages, while managing to make some rather interesting observations and arguments about Mankind after religion. This book has recieved some of the most tepid reviews that Morrow has ever gotten (he usually gets enthusiastic praise) but I'll disagree. ALthough it is his least focused novel, it works as a stylistic choice rather than being distracting. At the same time, FOOTMAN is the only novel of Morrow's other than ONLY BEGOTTEN DAUGHTER (which remains his best) that really fuses compelling narrative with compelling philosophy. The other two volumes of his trilogy go too far on other sides. TOWING JEHOVA is too narrative driven, while BLAMELESS IN ABADDON is more stump speach sermon than novel. All of his works are strong satires that anyone could learn from, and THE ETERNAL FOOTMAN is one of his best. If you've never read Jim Morrow before, this is a pretty good introduction to him, although I would say read the other parts of the trilogy first. If you've read the trilogy, don't forget to check out ONLY BEGOTTEN DAUGHTER, probably his best book (and one hell of a wild ride).

"The Eternal Footman," the final book in James Morrow's Jehovah Trilogy, serves as an interesting capstone to the series. It's much different from the other books; not so much about psychology or philosophy, it's more a re-telling of the tale outlined in The Book of Revelation, although with an obvious Morrow twist. As such, it might not appeal to the same kinds of readers that the other two books attracted, but "Footman" is in no way a lesser book because of it.

Years after the trial at The Hague, God's body disassembled itself piece by piece, His intestines swimming through the ocean like a gigantic snake and His skull sits in geosynchronous orbit over Times Square. The Vatican rents His skull for advertisers, so people are treated to Microsoft and Coca-Cola ads 24/7. But, it causes other problems as well...

In Nora's struggle and the development of the Temple in Mexico, Morrow reveals the ultimate philosophical lesson in his Jehovah Trilogy: that human value should not be created by external things, even God. It's what Nietzsche referred to as the "metaphysics of the hangman," and is echoed by those who claim that if there is no God, there is no point in living. That is what the plague victims seem to think, and that is what the Antichrist seeks to capitalize on. It is also what God wants humans to grow beyond.

It's the ultimate religious/existential lesson, one that Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and even Heidegger stressed in their works. It is also one of the most complex philosophical concepts to communicate, and Morrow manages to do it in one novel (actually, the setup was there through all the books).

Old characters are brought back, and new ones introduced. Like "Blameless," "Footman" is a walk in the forest to read, pleasant and dense without being oppressive. Morrow again finds the correct mix of story and philosophy by which to tell his tale, and by so doing weaves as juicy and delicious a narrative for which one could ask. "Footman" is much heavier than his other works, and is not simply the tongue-in-cheek satire of the first two volumes. ...

I really had a hard time coming to a rating for this book. On the one hand, of the three books in the series, this is certainly the deepest and the most serious. It's also the least fun of the three.

This isn't to say it's a bad book. Quite the contrary, it is a very good book, in the same sense that bran flakes constitute a very good breakfast item. Or, perhaps, that analogy goes too far, as the book does have more than its share of quirky humor. It's just that the humor is almost exclusively in the form of gallows humor and the overarching sense of gloom is not at all abated by it.

To be fair, though, it IS a book about the problems of dealing with mortality in a post-theistic world. I don't doubt that it's a rather tall order to ask that Mr. Morrow tackle that issue and make it an enjoyable read at the same time. Certainly, he gave it the old college try. And believe me, I really WANT to like this book more than I did. It's a very smart book and it is also very well written. But, try as I might, I couldn't like it as much as I think that, perhaps, I ought to. I can't shake the feeling that I am the one who failed to rise to the standards of the book and not the other way around. As such, I give it a four. If I were to rate it on my feelings for it, I would give it a three; if I were to rate it in terms of intellectual stimulation, it would merit a five; thus, four seems a reasonable compromise.

Now pardon me while I dig out my copy of Blameless again.

This is the conclusion to what I like to dub Morrow's Unholy Trilogy, which began with the discovery and disposal of God's corpse in Towing Jehovah, and continued with his being put on trial for crimes against humanity in Blameless in Abaddon. The first book was grotesque, fascinating, and funny; the second book was just grotesque and fascinating; and this one, the weakest of the three, is, you guessed it, only grotesque. After God's corpse disintegrated and his skull flew up to become a second moon, a plague of death by doppelgangers, borne through spiritual despair and ennui left by God's absence, spread across the world to shut down modern civilization. A temporary surcease is found through the founding of a paganistic religion which embraces nurture, sex, dance, and laughter, but it is up to a mildly eccentric sculptor and widow to bring forth a sculptor and symbol for new humanistic religion to save civilization. There are many good moments of philosophical examination in the book but just as many moments of gratuitous (and contrived) ghastliness that is very unfunny, e.g., the raiding of a ship carrying cryogenic clients by cannibalistic Texans. It's worth reading if you've already read the previous two books, but first timers, beware.

In the final installment of the Godhead Trilogy, the corpse of God destroys itself in a spectacular display, hurling the Divine Skull into geosynchronous orbit over the East Coast of the United States. The Western world falls into chaos as the populace is seized by a plague of "death awareness." This horrible disease begins when a person is possessed by his "fetch," a demonic alter ego who causes the unlucky patient to gradually waste away.

The young widow Nora Burkhart, desperate to find a cure for her stricken son, travels across America (which now resembles Europe in the Dark Ages) to Mexico, where the Church of Earthly Affirmation is rumored to have a cure for the illness. Once there, she meets Gerard Korty, a renowned sculptor once patronized by the Catholic Church who now creates graven images for the mysterious cult. Does the Church really have a cure? Will humanity survive the plague? Do the fetches have an agenda beyond the murder of their hosts?

Although a very good read, The Eternal Footman is perhaps the least of the trilogy. Maybe it's because this book doesn't have quite the "biblical proportion" that its predecessors had. It's hard to compete with the Death of God and the Trial of God. Still, it raises some interesting questions, and speculates about what a world without God might ultimately look like.

All in all, I highly recommend this entertaining and educational trilogy. James Morrow is truly a master of satirical fantasy, and I for one look forward to his future offerings.

John C. Snider, Editor ...

Of the three novels in Morrow's GodHead Trilogy (Towing Jehovah, Blameless in Abaddon, Eternal Footman), The Eternal Footman was the best. The trilogy has been a fantastic, mind-expanding experience. I am very pleased to see that Morrow made this one to satisfy the desires of loyal readers, yet also constructed something amazing. Thanks

As with the other 2 books in this trilogy, I couldn't put it down. I thoroughly enjoyed this last book, which was the most nontheism-in-action. "Abbadon" got a bit bogged down in the philosophical for my tastes, whereas this book had a straightforward narrative with few forays into the philosophy. The Corpus Dei now the malevolent Craneo Dei, hovers over the book like a wraith. The struggles of Gerard and Nora compelled me to find out how it would end. And bringing back Anthony Van Horne and Cassie Fowler caused this reader to smile.

There are a couple of "Rowlingesque" touches in this book. Naming Nora's fetch "Goneril" was a wonderful stroke, and the scene with God's Entrails was literate South Park. I howled intermittently through this book (which was a problem as I read it at my cubicle at work). Also the visions of the future were hopeful and refreshing. I liked that there was commentary about today's big issues.

One thing that's unfortunate, but I'll mention it. This book was written before 9/11. I wonder how Morrow's future work will alter its course after the disaster. Coming up with a post-organized religion way of life, as well as a postcorporate world is becoming more and more urgent. Possibly even emergent. I couldn't help but think about 9/11 through the trilogy, perhaps inevitably because the towers were prominent in "Towing Jehovah" as the Valparaiso passed them on its way out to sea.

I was given a copy of The Eternal Footman, and since I did not pick the book off the shelf, I was a little suspect. After after reading the cover flap, I was even more so. This is not the type of book I would normally pick up and buy. However, after the first paragraph, I was hooked. This brash, funny, and lyrical book is well worth reading.

The book is follows the story of two other Morrow books, Towing Jehovah and Blameless in Abaddon. I hadn't read either of them before, but The Eternal Footman is self-contained, and I had no problem following the story-line.

Where to start with this review is a good question. The book is set in an apocalyptic society in which God is dead. The proof of this is his skull, which has gone into geosynchronus orbit above New York. Mankind is being hit by a terrible affliction abulia, a type of slow death in which people are visited by their "fetch," a look-alike apparition who leads them through the ghastly symptoms leading to death. The fetch are grim reapers in their victims' guises.

Nora Burkhart will do anything to save her only son, Kevin, one of the very first afflicted, from his fate. She starts on an almost impossible journey from New England to Mexico where she has heard of a cure for the dreadful condition. Along the way, she watches a pitched battle on a New Jersey golf course between Jews using surplus ontos as their tanks (and the Teaneck Riding Academy as cavalry) and anti-Semites using Brinks trucks as their armor. She catches up with a travelling theater troupe who puts the Gilgamesh epic to stage. When she finally makes it to Mexico, she bribes the gatekeeper at the clinic with cream made from the tissues of God's dead body. The cream cures the gatekeeper's impotence, and Kevin is admitted.

The other main character is Gerard Korty, a renowned sculptor, who is first hired by the Vatican to create a glorious work (which is changed entirely from his concept) and then also travels to Mexico to first assists in the cure by making idols, then to create his true masterwork, carved from an meteorite.

I won't spoil the ending here, but suffice it to say that it is surprising.

Morrow uses an almost lyrical, whimsical approach to the written word. I found myself reading several passages aloud just to hear the words strung together. His attention to detail is wonderful (during the battle at the golf course, he describes Jewish fighters driving electric shopping carts slaughtering anti-Semites charioteers driving rottweiler carts with the dead bodies stretching from the "tenth hole to the Bing Crosby Tavern." Maybe this phrase will not go down in history, but it conjures up a much more vivid picture in my mind than battle descriptions in other books. I can see the rottweilers running off, whimpering and yelping, I can see the shopping carts puttering along, and I can see the Tavern.

The Eternal Footman is a funny book. The pure level of "ridiculousness" sets it apart from most books. But like any good satire, it also offers serious looks at the human soul.

I am glad I was sent the book as I doubt I would have picked it up otherwise. It was a truly enjoyable as well as though-provoking read, and I now plan on reading more of his work.