Customer Reviews

McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories

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In his excellent introduction to "McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories", Michael Chabon decries what one might call the "genre-fication" of modern literature. He quite rightly points out that there is romance in the fantastic, science fiction in the literary, mystery in romance, etc., etc. It is therefore the stated ambition of this collection to gather authors who would otherwise not be lined up side by side, in an effort to blur these distinctions of genre, and introduce the reader to new styles and authors. I am glad to report that the result is spectacularly successful. While there is no connection between the stories, the uniformly excellent writing and passion displayed by the contributors results in a collection of diverse entries that somehow works as a whole.

The collection begins with Margaret Atwood's "Lusus Naturae" which immediately captures the spirit of the book with a romantic/gothic/science fiction entry. An ideal first piece, it sets the tone for the subsequent entries. Next is the remarkable David Mitchell with "What You Do Not Know You Want"; a noir-ish mystery with a supernatural twist. Readers of his recent "Cloud Atlas" will particularly enjoy this entry as it definitely echoes the themes and settings of that work. Moreover, like Atwood's entry, this blurring of genres adds to the cohesiveness of the work as a whole.

Jonathan Lethem's "Vivian Relf" carries things forward with an enigmatic romance written in a literary style. It is a classic short story, and a good change of pace which keeps the reader on their toes. Next is "Minnow" by Ayelet Waldman which probably had more of an impact on me than any other stories. It would be difficult to go into detail without spoiling the plot, but the themes surrounding parenthood are somehow both disturbing and reassuring at the same time. "Zeroville" by Steve Erickson just might be my favorite entry. His tale of a door hidden across the breadth of cinema, and just what it means, is fascinating and perfectly executed.

In "Lisey in the Madman", Stephen King proves that he is still the master of scene setting; no one can make you feel the heat of a noonday sun like him. However, this is also an interesting psychological/supernatural thriller, and if he does flesh it out into a novel (as is suggested) it could prove to be a remarkable work. "7C" blends hard science fiction and romance in perhaps the most original entry in the book. It's rare that quantum physics makes for exciting reading, but author Jason Roberts pulls it off nicely.

"The Miniaturist" by Heide Julavits is reminiscent of a "Twilight Zone" episode with all of the macabre scene setting and bizarre conclusion one would expect. "The Child" by Roddy Doyle is an excellent companion piece as it has the same sort of feel, but the motivations are far more vague and the twist at the end definitely leaves open a host of interpretations. "Delmonico" by Daniel Handler offers another nice change of pace in a fun little mystery that reads like a magic trick.

The next two entries are the only two that I have mixed feelings about. Both "The Scheme of Things" by Charles D'Ambrosio and "The Devil of Delery Street" by Poppy Z. Brite are well written, but neither really got of the ground. The first features superb scene setting and some fascinating characters, but the payoff was never really there, while the latter seemed to be building to a great conclusion, but ultimately fell flat in the end. I should emphasize that neither contribution is "bad" by any stretch, but compared to the other entries they just don't measure up.

Fortunately, the next two entries are superb, and along with "Zeroville" make up my top three for the collection. The first is what motivated me to buy the book in the first place, China Mieville's "Reports of Certain Events in London". As usual, he doesn't disappoint; while he maintains his thus far ubiquitous fascination with urban landscapes, he has once again gone in a totally unexpected direction that is reminiscent of Mark Danielewski's "House of Leaves", but entirely original. Next is Joyce Carol Oates' amazing "The Fabled Lighthouse of Vina Del Mar". The entire time I was reading it, I felt like I was reading a lost Edgar Alan Poe story, and sure enough on the last page the reader finds that the story is based upon the only surviving page of a lost Poe work. I should emphasize that this should in no way detract from Oates' writing, as she pays tribute even as she writes a wildly original piece that has some echoes of Lovecraft as well.

Finally, Peter Straub's enigmatic "Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle" provides the perfect conclusion to this collection. A nice touch is that following this entry is a brief biography/bibliography of each author for those who would like to further explore the contributors' work.

Generally speaking, one expects an ensemble collection to be a mixed bag, and one crossing numerous genres, even more so. Gladly, Michael Chabon has produced in "McSweeney's Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories" that is informally excellent even as it accomplishes in breathtaking fashion its goal of breaking down the barriers between genres. This collection is a real treat for fans of short stories, and is definitely not to be missed.

Jake Mohlman

There must be millions of us who share Michael Chabon's enjoyment of both literary fiction and genre fiction, and count among our greatest pleasures works that live on the border between. But it's not that easy to summon up that borderland at will, and in this grab bag of poplit, dallying with the genres of fantasy, thriller, and horror, there are as many pieces that fizzle as there are pieces that pop.

I agree with the other reviewers that the finest of the lot is from the hitherto unkown Jason Roberts, whose "7C" ushers in the end of the world with the intensity of delirium, the clarity of a theorem, and a chilling tendresse all its own. By itself, it's worth the price of entry. We will, I hope, be hearing much more from Roberts.

No one experiments with the Gothic form more freely or successfully than Joyce Carol Oates, and her Poe tribute "The Fabled Lighthouse at Vina del Mar", with its claustrophobic Galapogan landscape of mental decay, is another high point. Daniel Handler's "Delmonico" is another tribute, bringing Spider Robinson's Callahan's Saloon out of SF into the world of the hardboiled private eye, a journey which only improves its genial flavor.

Other standouts are "Zeroville", an eerie trip into the metaphysic of film; Jonathan Lethem's deceptively straightforward and naturalistic antiromance "Vivian Relf"; and China Mieville's tale of a secret society of urban naturalists, "Reports of Certain Events in London", a marked departure from his usual style that suits the story like a glove.

Most of the big marquee names here (Poppy Z. Brite, Stephen King, and Margaret Atwood) turn in solid journeyman offerings, but not ones that will linger in your memory. A few of the stories - "Minnow", "The Child", "The Scheme of Things" - are derivative one-finger exercises that may not make it into your short term memory.

If you're prepared to sift the gems from the chert, you'll be well rewarded by this collection.

This new collection of stories, edited by Michael Chabon, aims to "reinvigorate the stay-up-all-night, edge-of-the-seat, fingernail-biting, page-turning tradition" (taken from the book's back cover) of literary short fiction. For me, that was about half right. Half the stories had me on the edge of my seat and didn't let up for a moment, such as "Lusus Naturae" by Margaret Atwood, "The Fabled Light-house at Viña del Mar" by Joyce Carol Oates, and the astonishing "7C" by Jason Roberts (probably the best of the collection). The other half seemed a bit unclear and left me wondering what I had just read.

The collection includes some already well-known authors - Stephen King, Joyce Carol Oates, Peter Straub - and introduces some welcome newcomers (to me, anyway) - Ayelet Waldman, Jason Roberts, Roddy Doyle. As a whole, this collection was hit and miss; however, the hits make it worth reading.

While McSweeney's last offering of this sort didn't really seem to accomplish what it set out to do: the genre stories were by genre writers and the "literary" writers didn't seem to offer anything different from what they usually write(exception, Rick Moody's Albertine Notes), this time a definite effort seems to have been made to fit their work into the genres they were aiming for in the first collection.
The work by Margaret Atwood and Jason Roberts was the best, while Heidi Julavitz sets her story up and flubs with a predictable ending that made me want to throw the book across the room. I think that some of those people who would like to separate themselves as "literary" artists have the very mistaken notion that genre writing must be predictable, either that, or Julavitz simply couldn't come up with a better ending, which would prove the anti post-modernists correct in their assumption that today's literary fiction is intended to obfuscate because the writers don't have a handle on the basics of story telling. Julavitz's ending didn't work. It was like one of those hilarious jump-cuts in the "Funkenstein" skits on Mad TV and it disappointed because it started out so well.
David Mitchell's What You Do Not Know You Want, also had a quickie ending that didn't quite work, but still managed to raise hackles, while Steve Erickson's Zeroville was superb. At any rate, this collection is definitely more enjoyable than the first and I hope that McSweeney's continues to put these out periodically.

Like the previous volume Chabon edited, many of the stories seem to miss their aim. Despite claims to the contrary, many of these tales are bogged down by the exact literary trends and pretension that inspired this collection (and the previous) as a reaction against. There are some outstanding stories--Ayelet Waldman's "Minnow", China Mieville's "Reports of Certain Events in London", and Jason Robert's "7C"--that accomplish that thrilling edge-of-your-seat anticipation that inspired so many young folks to become lifelong readers. Many of the other stories are mostly good but seem to not exactly fit into this anthology. I will say that I loved the stories by the inimitable David Mitchell and Jonathan Lethem and would suggest picking up this volume for those alone.

So with a title like "Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories" one is whisked away to the days of pulp writers, Robert E. Howard, Robert Bloch, and H.P. Lovecraft. However you are in for a big disappointment. This book has more flops than gems, sad to say most of the stories downright suck. I'm not sure when it became popular to start writing plot less stories but that's exactly how some of them will read. Once I finished reading them I was tempted to go back thinking, "Did I miss something?" On the contrary, this book is hardly an enchanted chamber of astonishing stories, but a decent volume of worthless, ho-hum reading. Here is the list of stories with a quick overview.
Lusus Nature-Good story. This is about a girl who starts to have features resembling a werewolf.

What you do not know you want-This was also a good story. A guy is on a quest to track down a valuable artifact that was originally used as a suicide blade.

Vivian Relf-Skip it! A guy & a girl continue to run into each other over the years, with no romantic connection. No climax or anything. Waste of time.

Minnow-Skip it! As usual any story associated with pregnancy I tend to hate, this one is no different. A woman has a miscarriage and can't seem to get over it.

Zeroville-Skip it! A former film director is convinced in every movie for a split second of frame a door in visible in the shot. There is no climax.

Lisey and the Madman-Ah Stephen King doing what he does best, boring the crap out of me. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, I've come to easily recognize King's style of writing and its typical ramble on, get off the subject everyday dull story go nowhere plot. I hated this story.

7C-This story is worth reading. It's a very unusual tale that in my opinion is hard to explain, however it leads up to a reverse "Big Bang Theory" if you will.

The Miniaturist-This story is pretty good. It starts going at a spooky ghost story style pace. Two sisters are asked to be bridesmaids at their half sister's wedding. They get stuck in the snow and have to stay the night at an old woman's log cabin out in the woods.

The Child-Skip it! The whole time you're thinking this is probably a ghost story but no, it's not and like many others in this book it has no climax and ends rather dull.

Delmonico-Skip it! In an old gum shoe style setting to toughs enter a bar seeking a possible answer to the mysterious disappearance of one of the guy's wife. No good climax, no real interesting twist. Boring.

The Scheme of things-SKIP IT & BURN IT! This is absolutely the worst story in this book! It has no plot and you feel like part of your life was robbed from you just by reading it. A couple of door to door con artists end up in Iowa selling fake magazine subscriptions to make money, they stay a few days at an elderly couples house and drive away with corn in the backseat at the end. The author of this should be drug out into the street and beaten.

The Devil of Delery Street-This is my first encounter with Poppy Z. Brite. Many of my friends like her, but after reading this I was very disappointed. It starts off as a ghost story but goes nowhere and ends very boring. The only thing I did like about this story is when she's describing the streets of New Orleans apart from that skip it.

Reports of Certain Events in London-So as not to make the same mistake I did with wasting my time with the other stories I skimmed through this one. Just the format alone was enough to tell me I wasn't going to like it. I can't really tell you the plot but from the little I read, I saved myself from reading yet another "ho-hum" story.

The Fabled Light-House of Vina Del Mar-This was a very good story. There were strong hints of Lovecraft all over this tale. A man takes up the task of being the sole occupant of a light house with his terrier. As you read his diary entries you see what isolation & loneliness can do upon one's mind. This was a great tale.

Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle- 3 men in a hospital are reunited with an old acquaintance for whom they don't care, after which strange similar dreams haunt the men and certain circumstances begin taking their toll. This one is worth reading.

The reason I nought this book is Stephen King's "Lisey and the Madman," a novella that is (so the buzz insists, at least) actually an excerpt from a novel King has recently finished but has not decided yet to publish in full. Well, I for one hope that the entire novel is available at some point. This excerpt demonstrates again that King's writing style is simply getting better, without sacrificing a jot of the storytelling skill.

The best of the rest of the stories are Jonathan Lethem's "Vivian Relf," Peter Straub's "Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle," and Poppy Z. Brite's "The Devil of Delery Street." But there isn't a bad story in the entire book, making this one well worth a read.

Obviously with a collection of this sort, you're going to have your hits, your misses, and your mediocrities.

First, the hits: The best story in this collection is "The Fabled Lighthouse of Viña del Mar" by Joyce Carol Oates, a captivating, spot-on diary of loneliness in the South American primeval that fleshes out a posthumous Poe storyscrap into a fully realized, phenomenal story. It's just incredible. "The Miniaturist" by Heidi Julavits is an extremely well-realized classic ghost story that's perfect for an early-a.m. reading. "Delmonico" by Daniel Handler is a very engaging and funny murder mystery. "Vivian Relf" is a basic but highly effective story of confused identities, intriguing in its account of the barely explored ability of strangers to affect us more than friends do. "The Child" is one of the better pieces I've ever read by Doyle, a quick, immediate account of a child ghost, perhaps told by an untrustworthy narrator, with a puzzling ending worthy of discussion. Let me defend "The Scheme of Things" here, which is being called aimless. It is, a bit, but the writing and plot are so strong to make up for it. It's about a poor couple who swindles other poor families by pretending to work for a charity. It's an astute look at human weakness and vulnerability, and again, unlike many pieces in this collection, the writing makes up for any tangentiality of plot.

The mediocrities: "Lusus Naturę" by Margaret Atwood, about a literal cat-woman, is pretty good, although she's clearly out of her element and sees the story as a lark. Nevertheless, it's an accomplished lark, and probably the best of the mediocrities. David Mitchell's story, a hazy missing-relic mystery set in Hawai'i, certainly has its moments, but is also very bland in parts, flowing smoothly then dragging its feet. It's a deft voice, but it's executed too piecemeal to make it work as well as it should have.

The mediocrities, part II: Many are raving about "7C," the Weird Short Story Prize winner. It's...OK. It's really not that weird, and reins itself in where it could have been much weirder. Most of the "weirdness" comes in self-mutilation, of a scar that sort of lives. The problem isn't that it isn't that weird, it's that it advertises itself as being really bizarre when it's a pretty basic short story conceit played out in slightly errant fashion. Still, the writing's fairly strong. Many are also lauding "Zeroville" by Steve Erickson. It's a decent story, with a very good central idea (man finds similar images in very disparate films), but it's so bogged down with references, references, references it almost can't be read. You have to have spent your life as a Hollywood sycophant to get half the references--so much of the time is spent dropping names and films, the idea is all but lost. China Miéville's bizarre story "Reports of Certain Events in London" is an experimental exercise without much substance, but it's fun to read, to see the lengths the short story can be taken to. Again, the plot of it--that streets vanish just as people do--is flimsy and hardly played out, but conceptually, it's an enjoyable read.

The worst story, by far--and it's a true stinker--is "The Devil of Delery Street" by Poppy Z. Brite, which is painfully amateur, the kind of story that would be torn apart by a first-level creative writing workshop, airport literature at best. Ayelet Waldman's "Minnow" is more of the same, poorly written tripe with a cloying narrative about bland and clichéd melancholies: prescription medication, dead babies, pop culture namedrops, and soap opera hysterics. Less offensive but still pointless are Stephen King and Peter Straub's entries, which are both in desperate needs of editing--the stories are prolix as can be. They flop back and forth between decent narrative and painful stereotype dialect/lousy dialogue.

Well, it's a book worth sampling, as are most things McSweeney's--it's just as scattershot as the yearly Nonrequired Reading series.

At last, a collection of short fiction that spans genres as easily as sliding across a dark, icy lake at midnight, plummeting towards the black void of the thorns that await you at the weedy edges. Michael Chabon has gathered together some of the best writers of the era, and presents them to us as tidbits in this delectable collection.

In most of these tales, you will find the lick of the macabre, a scent of titillating sci-fi, and a squeeze of horror that make for the best of short literature.

China Mieville's 'Reports Of Certain Events In London' is a fantastic tale of rogue streets (yes, streets!) that roam the cities of the world. Joyce Carol Oates 'The Fabled Lighthouse Of Vina Del Mar' (my favorite) is a sultry, frightening tale of isolation, madness, and strange quivering sea life. Margaret Atwood delves into the bestial heredity of an otherwise sweet little girl in 'Lusus Naturae'.

A mysterious doorway taunts the edge of your vision in 'Zeroville' by Steve Erickson. A horrid foretelling of events spurs a man to try and change the future in '7C' by Jason Roberts. Meet a bartender with a gift in Daniel Handler's 'Delmonico'. Live with a household specter in 'The Devil Of Delery Street' by Poppy Z. Brite, and reminisce while deteriorating in Peter Straub's 'Mr. Aickman's Air Rifle'.

Probably one of the more prominent attractions to this book is Stephen King's new short, 'Lisey And The Madman', but while giving adequate characterization, the story fell short by being a little too long-winded, a trait of King in his later works. At any rate, with famous names like these, you know you are getting a superb treat. 'Astonishing Stories' is just that, lip smacking fun for anthology lovers. Enjoy!

I've often said that a collection of short stories is going to contain some good, some bad, and some indifferent. This collection, however, with very few notable exceptions (Stephen King, for one), contains stories that were not very good and did not hold my attention. Some of them were so poorly written that I found myself looking ahead to where the story would end, a sure bad sign for a person such as myself, who lives to read. I honestly expected better from this collection, after the first one was so good, but this was a great disappointment!