Temporary People [Hardcover]

Steven Gillis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 2008

Revolution rocks and rolls. An ex-tv star seizes power and tries to turn daily life into an endless film. Temporary People is a political fable of the first order. Set on the island of Bamerita, a country whose, "history is like the rim of a wheel made to turn round and round, our political cycles nothing if not redundant," Gillis third novel, following Walter Falls and The Weight of Nothing, Temporary People explores the human condition in all its most vulnerable exposures. A brilliant send up of modern life turned inside out by the inescapable powers of history and fate, filled with pathos and humor, Gillis deftly explores the complexities of survival and choice in a world perpetually on the verge of going mad. Sharp and satirical, a breathtakingly paced romp, the end will leave you drop-jawed and wanting more. Temporary People is a book for the ages and once again Gillis delivers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

As thoroughly dark and thoroughly humane as Vonnegut's apocalyptic novels like Cat's Cradle and Galapagos, Temporary People is a suspenseful tale about history, hope, oppression, and modes of resistance. Gillis's world is richly imagined, his voice is clear, and his plot is intricate, as is his moral. In fact, this novel seems much more interested in probing and dramatizing the deep philosophical paradoxes of revolutionary thought than in providing any pat answer. Here's a fable for our time, and for just about any other time you can imagine. --Chris Bachelder, author of U.S.!

Minimalist-cum-fabulist Steven Gillis synthesizes nearly every Twentieth Century calamity from World War II to the Balkans to Desert Storm into this fable of the oppressed country Bamerita, which drifts about the seas unhinged from any continent. His idealistic and erudite hero finds his peaceful revolution thwarted and contemplates the holes in Gandhi s many aphorisms while his people are mutilated in grand spectacle on film. Temporary People is a vicious and compelling storyboard for our time. --Jeff Parker, author of Ovenman

About the Author

Steven Gillis is the author of the novels Walter Falls and The Weight of Nothing, both finalists for the Independent Publishers Book of the Year and ForeWord Magazine Book of the Year 2003 and 2005. Steve's stories, articles and book reviews have appeared in over three dozen journals. A 6 time Pushcart nominee, a collection of Steve's stories - titled Giraffes - was published in 2007. A second collection of stories will be published by BLP in 2009. A member of the Ann Arbor Book Festival Board of Directors, and a finalist for the 2007 Ann Arbor News Citizen of the Year, Steve teaches writing at Eastern Michigan University and is the founder of 826 Michigan and the co-founder of Dzanc Books in partnership with Dan Wickett. All proceeds from Steve's writing goes to Dzanc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 203 pages
• Publisher: Black Lawrence Press; 1st edition (April 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976899361
• ISBN-13: 978-0976899365
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,795,694 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Madness as show biz, November 24, 2008

By 

Zinta Aistars "Writer & Editor" (Portage, MI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Temporary People (Hardcover)

Years ago, I saw a Jim Carrey movie called "The Truman Show." It was about a man whose entire life, unbeknownst to him, played out on a movie stage while the rest of the world watched. Steven Gillis's novel, "Temporary People," reminded me of that movie ... only with a much darker palette of colors. Much darker. Add a touch of the surreal, and you have Gillis, likened to Kurt Vonnegut by some (and I would agree with the comparison).

"Temporary People" is called a fable by the author, explaining the designation in the first pages of his unfolding story, in which the island of Bamerita, floating unattached some 2,000 miles south of Iceland, has become a movie set directed by a madman, called Teddy Lamb a.k.a the General:

"The scenes for Teddy's movie are shot out of sequence and no one can say for certain what the film's about. Even when the soldiers come and order us into our costumes, we're not shown a script. At best, we hear rumors that the movie's a multi-generational saga weaved through the telling and retelling of a 3,000 year old fable. The focus of the fable changes, however, each time the rumor's repeated. Teddy reviews all the daily rushes, assesses the caliber of our performance. Everyone's uneasy about how they appear. The perception we give is not always intended. Our fear isn't artistic but rather a concern for our safety. In evaluating the scenes, Teddy's impatient with people who disappoint him. Those found deficient are removed from the film and rarely heard from again. `That,' Teddy says, `is show biz.'"

Under this guise of movie-making, Teddy rules as a slaughtering dictator would, even while doing so with a perverted sense of humor. Madness, if you will. The previous government officials are filmed as they are tied to logs, then pulled in two, set to float on the ocean waves. The population of Bamerita falls quietly into place after that. Until, of course, they rise to revolt. As any population, given time and wearing away of patience with brutality, will. A crew of "actors," i.e. citizens, take the lead, with characters such as Andre Mafante, an insurance salesman who tries to promote non-violent means of revolt, and his friend, Emilo, whose rebelliousness culminates in sewing his own ears, eyes and mouth shut. One of Gillis's most disturbing scenes is when Teddy torments Emilo into unwilling laughter and pained screams, effectively tearing up his stitched mouth into meaty shreds.

The satire is effective. Gillis is successful in painting the madness, the irrational behavior of an oppressive government, the mass fear in response, and the distortion of reality that taking away basic liberties must involve when one manipulates the many. If this echoes of current political scenarios, it should. In his characters, Gillis illustrates different forms of resistance and rebellion: indifference, self-serving cowardice, passive and active resistance, heroic if perhaps misguided protest and bloody coups. All done with a touch of Hollywood.

Steven Gillis is the author of two prior novels and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize six times. He has also published a story collection and has a second one due out in 2009. Gillis is co-founder of Dzanc Books (in partnership with Dan Wickett), with all proceeds from his publications going to Dzanc.