Michael Swanwick, Cigar-Box Faust and Other Miniatures (Tachyon Publications, 2003)
Lest you believe that this book is about the tiny little whatnots you'd see in the homes of well-to-do women of a certain age, let me clarify. Cigar-Box Faust is a collection of miniature stories, too small to even be given the title of "short". Some are only a paragraph or two in length, yet each one is able to stand alone if the situation calls for it. Ah, the temptation to try to turn in a review of approximately 300 words is strong. But I'm curbed by the knowledge that I just wouldn't be able to take those words and make something of them like Mr. Swanwick does in this book.
With over seventy stories in a mere ninety-four pages, there are bits that should entertain just about anyone. The book is divided into ten sections, eleven if you count the author's introduction. "Cigar Box Faust" leads off, and it's not so much a story as it is a description of how to put on a play based on Goethe's Faust with a cigar box and other simple items. I howled with laughter ("Kids! Don't try this at home.") and decided that I'd have to try putting on my own play sometime.
Other sections include stories about Picasso, essays on Philip K. Dick, the planets, and my personal favorite, "Letters to the Editor". In this section, Mr. Swanwick gives us a peek into the process a writer goes through when trying to come up with an updated biography every time something new is published. I caught a brief whiff of C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters in the audacity of some of the letters, and I ended that section longing for more.
In a few instances I felt that the sections weren't necessarily a collection of short stories as they were pieces of a larger whole. In "Picasso Deconstructed: Eleven Still-Lifes" and "Eight Takes on Kindred Themes," since each one of the stories in those sections dealt with Picasso and Philip K. Dick, respectively, those miniatures felt more like chapters. And in the section "An Abecedary of the Imagination", each item started off with a different letter of the alphabet ("A is for Atlantis", "B is for Books", etc.). Although these stories have no connection to each other, their alphabetical titles give a feeling of connection to them. Not a bad thing, but in these instances I think that the idea that each of them is a separate story is stretching things just a bit.
Give some time to the stories that pique your interest, and savor the ones that move you. I found myself re-reading several of my favorites, most especially the title story and the stories linked to the letters E, K, O and P contained in "An Abecedary of the Imagination". This book is tailor made for repeat readings, since each story is so very brief. And yes, I even doubled back on a few of the stories that didn't make much sense to me, like the ones found in the section "Writing in my Sleep". Of course, those I read again in the hope that I would be able to understand them better after a second go. Hey, I never said I was an intellectual.
Mr. Swanwick is an award winning science-fiction writer, with scads of awards under his belt, including Hugo and Nebula awards for his work. His ability to entertain as well as deliver ideas comes through in many of the stories in this collection. Scan 'em all and see if you don't agree - you've got the time.
Tachyon Publications can be found here,
including a bio of Mr. Swanwick
that is a bit less tongue-in-cheek than those found in this book.
(And I have to say I was a bit disappointed.)
Swanwick's Web
site includes "Unca Mike's Bad Advice",
where you can ask him just about anything, and maybe he'll answer....
