THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF EVERYTHING
NICK MAMATAS
336 PAGES
INTRODUCTION BY JEFFREY FORD
TACHYON PUBLICATIONS, SAN FRANCISCO: 2018
Review originally published in Issue 15 of Shoreline of Infinity
336 PAGES
INTRODUCTION BY JEFFREY FORD
TACHYON PUBLICATIONS, SAN FRANCISCO: 2018
Review originally published in Issue 15 of Shoreline of Infinity
The People’s Republic of Everything is a rather eclectic collection of 15 short stories written by Nick Mamatas, plucked out from various stages of his extensive career as an author, that explore a multitude of genres, perspectives, themes, locations, periods and societal issues. Having already written seven novels, his short stories have also appeared in publications such as Best American Mystery Stories, Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy, and a list of others that are mentioned throughout his story notes. Many of his short stories have been nominated for awards, in addition to the various other awards and nominations he has received in recognition of his editorial work on numerous anthologies and translated Japanese science-fiction, such as for the Hugo, Locus, World Fantasy, Bram Stoker, Shirley Jackson and International Horror Guild awards.
The People’s Republic of Everything is truly an assortment of Mamatas’ own distinct style that serves to highlight the vast diversity he explores in his literature. In fact, I would have trouble classifying the collection as whole; instead, it seems more appropriate to describe it as a product and projection of Mamatas’ varying interests, opinions and talents that have been developed over the years he’s been writing and editing. I would argue that having such an incredibly varied medley of short stories does generally work in his favour; the collection not only provides the reader with quite a vivid image of who Mamatas is as a writer, and where he derives his wealth of ideas from, but it also delivers a collection in which there is bound to be at least one story that appeals to them, whether they’re a fan of science-fiction, fantasy, horror, speculative fiction or anything in between.
Yet, admittedly, a disadvantage of this style for me was that, whilst I really enjoyed the stories that aligned with the genres and themes I’m most interested in, I found myself struggling through those that were inspired by subgenres I wouldn’t usually pick out for myself; for example, the stories that delve into variants of steampunk, or those that dabble too heavily with form and appearance over content. This was generally exacerbated by, what felt like, a focus on fulfilling the style of a genre rather than developing the characters or general believability; although this can be expected in a short story to a certain extent, it did occasionally result in a lack of depth and context, and the odd struggle here and there in following some of the storylines. Unfortunately, I didn’t always enjoy the nature of the narrative style or voice either, which was not so much of a problem during the stories where both the storyline and the characters were so captivating that it didn’t really matter, but it was particularly distinct in parts of the collection where Mamatas’ ‘infamous acid wit’ and criticism were quite intense, which resulted in a somewhat uncomfortable read. However, as I do recognise that these are mainly issues of personal taste, I should clarify that I would still recommend the collection as a whole, as those stories that I did enjoy were certainly worth the read.
In fact, when looking back at the collection, it was those jolting, style-driven stories that often provided the necessary juxtaposition to contrast with, and magnify, the more subdued, arguably more powerful, stories where Mamatas’ writing skills are at their strongest. These were, for me, those that were grounded in every-day life, in some sort of normalcy, but nonetheless still contained that necessary twist that transforms them into their own surreal amalgamation of science fiction, fantasy and horror. In this way, the collection works well as an overall experience, as the reader is essentially just thrown from one tale into the next, from one unique location, perspective or situation to the next extraordinary self-contained story. Indeed, even with finding issue with some elements of Mamatas’ style and approach, this sense of unpredictability and experimentation did work in heightening the overall eccentric nature of the collection.
The stories that I found most intriguing were those that were, as Mamatas describes them, ‘slice-of-life stories’; namely, the stories centred around human relationships, whether that was looking at the interactions between bickering neighbours and a mysterious barking dog, or even just exploring the thought-provoking events set in motion after finding a grandmother’s collection of pulp sci-fi magazines. So rather than trying to fit the story into a particular style then, the reader is given a chance in these texts to pick out the subtle nods to genres that Mamatas gets his inspiration from, and enjoy his writing at its best. For those who also favour literature that delves into the ‘human’ side of science fiction, fantasy, horror and speculative fiction, I would strongly recommend the short stories: ‘A Howling Dog’; ‘The Spook School’; ‘The People’s Republic of Everywhere and Everything’; ‘The Phylactery’; ‘Dreamer of the Day’; and, my personal favourite, ‘Tom Silex, Spirit-Smasher’.
The People’s Republic of Everything is truly an assortment of Mamatas’ own distinct style that serves to highlight the vast diversity he explores in his literature. In fact, I would have trouble classifying the collection as whole; instead, it seems more appropriate to describe it as a product and projection of Mamatas’ varying interests, opinions and talents that have been developed over the years he’s been writing and editing. I would argue that having such an incredibly varied medley of short stories does generally work in his favour; the collection not only provides the reader with quite a vivid image of who Mamatas is as a writer, and where he derives his wealth of ideas from, but it also delivers a collection in which there is bound to be at least one story that appeals to them, whether they’re a fan of science-fiction, fantasy, horror, speculative fiction or anything in between.
Yet, admittedly, a disadvantage of this style for me was that, whilst I really enjoyed the stories that aligned with the genres and themes I’m most interested in, I found myself struggling through those that were inspired by subgenres I wouldn’t usually pick out for myself; for example, the stories that delve into variants of steampunk, or those that dabble too heavily with form and appearance over content. This was generally exacerbated by, what felt like, a focus on fulfilling the style of a genre rather than developing the characters or general believability; although this can be expected in a short story to a certain extent, it did occasionally result in a lack of depth and context, and the odd struggle here and there in following some of the storylines. Unfortunately, I didn’t always enjoy the nature of the narrative style or voice either, which was not so much of a problem during the stories where both the storyline and the characters were so captivating that it didn’t really matter, but it was particularly distinct in parts of the collection where Mamatas’ ‘infamous acid wit’ and criticism were quite intense, which resulted in a somewhat uncomfortable read. However, as I do recognise that these are mainly issues of personal taste, I should clarify that I would still recommend the collection as a whole, as those stories that I did enjoy were certainly worth the read.
In fact, when looking back at the collection, it was those jolting, style-driven stories that often provided the necessary juxtaposition to contrast with, and magnify, the more subdued, arguably more powerful, stories where Mamatas’ writing skills are at their strongest. These were, for me, those that were grounded in every-day life, in some sort of normalcy, but nonetheless still contained that necessary twist that transforms them into their own surreal amalgamation of science fiction, fantasy and horror. In this way, the collection works well as an overall experience, as the reader is essentially just thrown from one tale into the next, from one unique location, perspective or situation to the next extraordinary self-contained story. Indeed, even with finding issue with some elements of Mamatas’ style and approach, this sense of unpredictability and experimentation did work in heightening the overall eccentric nature of the collection.
The stories that I found most intriguing were those that were, as Mamatas describes them, ‘slice-of-life stories’; namely, the stories centred around human relationships, whether that was looking at the interactions between bickering neighbours and a mysterious barking dog, or even just exploring the thought-provoking events set in motion after finding a grandmother’s collection of pulp sci-fi magazines. So rather than trying to fit the story into a particular style then, the reader is given a chance in these texts to pick out the subtle nods to genres that Mamatas gets his inspiration from, and enjoy his writing at its best. For those who also favour literature that delves into the ‘human’ side of science fiction, fantasy, horror and speculative fiction, I would strongly recommend the short stories: ‘A Howling Dog’; ‘The Spook School’; ‘The People’s Republic of Everywhere and Everything’; ‘The Phylactery’; ‘Dreamer of the Day’; and, my personal favourite, ‘Tom Silex, Spirit-Smasher’.
