Scorch

Rating:
Summary: Reads Like a Dystopian Comic Strip
Review: Like few people today, AD Nauman is not blind to where our comsumption-driven lifestyle will lead us. Positioning a token loner in a world of corporate ownership, random violence, and gratuitous sex stripped of meaning, she conjures up a high-voltage, competitive universe that does not stray far from the present. Scorch is outrageous and entertaining, full of odious characters with cartoonish idiosyncrasies. The book is nearly void of emotion, and not until the reader takes a good look at his or her own life will they realize why. Massive consumption displaces human attributes. AD Nauman establishes that perfectly in this satirical prediction of what is to come.

Rating:
Summary: Libertarianism, Consumerism, and Capitalism Run Amok
Review: This debut dystopian novel posits an America in the not so distant future in which libertarianism, consumerism, and free market capitalism have run amok and have replaced the imperfect representative democracy of today. This old form of governance is known as "Big Brother Government", and is held in contempt for its protection of the weak and its attempt to regulate. So, instead of federal government, there are three huge corporations who control everything and everyone, but most importantly the media. Entertainment, news, and advertising have seamlessly merged, resulting in consumerism as the dominant driving force in society. Sitcoms have evolved beyond having product placements to becoming outright commercials, or "adstories" which often featuring graphic violence and sex. These adstories and their constant reminders of what people lack (a better car, nicer furniture, a prettier woman, personal safety, and soforth), perpetually reinforce the notion that people can never really be happy without the latest model of everything. Thus every waking hour is devoted to either working for money or spending money, and no one has time to think.

Set in Chicago, the story follows Arel Ashe, an assistant at Adstory who has not entirely bought into the system. At her night job she discovers a storeroom of books (which are obsolete and ignored in this America), and by reading some of them is energized to try and mess with the dominant paradigm that equates happiness with purchasing. Thus, she tries to tweak some of the adstories that pass through her computer, but her clumsy attempts backfire on her and she must scramble to avoid becoming one of the dreaded homeless. This is a serious problem, as a prominent self-help videobook author has turned into a religious fanatic whose credo that "Satan Walks Among Us Today" is an anti-homeless message that results in overnight support for a scheme to imprison all homeless. (This is quickly abetted by the corporations paying [money] for every homeless person brought in to their corporate prisons, where they are put to work.) As she scrambles to stay afloat, she also embarks on a relationship with an odd outsider named Ben, who works all day on a secret scheme of his own.

The book is studded with current trends stretched to their fairly clever satiric extremes, which in some cases aren't so extreme. Drivers shooting at each other is common, everyone carries "sellphones" on which they receive "FlashNews", instead of mace people carry personal "Flame-Off" mini-flamethrowers to roast would-be muggers, streets are totally privatized and tolled, schools are privatized brainwashing facilities, only the rich can afford to pay for police, and so on. Of course, as with many dys (and u) topian novels, there's a lot left unexplored and unexplained. For example, it's not clear if the rest of the world, or even the rest of the country is this way. Surely there are pockets of alternative lifestyles? It's also not clear why people don't have better memories-apparently these have been atrophied by the continual media blitz, but this is unexplained.

More problematic are character interactions and motivations. Arel's background as the daughter of university professor is repeated alluded to and apparently has some relation to her outsider nature, but this is left murky. Her relationship with media star Hampton Drane seems to exist solely to advance the story. Most importantly, she oscillates wildly between rejecting and embracing the system, which makes her hard to believe and care about. The characters tend to be rather cartoony and outlandish, which robs the book of any sense of grimness or darkness that could have been there. Finally, it's surely no fault of the author, but the typography is atrocious and makes the book a chore on the eyes.

Nauman's book isn't as provocative or groundbreaking as it's forebears like 1984 or Brave New World, but it is a worthy addition to the body of dystopian fiction. It could be especially useful for young teens to read as a prelude to a discussion on consumerism.

Rating:
Summary: eerie
Review: This is a neat contemporary swipe at a dystopian novel. It's a quick read and a good story. The premise is incredibly timely and, though it was written before 9/11, the book actually has religious fanatics campaigning to rid the world of evil in a way that is all too familiar these days. This lends it an additionally spooky quality.

I give it five stars 'cause it's a juicy, quick read. I make no representation about its literary merit, but time will tell...