Lucius Shepard passed away recently, and due to the fact I have not read
enough of his novels to offer a definitive statement, I decided to do what
little I could: read a collection sitting on my to-read pile in tribute. Originally published as Barnacle Bill the Spacer and Other Stories in 1997 (and re-published
as Beast of the Heartland and Other
Stories in 1999), the collection is vintage Shepard, and though it may not
be the best of his numerous collections, remains a good reminder of the unique
imagination and sense of style he possessed.
Given the contents of collections published prior (for example, Sports & Music which contains only
two stories, both of which are re-published here), Barnacle Bill the Spacer and Other Stories is Shepard’s third of
significance. Written in his generous, paced
prose, the collection is a departure from the previous two; where The Jaguar Hunter and The Ends of the Earth leaned most
heavily toward stories of the fantastic, horror, and otherwise paranormal, Barnacle Bill is mostly in the vein of
science fiction. A space thriller with
elements of horror, the title story Barnacle Bill the Spacer opens the collection and is the story of a man living on a station
orbiting Mars. Coming to inexplicably
care for a deplorable, mentally-defective man who the module’s residents have dubbed
Barnacle Bill, his stewardship is put to the test when a mysterious cult puts a
death mark on Bill’s door. Saved by
Shepard’s quality prose, the plot unwinding thereafter is rather standard
science fiction, but does build to a crescendo over the last few pages. If anything, the novella leaves the reader sitting
squarely on the fence regarding character.
Bill disgusting and loathsome, learning of the underlying reasons to his
problems serves to balance the odium and advances the narrative in train-wreck
fascination as his fate unfolds. (See
here for a more in-depth review of the novella on this blog.)
“The Sun Spider” is another decidedly science fiction entry. A dual-perspective story, one half is of a
researcher living on a module orbiting the sun studying the surface, and the
other is his wife who does what she pleases while away from Earth vacationing
on the module. The two in an atypical
relationship to say the least, reconciliation for the problems which inevitably
result from their personalities involve cheating, avoidance, lying, stealing, and
dealing with what the researcher discovers hiding in the burning hydrogen of
the sun. A dark narrative, Shepard digs
through the layers of the broken relationship with blunt and fractal emotions,
and emerging is real-life scenario—at least as far as the relationship is
concerned.
Possessing an awkwardly developed setting, the novella Human History is another entry firmly
science fiction. Either a post-apocalyptic
Earth or a terraformed Mars, a dusty red landscape backdrops the story of
Robert Hillyard, a greenhouse operator living in a backwater (in this case,
backdesert) town. Though possessing a strong
wild-west feel, there are elements, however, which feel more like H.G.Wells. From the attacks of ape men to
the mysterious Captains, Hillyard’s life is anything but John Wayne. And if survival on the edge of civilization
wasn’t difficult enough, Hillyard ups the ante by cheating on his wife. The plot of Human History moves in unpredictable, and as a result,
interest-building fashion, thereafter.
Problem is, the pieces never seem to fit together into something smoothly
holistic. Whether the title is too
pretentious or the story’s devices never come together to something greater,
either way Shepard has written more fluid, cohesive stories.
Though the genre elements are limited in number, the fourth and final
sci-fi story in the collection is “All the Perfumes of Araby”. Telling of an American smuggler living in
Egypt, he meets a Gulf War veteran and falls in love with her immediately. A silent wake up call, it takes bringing her
along on one of his border runs to become conscious of the problems in his life. I suppose technically cyberpunk given one
particular element, the climax of the story is more dependent on the psychedelically
supernatural—at least the imagery.
Rounding out the collection are three stories of varied, non-sci-fi
motifs. “A Little Night Music” is the
story of a journalist who attends a jazz concert and is floored by the music
long after. The musicians reanimated
dead people, their melodies haunt him late into the night. His girlfriend out of the house, more than
likely having an affair, he is unable to focus on the writing, women and the music
playing games in his head. When the girlfriend
does finally come home, shit hits the fan, and so too does the man’s life. Music and broken relationships, two of
Shepard’s favorite topics, provide the main subject matter for this, the best
story in the collection. “Sports in
America” is the straight-forward story of a mafia deal gone wrong. Two men, Carne and Penner, are paid fifty
grand for a hit on a man sleeping with their boss’s daughter. Trouble is, when
the two can’t agree on sports, the whole deal goes into jeopardy. Set on the coast of Massachusetts, Shepard
captures all of the Irish spirit, Red Sox passion, and singular attitude of the
state that climaxes cynically but subtly on the ostensible qualities of sports
talk in the Bay area. And the last story
(also the title story for the 1999 republishing) is “Beast of the Heartland”. Though seeing visions of reptile men while in
the ring, the half-blind boxer Bobby “The Magician” Mears’ daily life possesses more visceral
characters. From the crooked manager to
the hooker he falls in love with, Mears is searching for something better in
life if only his vision would allow it.
This and “A Little Night Music” vying for the most humanist of the
collection, Shepard brings boxing to life in a story with a touching ending.
In the end, Barnacle Bill the
Spacer and Other Stories is a solid collection of novelettes and novellas
from one of the genre’s singular writers.
The level of detail influencing plot, the twisting threads of story, and
the reflective, real-world qualities of the characters typical of Shepard are
all present. The result are humanist stories
that integrate genre elements, rather than tales of pure sci-fi, fantasy,
horror or otherwise. Perhaps his first
two major collections more cohesive, there is, nevertheless, no weakening of the
undercurrents of life pulling at the reader’s mind in the stories. Rest in peace Mr. Shepard. Your voice lives
on.
The following are the table of contents:
Barnacle Bill the
Spacer
“A Little Night Music”
Human History
“Sports in America”
“The Sun Spider”
“All the Perfumes of Araby”
“Beast of the Heartland”
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