Monday, November 30, 2015

Mechanique

Mechanique: A Tale Of The Circus Tresaulti, A Penny Dreadful Review

            A boy with brass legs walks into a crumbling town after the end of the modern world and plasters posters for a circus on a ruined wall. A strongman with a spine of steel lifts four women at once over his head. Airialists with hollow copper bones fly from trapeze to trapeze while a man that is more musical instrument than human being plays a mesmerizing tune. That is the Circus Tresaulti. That is the ephemeral masterpiece Mechanique, by Genevieve Valentine.
            Mechanique is like reading someone’s dream. The narrative weaves in and out of time, stitching together a picture of the circus. It is as if Ms. Valentine is a spotlight operator lighting up different bits of the performers’ histories. It’s a highly unusual style. It took me a few chapters to understand what was going on, but once I got it, I was hooked.
            I highly recommend Mechanique. I give it four and a half gears out of five. It is a literary spectacle of a show, and you need to buy a ticket. Find this book. It is a treasure.


Your Correspondent From The Bookstore,


Penny J. Merriweather