Shambling Towards Hiroshima

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Shambling Towards Hiroshima Pub. Date: 2/1/2009 Publisher: Tachyon Publications

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Overview

In the tradition of Godzilla as both a playful romp and a parable of the dawn of the nuclear era, this original satire blends the destruction of World War II with the halcyon pleasure of monster movies. In the summer of 1945 war is reigning in the Pacific Rim, while in the U.S., Syms Thorley continues his life as a B-movie actor. But the U.S. Navy would like to use Thorley in their top-secret Knickerbocker Project, putting the finishing touches on the ultimate biological weapon: a breed of gigantic, fire-breathing, mutant iguanas. Thorley is to don a rubber suit that will transform him into the merciless Gorgantis and star in a film that simulates the destruction of a miniature Japan—if the demonstration succeeds, the Japanese will surrender, sparing thousands of lives; if it fails, the mutant lizards will be unleashed. Godzilla devotees and history buffs alike will be fascinated by this conspiratorial secret history of a war, a weapon, and an unlikely hero who will have to give the most convincing performance of his life.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

In this witty and touching paean to the glory days of horror movies, elderly former B-movie actor Syms Thorley looks back from 1984 to recall his involvement in the infamous Knickerbocker Project. Near the end of WWII, facing a shortage of plutonium, the U.S. government scrapped the atomic bomb and instead built giant monsters to ravage Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Alongside a group of genuine Hollywood bigwigs-including Willis O'Brien, James Whale and Brenda Weisberg-Thorley helps craft a realistic movie of the havoc-wreaking Gorgantis, hoping to terrify Japanese leaders into surrendering. The sheer insanity of the premise only makes the eventual payoff even more powerful, and though Morrow (The Last Witchfinder) occasionally indulges in slapstick, he never loses sight of the need to make his characters fascinating and real. (Mar.)

Booklist

A stellar performance.

More Reviews (7) Fewer Reviews

Fantasy & Science Fiction

A ridiculously fun read. Pitch-perfect satire.

Green Man Review

Readers will never think of Godzilla-or any other B-movie monster-in quite the same way, that's guaranteed.

i09.com

James Morrow's bizarrely funny new book . . . turns the usual Godzilla paradigm on its head: instead of being inspired by the horrors of nuclear war, Godzilla is its herald.

Manchester Guardian

Few authors could successfully combine politics, humour and the line 'We can thank our lucky stars that Hitler never got the lizard,' but Morrow pulls it off with aplomb.

The Agony Column

A total hoot to read . . . recounting horrors both imagined and real with equal aplomb.

Time Out Chicago

No book has captured the strange brew of jolly satire and moral indignity of vintage Kurt Vonnegut so well.

Kirkus Reviews

From Morrow (The Philosopher's Apprentice, 2008, etc.), a sharp-edged, delightfully batty novella that denounces the atomic bombing of Japan during World War II. In the summer of 1945, as Japan prepares to defend itself to the death, an unexpected delay halts the Manhattan Project. Fortunately, the U.S. Navy steps in with its top-secret Knickerbocker Project: gigantic, fire-breathing, mutant iguanas poised to wade ashore and devastate the Japanese homeland. But before the Navy iguanas are unleashed, what's needed is a demonstration to convince the Japanese to surrender and spare themselves, and the rest of the world, the horror. Step forward Hollywood B-movie star Syms Thorley, fresh from his triumphs as the Frankenstein's-monster-like Corpuscula and Kha-Ton-Ra, the living mummy. The Navy will pay Thorley to rubber-suit up as the merciless Gorgantis and convincingly devastate, in front of a Japanese delegation, a miniature Japanese metropolis. If Thorley can play the most terrifyingly persuasive role of his career, the suitably cowed delegates will induce the Japanese high command to surrender. If he fails, the real lizards will lurch out of the ocean, roaring, stamping and spouting flame. Preposterous but somehow almost plausible, skillfully mingling real and imaginary characters with genuinely hilarious moments.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781892391841
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Publication date: 2/1/2009
Pages: 192
Sales rank: 575,304
Product dimensions: 5.00 (w) x 7.90 (h) x 0.80 (d)

Meet the Author

James Morrow is a Nebula Awardwinner and the author of Blameless in Abaddon, The Cat’s Pajamas, City of Truth, The Eternal Footman, The Last Witchfinder, Only Begotten Daughter, and Towing Jehovah. He lives in State College, Pennsylvania.

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Posted February 19, 2009

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