BOOK RELEASE: A True Map of the City

[image error]Wyzard Hill Press announces the publication of a new book: A True Map of the City, by J Guenther.

   Horus Blassingame is a loyal, mild-mannered underling at his company. One day, he is called into his supervisor’s office.

   “How long have you been clerking for us, Blassingame?”

   “Uh, sixteen years, sir. If I may say so, sir, a long time.”

“Yes, but we’ve had our eye on you.”

“Have you, sir?”

“Oh, yes, and now we need a capable chap to attend a European symposium next year. I’d go myself, but I have a conflict. We’re going to send you!”

“You are, sir? Where to, sir?”

“Deresthia. Do a proper job and you’ll soon be on your way up the company ladder, if you come back.”

“If I come back, sir?”

“When. I meant when.”

Creating such a surreal, vaguely impossible atmosphere in a novel is a challenging task, but Guenther plays masterfully with philosophy and language to achieve a singular mood. The stark, matter-of-fact narration and the intimacy of Horus’ inner monologue gives the prose a foreboding sense, while the flashes of humor and ridiculousness give the book an odd balance. –SPR Review