Genie in a Vodka Bottle, by Rob Rosen

[Ulysses]

Genie in a Vodka Bottle
By Rob Rosen
Published by JMS Books, 2021
Five stars

I loved this book for its humor, it’s easy-to-like characters, and its refreshing re-take of a classic bit of fantasy lore—Aladdin’s Lamp.

While not remotely a serious philosophical study, there is an underlying moral to the tale, voiced neatly by the Genie himself: “You must find happiness in yourself, not others. Then you will truly be happy, with or without love.” The idea of always looking for happiness without actually understanding what would make you happy is at play here. What ensues is a globe-hopping adventure in which Paul and the Genie try to discover the secret of the power that binds Genie to the vodka bottle of the title.

What they find is, well, a lesson in unintended consequences. “Be careful what you wish for, because it might just come true.” It is tied to a great deal of folklore about trying to bargain with powers you don’t understand—because magic can twist your words into results you don’t want.

It seems an apt fairy tale for the modern generation; restless, dissatisfied, worried about the future. It is not “War and Peace,” but who needs more of that these days?