Just how far would a disgruntled ex-employee go to take revenge for losing his job after many years of service? The protagonist comes up with a creative plan, the likes of which would be difficult to imagine. On the surface this story appears quite comical, but there is a sad and cynical undertone resonant of the feelings of a man lost. The main character is in the desperate downward spiral resulting from having his sense of security ripped away and his hold on the future destroyed. While I laughed in places, I still found it very moving. Also, even though the reader may root for Bob and want to cheer him on, especially since his primary target is rather heinous and heartless, you’ll also find yourself feeling sorry for him.
Dribbles Review
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Werner Lind, author of The Gift, reviews Dribbles the Squirrel: Operation Coffee Deprivation
This is another short story, the stand-alone publication of which was made possible by the advent of electronic publishing (though, in my case, it was read in hard copy). If you've read the above description, you'll know that judging the plot here on the basis of realistic plausibility isn't a consideration. Even if our hero is a computer programmer, when he develops a program to train an "army" of 100 squirrels, using Pavlovian conditioning, to perform sabotage functions at corporate headquarters of his old employer, you know you've crossed the border into tongue-in-cheek territory a long time ago. :-) (Even though the titular Dribbles doesn't really wield a bazooka in the story --only on the cover!) In fact, I don't think squirrels can be bought at a pet shop in the first place. This isn't intended to be realistic; it's purely and simply zany, off-the-wall, satiric humor, and it succeeds very well at being that. But the satire has a bite; Toye puts the skewer to modern corporate America, and his sympathies are 100% with the underdog (in the form of exploited employees). His perspective did not come across as "anti-business" (at least to me, though some will no doubt label it that way) as such, nor as opposed to honest profit fairly earned. Rather, it struck me as anti-selfishness and anti-exploitation, opposed to the untempered pursuit of profit at the expense of human decency, and to the mindset that treats other people as things to be used for the satisfaction of a few power freaks. Those aren't hallmarks of proper business policy; and the widespread conviction that they are is a symptom of an economic order that's run amok. Most readers, IMO, will recognize this --and won't have any trouble rooting for Bob and the squirrels. :-)
Dribbles Review
Dribbles Review
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Intangible Excerpt
“This is William. After getting a cup of coffee on the corner of 23rd and Broadway, he got angry with the cashier.” The good Doctor slid another photo across to Max. An espresso machine dripped with blood. Inside the grill were large tufts of hair and an unidentifiable human head. The eyes were missing.
“After arguing with the cashier, he took it upon himself to make the machine come alive and decapitate her. The problem is, he can do anything he wants. He merely just imagines it and it happens. There is nothing we can do about it. If we arrest him, he will simply escape. If we kill him, we could start a war with…well…your kind.”
Max stared at the photo uninterested. He handed it back to Dr. Blitz, burning the edges. “Great story Doc, but what does this have to do with me?”
“The government asked for your help Max. When you are the only one of your kind left, we will give you full benefits.”
His eyes turned from blue to green in an instant. He narrowed his eyes into tiny slits and stared into Dr. Blitz.
“What kind of benefits?”
“To start with, you will finally have a Social Security number. We will allow you to have a job, a house, to vote, you name it. You will become a citizen of the United States. That also means no more cameras or cells. That is what you want, isn’t it Max?”
“Deal.”
Max held his hand out to shake, but the good doctor avoided it like the plague.
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