The Steampunk Trilogy

This book contains three steampunk novellas (novelettes? I can never remember the difference) by Paul Di Fillippo. And, your enjoyment of these novellas (novelettes? I’ll just stick with novellas) is probably predicated on your enjoyment/acceptance/appreciation of steampunk.

If you do not like steampunk, you will not like these stories.

However, if you are a fan, or if you are someone who appreciates it, or even if you are someone who tolerates it, you will enjoy these stories. For me, it was a slightly different take on the genre. I am used to steampunk being much more about steam and machines. In these stories, it is about biology, anthropology, and alternate universes. It is still modern science and modern ideas being placed in a Victorian era which, I guess, is one usable definition of steampunk.

In “Victoria”, a scientist has combined newt and human to make a new creature that exhibits the attributes of both. This new creature has to take the place of the young Queen Victoria when she disappears. The ending was slightly obvious, and not completely fulfilling, but a nice tale nonetheless.

In “Hottentots” (probably the best story of the three), a very racist naturalist (I will use that term even though he explores many different scientific areas) gets involved in trying to find a talisman from Africa. He is constantly confronted by the ludicrousness of his prejudices (he is a firm believer that the white race is supreme), but refuses to accept he is wrong. Let’s just say that, while this isn’t the most important part of the plot, the point of his wrong-headedness is driven home when the not quite perfection of the love of his life is discovered. (By the way, a little H. P. Lovecraft is thrown in towards the end to just make it all a little more exciting.)

The final piece, “Walt and Emily”, is also quite enjoyable. Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson meet and fall into something close to love. They are also entangled with spiritualists who, eventually, place the team of “explorers” in an alternate universe. Suffice to say they get out, but the revelations from the excursion do not completely disappear with their reemergence in our world.

Greatest stories in the world? Probably not. Fun to read? Definitely. And worth every page/sentence/word that has been devoted. After reading the collection, I can honestly say I’m glad this book came together in that it allowed all three of these to be published in book form. ( )

One-sentence summary: Three steampunk short stories: Queen Victoria disappears and is replaced by a newt-human hybrid; naturalist Agassiz is sucked into a bizarre plot involving the pickled remains of the Hottentot Venus; and Emily Dickinson meets Walt Whitman and has a Spiritualist experience.

Why did you get this book?: Brief steampunk lit obsession

Do you like the cover?: Yes.

Did you enjoy the book?: Sort of? On one level, yes, definitely -- the writing was great and the plotting lovely, and the steampunk ambiance was delicious. But even though the second story in the collection, 'Hottentots', was meant (I assume) to be tongue-in-cheek, it was so racist I was embarrassed to read it in public, for fear of someone reading over my shoulder. ( )

The first story, Victoria, is really a mere appetizer for the other two, which are like your very funnest historical fever dreams.

Hottentots takes a Venture Bros. episode and mashes it up with some history and a bit of the Cthulhu mythos, with a bunch of extreme accents thrown in just for fun. (Unfortunately, the part about the genitalia of Saartjie "Sarah" Baartman, the Hottentot Venus, being removed and preserved is absolutely true...as is the part about her being put in a cage and being displayed throughout Europe until she died of pneumonia, which you would, too, if you were stuck in a cage, minimally clothed, and prodded at like that.)

Walt and Emily is also quite fun, especially for those English majors out there...you know who you are...and other lovers of poetry. I shall say no more so as not to spoil it.

This book doesn't come across to me as what we now know as the "steampunk" genre, but more of a straight-up alternative history. Mostly, though, it's wink-wink, nudge-nudge fun for the literary set, although the sci-fi tag might drive the same away. (Snobs!) ( )