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Tales of Real and Dream Worlds
by Bart Stewart
Review by Rusty McCain
I hope you like cats.
Approximately 46% of this collection of not-so-short stories revolves around Stewart's 'Statuary Cats,' a pair of Egyptian-style cat styles that can come to life. His explanation of a new species (actually thousands of years old), always found in pairs, that can ossify and de-ossify at will is satisfactory, but the broad scope of the overall story (which is split into 3 stories) propels the story quickly past any objections on scientific grounds. It starts with a murder in 1967 and continues to the present, and it follows these tall black cats from home to home to swap meet to the Smithsonian and finally the Shenandoah National Park. These stories are carefully written, with emphasis on the lengthy pauses between any movement on the cats' part.
The first story in this collection, “Theater on the Air” struck me as the most interesting, as it shows a glimpse of false 1930s apocalyptic fiction. A family in the farmland hears Orson Welles' infamous War of the Worlds radio program and flees their home. An encounter with a teary-eyed gas station owner and the conflict with an unstable passenger they've picked up round out the story, making it very enjoyable.
“Dumpster of the Mind” could easily have been a Twilight Zone or Outer Limits story, as it revolves around a drunk who sees something in his dumpster that no one else sees. It is well-written, somewhat gripping, and nicely ominous at the end.
Other stories include “The Jingle,” which shows how a jingle for a soft drink commercial is the undoing of all civilization; “Condemned to Repeat It,” the only story in the whole collection with no speculative element, unmasks one of the survivors of the Jim Jones' cult; “Golden Sisterhood” was merely a day in the life of a honeybee, if the honeybee had human thoughts and emotions; bringing up the rear guard is “Brickworker,” a short-short set in a Soviet-ish utilitarian world and very metaphorical.
While there is a great variety of stories, spanning the United States and much of the 20th century, the writing can feel flat at times—too careful. Rarely does there seem to be any risks taken with the writing, plot or characters. Humor is scarce in these stories. Stewart's use of third-person omniscient in the majority of the stories can also be unsettling, as it's a perspective not used very often in today's fiction. On the basis of what I've read, this book is not for everyone. I wouldn't recommend buying this book without borrowing it from a friend or the library first.
Rating: B-
Tales of Real and Dream Worlds can be purchased at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com or any Rabies' Rusty Meat Books.
Bart Stewart is 47 years old and has been an avid reader and storyteller since childhood. He worked for many years in the antiquarian book market. Enthusiastic reader response for two of his stories in literary magazines provided the impetus for the collection at hand. Those two wild yarns, The Jingle, and Dumpster of the Mind, are included in Tales of Real and Dream Worlds. Bart is single and lives in the surreal plane of Las Vegas, Nevada, where he is finalizing a novel for next year. It will deal entirely with the real world, but Bart has future books planned that will return us to Rod Serling country.
Rusty McCain is a reviewer for Susurrus Press.
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