Ohle's 1972 classic, Motorman
, and its sequel, The Age of Sinatra
(2004), made him a legend. Fans will rejoice—in their own dystopian way—at the arrival of this mesmerizing installment. Ohle presents a parallel universe where people travel in vehicles called Q-peds; subsist on starch bars, urpmilk and perhaps some imp-meat; and get drunk on Jake and stoned on willywhack to dull the anxieties of the age, which are many. The blighted landscape is overrun by “stinkers” suffering the final zombie-like stage of a parasite infection, and an unspecified “Chaos” perpetually threatens Pisstown. Then there is the deranged authority, the “American Divine,” led by Reverend Hooker. In this world, readers follow the fortunes of the Balls family. Grandmother Mildred is quarantined with a mild parasite infection and must protect a corral of stinkers from wild imps. At the family estate, Mildred's granddaughter, Ophelia, battles stinkers burrowing under the house until she receives orders from Hooker. Ophelia's brother, Roe, eventually comes under Hooker's sway as well. Ohle's creation of a vivid world, both familiar and foreign, dark and slyly humorous, makes the book a grim delight. (June)
