The Old Reactor

Ohle’s acerbic and decidedly offbeat literary dystopian novel, a follow-up to his 1972 cult classic, Motorman, describes a dogged protagonist’s struggles to survive in an oppressive, stratified society. Mol­denke, a pro-labor activist residing in the city of Bunkerville, is afflicted with a chronic bowel malady that leaves him forever in search of the nearest commode. When his wealthy aunt dies, he inherits her house on stylish Esplanade Avenue, only to be arrested for defecating on a grave. The punishment meted out to him is an “indeterminate” exile to the overseas prison town of Altobello, and he entrusts the care of his house to his “high-strung” friend Ozzie before departing. At Altobello, Moldenke encounters the grotesque life-forms known as “jellyheads” who live near the old nuclear reactor. He and his new friend Udo go there to take target practice at them. Moldenke befriends Udo’s 15-year-old daughter Salmonella, rents a room to stay at the Tunney Arms, and feeds his sweet tooth for bear claws. After Moldenke receives a series of alarming letters from Ozzie describing disconcerting changes in Bunkerville and the maintenance issues at Moldenke’s house, Moldenke returns to Bunkersville with Salmonella and discovers that Ozzie and the city are no longer the same. In this bleak world, Ohle’s tale of the future ends on a bleak note. (Sept.)