Book Review: The Orphanarium by S.T. Cartledge

The Orphanarium by S.T. Cartledge

Paperback, 226 pages

Published February 2017 by Eraserhead Press

There is weird sci-fi like Your Leguins and your PKD and then there is otherworldly sci-fi that almost transcends the genre because it is more surreal than anything. That is what we have here.

It would be easy to miss what is happening in a book written this pretty with so much going on. This is not a traditional narrative feeling like a prose version of an abstract painting. The story is a dystopia where the people are trapped in a box city floating in a surreal landscape. The story includes a revolution that includes Robotic orphans and elemental spirits.

I like weird science fiction but generally, I like them grounded in science with weird jumping off from that point. So this is not exactly my favorite kind of story. This is the kinda weird that often loses me. I am generally not a surrealist, but the only writers who can pull this off are the ones who are super talented and SC is an excellent wordsmith.

I know this is a short review but this is a really good book, like a dystopic prose poem that is filled inventive-ness on every page. Big Thumbs up.