by Jaimy Gordon
First published 1974
Hughbury Shamp wants nothing to do with fame, but the reluctant teenager finds himself apprenticed to three peculiar masters at the West Poolesville Depot. The depot sits on Sumpsky Prospect, across the River Sump from Big Yolk, the sprawling city-solo. His mentors thrust him into a series of comic misadventures involving the flamboyant impresario Sergei Shipoff, the mysterious Dr. Harry Analarge, and the eccentric World-Friar Tapsvine. Each encounter pushes Shamp closer to an destiny he never wanted. His education culminates at the brutal Arslevering Ox Roast, where he must perform as breakfast speaker in a competition that turns deadly. Set in a parallel universe that mirrors our own obsessions, this comic novel explores what happens when the hunger for celebrity collides with a young man's desire to remain invisible.
Genres: fiction, coming-of-age, comedy, alternate-universe
Vibes: thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, reluctant-hero
Setting: Big Yolk, River Sump, Sumpsky Prospect, West Poolesville Depot
Period: parallel-universe
Hardcover · Treacle Press