Unutulmuş Ada'nın Kararsız Seçmeni

New York: The Five Books of Moses #1

by Arthur Nersesian, Funda Başak Dörsche

Çağdaş Amerikan yeraltı edebiyatının en şaşırtıcı yazarlarından Arthur Nersessian Unutulmuş Ada’nın Kararsız Seçmeni’nde günümüz ABD’sinin karanlık bir parodisini sunuyor. Bilimkurgulara özgü bir zaman metaforu, paronayak bir siyasi düzen ve kaotik bir atmosfer…Unutkanlık hastası Uli gözlerini açtığında kendisini tuhaf, ürkütücü, hem tanıdık hem çok yabancı bir şehirde bulur; NewYork’ta… Ancak bu yeni NewYork Nevada çölünün ortasına kurulmuştur. Yakılıp yıkılmış bu vahşi şehirde insan hayatının hiçbir değeri yoktur. Siyasi parti kisvesi altında örgütlenmiş iki gangster çetesinin egemenlik savaşı verdiği sokaklar, yaklaşan seçimler nedeniyle tam bir savaş alanına dönmüştür. Bu iki çete, Domuzlar ve Çöpçüler, başkanlık yarışını kazanmak için her yolu denemektedir. Az sayıda insanın yaşadığı şehirde bir oy bile önemlidir ve kararsız seçmenlerin tercihi belirleyecektir her şeyi.Can derdine düşüp çetelere boyun eğmiş seçmenleri gören Uli bir görevi olduğunu, buraya bilerek gönderildiğini düşünür; ama kim, neden görevlendirmiştir Uli’yi? Hepsinden önemlisi Uli kimdir?Uli yavaş yavaş alternatif bir tarih ve ülke similasyonu içinde bir oyuncu olduğunu ve neden buraya geldiğini anlayacak ve Unutulmuş Ada’nın kararsız seçmeni için mücadele etmeye başlayacaktır.Unutulmuş Ada’nın Kararsız Seçmeni’nde, William Burroughs ve Philip K. Dick karışımı bir üslupla, günümüz NewYork’undan hareketle yepyeni bir dünya yaratıyorNersessian. Karanlık bir hikaye bekliyor okuru bu kitapta. Arayan yer yer umut da bulacaktır bu kitabın sayfalarında ama mutlaka rahatsız edici zengin bir hayalgücü eşliğinde…

Genres: Fiction, Book Club, Novels, New York, Dystopia

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2007

About the author

Arthur Nersesian is the author of eight novels, including The Fuck-Up (Akashic, 1997 & MTV Books/Simon & Schuster, 1999), Chinese Takeout (HarperCollins), Manhattan Loverboy (Akashic), Suicide Casanova (Akashic), dogrun (MTV Books/Simon & Schuster), and Unlubricated (HarperCollins). He is also the author of East Village Tetralogy, a collection of four plays. He lives in New York City.

From arthurnersesian.com:
www.arthurnersesian.com/

"Arthur Nersesian is a real New York writer. His novels are a celebration
of marginal characters living in the East Village and trying to survive.

Nersesian's books include The Fuck-Up, The East Village Tetralogy, and now just published by a small press based in New York, Manhattan Loverboy. Nersesian has been a fixture in the writing scene for many years. He was an editor for The Portable Lower East Side, which was an important magazine during the 1980s and early 90s.

When The Fuck-Up came out in 1997, MTV Books picked it up and reprinted it in a new edition for hipsters everywhere. Soon Nersesian was no longer known only to a cabal of young bohemians on Avenue A. His work has been championed by The Village Voice and Time Out."

Reviews

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a fan of Arthur Nersessian I really wasn't expecting a socio/political sci-fi novel. Yeah it takes place in the early 80's in a world that was apparently changed by the Cold War, but it is all over the place and very loosely held together by the main character Uli. There are moments of suspense, but mostly you spend most of your reading time hoping to be done with it so you can go remember how great The Fuck Up was.

[Bandit · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like this author so much, I've read 3 books by him before and enjoy all of them thoroughly, which made me look forward to this one and be extremely disappointed by it. Part of the Urban Surreal series, it does fit the category being both, but all the things I've come to expect from Nersesian, strong characters, believable situations, excellent brutally realistic stories and his love/hate vivid descriptions of NY, are completely absent as if the writer has gone out of his way to pursue the surreal sacrificing all the things that make his books (or any good books for that matter) compelling and engaging reads. Had it been done better, it might have worked as some sort of a political metaphor or an allegory, but as is it could maybe be described as I'd imagine an acid trip gone rogue. Maybe I'm just not into surreal or alternative history books (although I have read and enjoyed both genres before), but this book was easily one of the (if not the) crappiest reads of 2012 for me and I read a good amount. Part of it is, of course, the fact that Arthur Nersesian is such a great writer and can do so much better. I finished it and I'm never getting those hours back, but I kept hoping it would pick up. As I was reading this book, I went through disbelief, disappointment, shock and boredom, predominant emotion being a sort of WTF is this. I plan on reading more of the author and I highly recommend his other books, but this one is a definite miss and if you do pick up this book as your first Nersesian read, please don't judge the author by this one.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I stuck with this sucker until the bitter end, hoping to understand it. I didn't get there. I felt like it would have taken a lot of work to achieve not a great payoff. I gave it two stars for its ambition, and because it was compelling enough to keep me reading. I ultimately didn't like it.

[Elif B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Herkese göre değil. Yan etki olarak yer yer baş dönmesi ve mide bulantısı yapabilir. Uzun süredir elimde sürünüyordu, 2023 Mayıs'ta seçimler sebebiyle hadi ciddi ciddi okuyayım demiştim. Sonra seçimler de sürüncemeye gidince yine ipin ucunu kaçırdım. Amerika coğrafyası ve siyasi tarihi hakkında kitabın tadına tam varmaya yetecek ölçüde bilgi sahibi değildim. Dersime çalıştıktan sonra tekrar okumayı düşünüyorum.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this up to about 90% of the way in. Then there is a massively clunky sequence of conversation in which the entire plot is (unnecessarily imo) explained. The ending feels rushed and although I know its the first of five books, I'm not going to rush to read the rest. Surrealist dystopian stories don't need that level of exposition, especially on the manner it was delivered. Disappointing.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I'm cleaning out my overlarge book collection and looking back over my Goodreads records at the same time. I saw this book had largely negative reviews that seemed really harsh, so I thought I'd throw in my two cents.

Keeping in mind that I am writing this several YEARS after I actually read this book, I just want to say that I don't think it was that bad.

It was absolutely ridiculous.

But I don't think that's synonymous with bad. It's just this bizarre, off-the-wall, crazy alternate reality where Staten Island as we know it exists in some mashup universe of Mad Max, Fallout, and that weird dream you had one time.

I really remember very little of the plot, but I do remember not taking it very seriously at all and being quite amused. So if you're looking for something wacky and fun to read, and you go into it with that expectation, this might be a good choice.

[Dick Baldwin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was very disappointing. Nersesian is one of my favorites, but this was a poorly executed attempt at something he doesn't do well. I guess it's some kind of absurdist gonzo reimagining of various historical political events that is supposed have some kind of satirical message. But it fell flat. Really flat. It reads like a high schooler's attempt at Burroughs writing a Mad Max-style political adventure. The plot was poorly developed, the characters had no apparent motivations for their actions, and very little was explained well enough to care about what ended up happening.

I'm feeling steadily disappointed by authors I loved 5 years ago--Dave Eggers, Jonathan Lethem, and now Arthur Nersesian. Now I'm starting to wonder if my tastes have changed...(but actually, I think I'm just reading some weaker efforts by authors I like).

[Leo · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've never lived in NYC so I enjoy the back-and-forth crossing of Nersersian's previous literary heroes as they tramp around trying hopelessly to unwreck their lives. By the time I figured out a basic premise and decided what to root for, I was also bored and wondering if I'd miss anything by skipping a few chapters. I gave it 100 pages and, if other reviews are given credence, that's enough to know I'm not missing anything.

[Tina · Rating 1 out of 5]

I trust Nersesian's literary concepts beyond reason. I'm a Nersesian fiend and a self- proclaimed Nersesian zealot but this book was just rubbish. I ended up reading part II first and ironically, that book was a scrumptious read. Because of that one, I was lured into reading part I.

This one was useless. I recommend bypassing it and going straight to part II!

[Mejennie]

I just started reading the swing voter, and it is nothing like nersesian's other novels. It is this strange pseudo-apocalyptic/science-fiction/assasin/thriller plot, and after the first 100 pages the only reason I keep reading is out of pure curiosity to see if it gets any better.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really really disliked this disjointed collection of terrorism and torture scenes set in a mysterious place that shares place names with New York City. I only read about a third, then speed-skipped through the rest just to check if the story ever materialized. It didn't.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just too bizarre for me. It was based on an interesting premise, but then he just went a very odd direction with it.

[Sheila · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked DogRun and The Fuck-Up a lot better. Im still confused at the end of this novel.

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really didn't dig the alternate historical timeline thing. I'm pretty sure that Nersesian abandoned the Five Books of Moses project that he kicked off with this book. Having read it, I can see why.

[Adam O'Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

off-the-wall. another wonderful example of modern social commentary, this one obviously political. a fun and wacky read.

[Seth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ingenious New York dystopia, a book in dire need of editing.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange, strange tale. Don’t try to figure it out to much just go with it. Good for those of who liked Chronic City or The City and the City.

[Henry Watts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty neat idea behind this book, shows Nerseian can blend a lighter vision of unturned societies such as seen in Dhalgren and still hold onto his New York style.