Apocalypse Then: Stories

by Rick DeMarinis

Despite the world’s insecurities, the most common drama of all is not of apocalypse now, but of apocalypse deferred; the pain of living is having to wait it out. In Apocalypse Then, DeMarinis’s characters try alcohol, they try travel, and (most of all) they try off-limits love. They find themselves in harm’s way, or put themselves there—but in life, as the title story states, "sometimes the worst doesn’t happen."

280 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

Rick DeMarinis (1934-) is an American novelist and short-story writer.

Reviews

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first of Rick DeMarinis' many books that I have read. Truly, I picked it up by accident. But, always up for a new writer, I gave it a go.

I'm not saying I wished I hadn't - but I'm not inspired to read more of his copious output. Seriously, the guy has written a LOT of work. But basically all of his characters, at least in these short stories, are feckless dopes, white guys stuck in dead-end jobs with little prospect for success in their careers, their relationships with women, or staying connected to their families. Everybody looks down on these guys, who carry the whiff of loser throughout their daily life.

I hate to say it, but DeMarinis' craft as a writer doesn't make these men interesting. Not to me, anyway. Like a lot of white men my age, I have read buckets about this sort of down-at-heel white guys - and I just don't fine them very engaging, unless the writer has something genuinely original to say about them. Not here.

I finished, but could scarcely wait to be done - and it's well under 300 pages.

Sigh.