Everyday apocalypses
A satisfying collection of short stories about being human
On cable television’s No. 1 show, “The Walking Dead,” there’s a story arc presented around the theme that all life is precious. Although none of the stories by Eric Puchner in the “Last Day on Earth” deals with matters so chaotic and dystopian as zombies, each tale really makes one consider the poignancy of such a phrase, especially when it comes to family matters.
“Last Day on Earth” consists of nine different stories; one of which takes place in the early 1980s, another in the distant future and the rest in modern times. Both the past (“Brood X”) and the futuristic stories (“Beautiful Monsters”) are the first and second in the book chronologically, and neither resonate as well as the other seven. “Brood X” involves a boy interacting with his new neighbors during a plague of cicadas, and “Beautiful Monsters” is a world without parents and aging, until two children discover a full grown man in their backyard. The latter does pack a pretty scary punch when it comes to making you think about the tragedy of old age as well as the deprivation of a real childhood, but Mr. Puchner really hits his storytelling stride when dealing with realism and revving it up with rash decision-making.
The stories “Mothership” and “Heavenland” focus heavily on the scariness and reluctance of parenting, and both are very good at making the reader feel the weight of such an important responsibility. “Mothership,” one of the best stories in the book, involves a clinically depressed woman named Jess who takes her niece and nephew trick-or-treating while her sister is dealing with her husband battling cancer. The true monsters Jess encounters aren’t the ones dressed up on the streets but sibling rivalry and other internal struggles that happen to haunt her.
Mr. Puchner’s two highlights, however, are “The Trojan Whores Hate You Back” and his title story, “Last Day on Earth.” “The Trojan Whores Hate You Back” is about a reunited punk band that tries to give it one more go around the nihilistic scene, but this time with a case of bursitis and sleep apnea. Although main character Alistair is at a much older age than “Mothership’s” Jess, he, too, is struggling to find his sense of self, but in a culture that has long passed him by, something in which he hopes to rekindle with his bandmates. Mr. Puchner hits these chords with a touch of humor but also with painstaking realizations and sincerity that will make you want to give your best buddy a ring on the phone.
As for “Last Day on Earth,” it’s the final story the reader gets to experience and it’s one that will resonate with anyone who in his youth has been through the ordeal of parents getting a divorce. Mr. Puchner does a beautiful job at conveying many aspects of a family shattered, including the contention that percolates and what happens to not just the people involved, but also the family’s dogs, particularly if they were used for sport first and companionship second. It is truly a poetic endcap to a strong collection of stories focusing on the family dynamic.
“Last Day on Earth” carries a wealthy amount of content that is thought-provoking and self-reflecting. You’ll be able to relate to a lot of it, and there will be a lot of times when you wish you hadn’t, but those types of feelings, negative or positive, make the reader consider how precious life truly can be.