S. J. Rozan is the author of In This Rain and Absent Friends
Ira Levin, THIS PERFECT DAY
Ira Levin wrote an exemplary work in every sub-genre he could find. I mean that literally: if you needed one example to encapsulate the possessed-by-the-Devil book, what could be better than ROSEMARY'S BABY? The mystery play? DEATHTRAP. The creepy "haunted" village? THE STEPFORD WIVES. These more famous works overshadow my personal favorite, Levin's contribution to dystopian literature, THIS PERFECT DAY. This is a perfect book. That the characters are outlines not fully fleshed and the settings are perfunctorily described are not failings in this book. They're the point: form as content. The story progresses through twist and turns until the penultimate and final twists, which are, as they should be, perfect. This skinny little book is out of print, but not impossible to find. It will repay every reader who picks it up, and especially if that reader's a writer.
Ira Levin wrote an exemplary work in every sub-genre he could find. I mean that literally: if you needed one example to encapsulate the possessed-by-the-Devil book, what could be better than ROSEMARY'S BABY? The mystery play? DEATHTRAP. The creepy "haunted" village? THE STEPFORD WIVES. These more famous works overshadow my personal favorite, Levin's contribution to dystopian literature, THIS PERFECT DAY. This is a perfect book. That the characters are outlines not fully fleshed and the settings are perfunctorily described are not failings in this book. They're the point: form as content. The story progresses through twist and turns until the penultimate and final twists, which are, as they should be, perfect. This skinny little book is out of print, but not impossible to find. It will repay every reader who picks it up, and especially if that reader's a writer.
2 comments:
I'm a big Ira Levin fan but somehow this one went totally under my radar. I don't even remember the name. I reserved it at the library.
Jeff M.
I have liked everything I've read by Levin, although Rosemary's baby is probably my least favorite. Stepford wives was great. I admire a fellow who works in different genres. It's something I like to do myself.
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