‘Shambling towards Hiroshima’ – James Morrow (Tachyon Press)

Hands up who liked the 1998 ‘Godzilla’ movie? Anyone? Oh… it looks like it’s just me then…
Despite film-makers seemingly trying to undermine their own creations (men in dodgy rubber suits, a lack of plot, Matthew Broderick…) there is still something ultimately cool about a Godzilla movie. When it boils down it the bottom line is that the guy in the rubber suit (or set of expertly rendered CGI imagery) is doing exactly what the cinema goers want to do themselves. Namely to stride out of the sea and lay waste to an entire city. I wouldn’t mind doing it…
Laws being what they are, rampaging through a city isn’t a wise move so we’re left living vicariously through film and books. ‘Shambling towards Hiroshima’ gives us a chance to sit in the protagonist’s head as he indulges in wanton destruction but it also gives us sobering food for thought once it’s over…

It’s 1945 and although the war is over in Europe there is no end to the battle in the Pacific Rim, the deadlock between American and Japanese forces comes at a cost of thousands of lives. B-Movie Star Syms Morley is well out of it, concentrating on his roles as the Frankenstein-esque Corpuscula and Kha-Ton-Ra the Living Mummy. Syms doesn’t realise it though but his acting talents will signal the direction of the war. The US military have come up with the ultimate biological weapon to turn the tide in the Pacific, gigantic mutant fire-breathing mutant iguanas that will flatten cities on the Japanese mainland. Morley’s role is to step into a rubber suit and become Gorgantis, starring in a film that shows the simulated destruction of a Japanese city. If the demonstration succeeds, the Japanese will surrender and thousands of lives will be spared. If the demonstration fails then the mutant lizards will be unleashed… Syms Morley must give the performance of his life.

‘Shambling towards Hiroshima’ is only a hundred and fifty eight pages long but still manages to find the time to be a comedy of errors (lesson: sex with a man in a rubber monster suit will always lead to the police being called), a commentary on the arms race and an insight into the mind of a man who ultimately finds that trying his best just isn’t good enough. One man cannot stop the march of history (even an alternate history such as this one) but his actions will affect the lives of many people.

Morrow cleverly fits the events of Project Knickerbocker around what was going on with the Manhattan Project and the war in the Pacific. You know that there are really no such thing as giant fire breathing lizards but… the military can be pretty secretive about what they get up can’t they? It’s a testament to Morrow’s concept, and his skill at blending fictional and real life events, that I was left thinking that something like this could have actually taken place during the war. I certainly wouldn’t have put it past the military to have had a go…

Most of the action takes place on a film set and the nature of things involved in shooting a film means that the pace of the book can sometimes drag a little. Not a good thing in such a short book. However, Morrow still manages to find time to give his reader plenty to think about.
The concept of ‘Iguanas of Mass Destruction’ is aired and a fledgling ‘Lizard Arms Race’ is born but dies relatively quickly (apparently, Hitler’s forces had their own ‘Lizard Programme’ but failed to breed them in time…) The nuclear arms race is parodied in the birth of the lizards Dagwood, Blondie and Mr Dithers. Other countries are breeding giant lizards so we need to as well. They can’t be controlled after they’re let loose but there’s a war to be won so by God we’ll use them!
As I mentioned, a lot is riding on Syms’ shoulders and Morrow shows us in stark detail what happens when the weight of history hangs heavy on a man’s shoulders. Syms’ gradual decline is sad to see, especially when you consider that there was nothing more that he could do.

A ‘Godzilla story’ wouldn’t be complete without some serious city bashing and we get to see plenty of this with Syms letting loose and discovering his inner monster (with a little bit a help from a gloriously over the top director). Syms gets to do what we all want to do and, for a moment, we get to see exactly what that means…

It’s early in the year to be saying things like this but I can see ‘Shambling towards Hiroshima’ being one of those books that’s in my thoughts for a long time to come. It’s a short read but it packs one hell of a punch. Keep an eye for it's release next month.

Nine and a Half out of Ten

P.S. Click Here for the publicity video on Youtube