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Shuteye For The Time Broker by Paul Di Filippo
01/05/2006 . Source: Laura Kayne 
pub: Thunder's Mouth Press. 312 page enlarged paperback. Price: $14.95 (US). ISBN: 1-56025-817-9. Buy Shuteye For The Time Broker in the USA - or Buy Shuteye For The Time Broker in the UK  check out website: www.avalonpub.com
The latest collection of short stories from American author Paul Di Filippo is rich, varied and entertaining. The majority are character-driven insights into unusual people's lives. Some are more plot-centred, concise narratives to make the reader think or smile. All are unique and well-written snapshots of story-telling and Science Fiction ideas. Di Filippo pushes against boundaries of content and structure, resulting in politically charged and somewhat disturbing tales such as 'Shadowboxer' and 'We're All In This Together', which tackle the themes of terrorism and media influence respectively, both with a fantastical, supernatural edge.
Di Filippo also speculates on the nature of fiction and narrative itself, particularly in the way Science Fiction authors approach them. 'Distances' is a delightful piece on time, space, past and future and how to correlate them all, especially through the use of the written word. 'Walking The Great Road' exploring the differences between fictional and real-life experiences, 'The Secret Sutras of Sally Strumpet' wherein an author is suddenly faced with his creation, and 'We're All In This Together' add to Di Filippo's musings on fiction, Science Fiction, meta-fiction and being a writer.
Some stories in this volume are much more light-hearted and humorous. 'Captain Jill' and 'Billy Budd' are fun re-working of old ideas and myths - pirates and monsters, magic and the creation of artificial life. Yet even these have a slight sadness in them. This tone of pathos and dark humour is found in several others of Di Filippo's seemingly more fun and playful tales, alongside the initial entertainment. The title story itself, in which time has become a commodity and people no longer need to spend it on sleep, is highly amusing yet the main character still suffers and even his rescue is overshadowed by the sense of darker intentions. A similar feel appears with 'The Days Of Other Light', wherein an artist desperate for inspiration uses a machine and in finding himself becomes his own, final masterpiece. Through these, Di Filippo engages with themes and content arising from today's society and issues - celebrity, media, consumerism, politics and terrorism as well as linking to ongoing and universal topics such as what it is to be human, the nature of time, life after death and creativity. The fact that Di Filippo frames each story with a brief background and insight to its creation adds to the reading on several levels.
Di Filippo finishes this volume with an amusing series of thirty-two short vignettes entitled 'The Furthest Schorr'. Based on a collection of surrealist paintings by Todd Schorr, they show Di Filippo's imagination running wild, giving sketches of ideas, as well as showing links between visual and written art. From the aliens trying to put an almost dead man back together again and getting it wrong to a child conjuring up demons of chocolate and sweets, these present a surreal and skewered look at the world.
In conclusion, an enjoyable and entertaining collection of well-crafted Science Fiction and fantasy stories that will resonate and stay in the reader's mind long after a first or even second reading.
Laura Kayne
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