Book Description

“Cleverly explores the motifs of Frankenstein. . . . Fans will appreciate the intriguing perspective on a familiar theme.”—Publishers Weekly "A philosophical fable. . . . As much Faust as Frankenstein.” —Kirkus Reviews “Readers will feel right at home in this crossover world of 'wonder tales,' which has been described as 'Lewis Carroll with footnotes by Jonathan Swift.' If that description alone doesn’t get your bachelor's degree in English Lit all tingly, then you're reading the wrong list.”—Westword “An allusive and face-paced tale. Report to Megalopolis blends the lyricism of fairy tales with knife-in-the-ribs social criticism, a dash of humor, and plenty of gruesome twists.” —Edwin Battistella, Editor, Literary Ashland, and author of Sorry About That: The Language of Public Apology “Spend a day in Megalopolis with Aspern Grayling. You’ll be captivated by his story—fascinating and unflinching in its depiction of human nature and our potential for breathtaking creation and unbridled destruction. Davies has imagined a future world populated with characters who charm and compel in equal measure.” —Gene Hayworth, Director of Social Sciences, University Libraries at the University of Colorado, and Owner, Inkberry Books (Niwot, Colorado) “Impressive. . . . Report to Megalopolis creates and makes believable its imaginative world, a world that is both original and rooted in classical works of fantasy. With its lavish settings and dramatic events, it plays in a quite novel way with the old myths/fairy stories of orphans, muddled generations and incestuous couplings.” —Janet Todd, author of A Man of Genius You won’t need to have read any of the other The History of Arcadia books to become engrossed in the drama of Aspern Grayling, whose obsession with creating a new life form—in the person of ruthless adventurer Pavo Vale—could destroy his whole world. A compelling descendant of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, this is a tale of a man bent on conquest, and of an adversary that may yet defeat him: the ghost of the Arcadian Devindra Vale, the only woman he has ever loved. Tod Davies is the author of Snotty Saves the Day, Lily the Silent, and The Lizard Princess, the first three books in The History of Arcadia series, as well as the cooking memoirs Jam Today: A Diary of Cooking With What You’ve Got and Jam Today Too: The Revolution Will Not Be Catered. Unsurprisingly, her attitude toward literature is the same as her attitude toward cooking—it’s all about working with what you have to find new ways of looking and new ways of becoming ever more human. Originally from San Francisco, she now lives with her husband, the filmmaker Alex Cox, and their two dogs, Gray and Pearl, in the alpine valley of Colestin, Oregon.