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VAS: An Opera in Flatland
Printed in the colors of flesh and blood, An Opera in Flatland —a hybrid image-text novel—demonstrates how differing ways of imagining the body generate diverse stories of history, gender, politics, and, ultimately, the literature of who we are.
A constantly surprising, VAS combines a variety of voices, from journalism and libretto to poem and comic book. Often these voices meet in counterpoint, and the meaning of the narrative emerges from their juxtapositions, harmonies, or discords. Utilizing a wide and historical sweep of representations of the body—from pedigree charts to genetic sequences� VAS is, finally, the story of finding one's identity within the double helix of language and lineage.
A constantly surprising, VAS combines a variety of voices, from journalism and libretto to poem and comic book. Often these voices meet in counterpoint, and the meaning of the narrative emerges from their juxtapositions, harmonies, or discords. Utilizing a wide and historical sweep of representations of the body—from pedigree charts to genetic sequences� VAS is, finally, the story of finding one's identity within the double helix of language and lineage.
370 pages, Paperback
First published December 15, 2002
15 people are currently reading
449 people want to read
About the author
Steve Tomasula
22Ìýbooks48ÌýfollowersSteve Tomasula is the author of the novels The Book of Portraiture (FC2); VAS: An Opera in Flatland (University of Chicago Press), an acclaimed novel of the biotech revolution; TOC: A New-Media Novel (FC2/University of Alabama Press, and also as an multimedia app for iPad); and IN & OZ (University of Chicago Press). He is also the author of a collection of short fiction, Once Human: Stories. He most recently edited Conceptualisms: The Anthology of Prose, Poetry, Visual, Found, E- & Hybrid Writing as Contemporary Art, an anthology that brings together a wide variety of written works that stand in relation to traditional literature as conceptual visual art stands to traditional art. Ascension: A Novel, a novel about the end of Nature, is forthcoming this summer.
Incorporating narrative forms of all kinds—from comic books, travelogues, journalism or code to Hong Kong action movies or science reports—Tomasula’s writing has been called a ‘reinvention of the novel.' He lives in Chicago, and can be found at
Incorporating narrative forms of all kinds—from comic books, travelogues, journalism or code to Hong Kong action movies or science reports—Tomasula’s writing has been called a ‘reinvention of the novel.' He lives in Chicago, and can be found at
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
May 10, 2013
An overlooked contemporary experimental ... I call it a "near masterpiece." A marvelous, odd book. It is partly fictional—science-fictional, actually—but quite far from achieving novelhood. It is coherent in terms of content, theme, tone, and design but not in the sense of narrative. Rather it's a collection of brief fictive narrative elements (anywhere from one to five pages) alternated and intertwined with quotes, statistics, and historical anecdotes related to genetics, reproduction, population control/demography, racism, and eugenics. This unusual content is presented in a sophisticated design that I imagine is what a collage would look like if it were made by a DNA-obsessed android. To further complicate matters, the story elements are purportedly set in "Flatland," the world invented by Edwin A. Abbot in his book , a brief but highly inventive work that I highly recommend you make a beeline* for if you get a chance. Flatland is Abbot's attempt to invent a world that lives only in two dimensions. All the beings in Flatland are literally one or two dimensional: points, line segments, triangles, circles, quadrilaterals, and so on. The creatures in Flatland find it impossible to imagine three dimensional objects, a form we, of course, take for granted. (Although we really shouldn't...I have heard tell of a holographic theory of universe that says we are all existing on an infinite flat plane (a "brane") and three dimensionality is merely an illusion. But I digress.) Flatland is a great book, but Abbot's Flatland has very little to do with Vas. The characters do not behave in any way as if they live in a two dimensional world...other than metaphorically. It seems to me that what Tomasula has in mind is that the characters in Vas live in Flatland because we live in Flatland. Our perspective on life and society is for the most part "two dimensional." Flat, without history, pushing only forward toward "progress" without concern for the shit (i.e. environmental destruction) we are leaving in our wake. Although Vas primarily focuses on our genetic compulsions, predispositions, and prejudices, Flatland as a metaphor speaks just as readily toward our economic slavery. We are trapped in our way of life, hurtling along toward a vague environmental apocalypse.
Vas is short for "vasectomy." I did not know that before I picked this book up. The skin colored cover could have given me a hint, but no.
The brief narrative elements do feature the same main characters, Square, and a small cast of extras: his wife, Circle, mother-in-law, Mother, and his daughter Oval. This connective thread is mitigated by the lack of throughline between the sequences. Initially, they are mostly about the subtle psychological battle going on between husband and wife wherein she wants him to get the vasectomy asap but he resists out of some mixture of fear and a need for racial identity and heredity. It might be worth touching on Dawkin's here. Although it's never mentioned explicitly as I recall, it's relevant as Tomasula is highlighting the genetic compulsion to pass our genes on or continue our legacy, which the act of vasectomy stymies. The desire to neuter oneself in our society might instead highlight a survival urge in a different way—the desire to increase our economic security (survival) or out of concern for our physical survival (childbirth). In an interesting way, it does put the individual's survival over the gene's survival thus adding some tension to Dawkin's theory.
The narrative snippets soon diverge from the focus on the husband/wife debate and wander off into odd territory. It would seem that the setting is the far future when humans have the ability to genetically manipulate their bodies and minds to the point of correcting all "defects" and diseases and maintain perpetual life. They become designer bodies essentially. The early sequences are quite grounded and felt like they could occur today. But as they progress, odder and more futuristic references and reflections occur such as the main character dissecting a "Cro Magnon" body in the park. He being from the dominant genetic class that appeared to have Neanderthal genes mixed in with Homo sapiens. While the scenes themselves are rather concrete, the context becomes disassociated and abstract. It's not clear, despite the main character being featured in each scene, that they are intended to be continuous. The character seems to have no history. Which makes sense if you live in Flatland. We have no history or future for that matter. Our genes may want to survive, but unfortunately in geologic terms, a compulsion toward genetic survival is a short-term strategy for a species. It doesn't account for global issues that can lead to extinction. In other words, the Ayn Randian world of selfishness is quite short-sighted if you care about future generations—even just your own (gene)ration.
The non-fictional elements of Vas reminded me of David Markson's in the sense of intertwining short factual, historical snippets with brief fictional bits. The difference here being these fictional interludes were much longer and the factional interludes were focused on issues of genetics and racial identity. But they are both similarly eye-opening. While reading Vas, you will be shocked by how many highly-educated figures from the past supported, and easily justified, eugenics and genocide. They quite sincerely believed that elimination of the poor, blacks, Asian, etc, was better for the evolution of the species. Cull the herd to strengthen the offspring, right? Social Darwinism is still alive and well in many political circles so Vas is quite relevant.
Although shocking at times and abstract and multi-layered, Vas is not depressing or boring. I wouldn't describe it as a "difficult" either. You do need to be focused and don't expect to toss it off. You need to be willing to read columns and jumpy text. You'll have to try multiple approaches to reading the various graphic textual layouts that interweave multiple sentences with each other in vertical strata. But rather than difficult, it's energizing and demonstrates how much potential still remains to be tapped in exploring the form of fiction.
If the book has any weakness that prevents me from calling it a masterpiece, I would say it is drive and momentum. It didn't hit me hard enough and stay with me. But I quite admire what it is.
Highly recommended.
*Beeline. Get it?
Vas is short for "vasectomy." I did not know that before I picked this book up. The skin colored cover could have given me a hint, but no.
The brief narrative elements do feature the same main characters, Square, and a small cast of extras: his wife, Circle, mother-in-law, Mother, and his daughter Oval. This connective thread is mitigated by the lack of throughline between the sequences. Initially, they are mostly about the subtle psychological battle going on between husband and wife wherein she wants him to get the vasectomy asap but he resists out of some mixture of fear and a need for racial identity and heredity. It might be worth touching on Dawkin's here. Although it's never mentioned explicitly as I recall, it's relevant as Tomasula is highlighting the genetic compulsion to pass our genes on or continue our legacy, which the act of vasectomy stymies. The desire to neuter oneself in our society might instead highlight a survival urge in a different way—the desire to increase our economic security (survival) or out of concern for our physical survival (childbirth). In an interesting way, it does put the individual's survival over the gene's survival thus adding some tension to Dawkin's theory.
The narrative snippets soon diverge from the focus on the husband/wife debate and wander off into odd territory. It would seem that the setting is the far future when humans have the ability to genetically manipulate their bodies and minds to the point of correcting all "defects" and diseases and maintain perpetual life. They become designer bodies essentially. The early sequences are quite grounded and felt like they could occur today. But as they progress, odder and more futuristic references and reflections occur such as the main character dissecting a "Cro Magnon" body in the park. He being from the dominant genetic class that appeared to have Neanderthal genes mixed in with Homo sapiens. While the scenes themselves are rather concrete, the context becomes disassociated and abstract. It's not clear, despite the main character being featured in each scene, that they are intended to be continuous. The character seems to have no history. Which makes sense if you live in Flatland. We have no history or future for that matter. Our genes may want to survive, but unfortunately in geologic terms, a compulsion toward genetic survival is a short-term strategy for a species. It doesn't account for global issues that can lead to extinction. In other words, the Ayn Randian world of selfishness is quite short-sighted if you care about future generations—even just your own (gene)ration.
The non-fictional elements of Vas reminded me of David Markson's in the sense of intertwining short factual, historical snippets with brief fictional bits. The difference here being these fictional interludes were much longer and the factional interludes were focused on issues of genetics and racial identity. But they are both similarly eye-opening. While reading Vas, you will be shocked by how many highly-educated figures from the past supported, and easily justified, eugenics and genocide. They quite sincerely believed that elimination of the poor, blacks, Asian, etc, was better for the evolution of the species. Cull the herd to strengthen the offspring, right? Social Darwinism is still alive and well in many political circles so Vas is quite relevant.
Although shocking at times and abstract and multi-layered, Vas is not depressing or boring. I wouldn't describe it as a "difficult" either. You do need to be focused and don't expect to toss it off. You need to be willing to read columns and jumpy text. You'll have to try multiple approaches to reading the various graphic textual layouts that interweave multiple sentences with each other in vertical strata. But rather than difficult, it's energizing and demonstrates how much potential still remains to be tapped in exploring the form of fiction.
If the book has any weakness that prevents me from calling it a masterpiece, I would say it is drive and momentum. It didn't hit me hard enough and stay with me. But I quite admire what it is.
Highly recommended.
*Beeline. Get it?
Read
September 16, 2021Abstract: “And he marveled at the malleability of the system—people, orchids, amoebas, elk—all cognate.�
“…Creation one continuous expression of Divine Letters-Proportions-Harmony-Laws-Spheres without separation, the symmetry of a snail’s shell, of a flower’s bell, of an inner ear, a breaking wave, a moth’s flight or comet’s tail all features of a single face…�
Introduction: The words “innovative� and “hybrid� are often tossed around willy-nilly. However, VAS: An Opera in Flatland embodies, embooks, those qualities and more like nothing I’ve seen or read before. There are intimations, though, intimations, literary genes to be traced, essence of DeLillo, of David Foster Wallace, of Mark Z. Danielewski of course, but also Fiction Collective contemporaries like Lance Olsen and Vanessa Place. A novel that’s VASt in its preoccupations even as it stems from the notion of a private de-stemming; that is, the question of a VASectomy. The ostensible location is borrowed from Edwin A. Abbot’s Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, published in the late 19th century and considered a classic of mathematical allegory and philosophy. Tomasula’s Flatland isn’t flat as such, and his borrowed characters, Square, Circle, Oval, are human-shaped despite their names.
Read the full review for free here:
I interviewed the author here:
“…Creation one continuous expression of Divine Letters-Proportions-Harmony-Laws-Spheres without separation, the symmetry of a snail’s shell, of a flower’s bell, of an inner ear, a breaking wave, a moth’s flight or comet’s tail all features of a single face…�
Introduction: The words “innovative� and “hybrid� are often tossed around willy-nilly. However, VAS: An Opera in Flatland embodies, embooks, those qualities and more like nothing I’ve seen or read before. There are intimations, though, intimations, literary genes to be traced, essence of DeLillo, of David Foster Wallace, of Mark Z. Danielewski of course, but also Fiction Collective contemporaries like Lance Olsen and Vanessa Place. A novel that’s VASt in its preoccupations even as it stems from the notion of a private de-stemming; that is, the question of a VASectomy. The ostensible location is borrowed from Edwin A. Abbot’s Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, published in the late 19th century and considered a classic of mathematical allegory and philosophy. Tomasula’s Flatland isn’t flat as such, and his borrowed characters, Square, Circle, Oval, are human-shaped despite their names.
Read the full review for free here:
I interviewed the author here:
Read
February 27, 2017'Vas' is for 'vasectomy'.
The characters are two dimensional ;; names of Square, Circle, and Oval.
Artist and Designer Stephen Farrell gets equal billing.
You'll also want to read .
There is a plot.
There is an opera at the end.
The vasectomy thing leads into a bunch of disturbing stuff about sterilizing the deplorables and other unwanteds. A lot of it.
It's fiction about science, but not in the conventional sense of 'science fiction.'
Two other things that do something similar with science ;; Caponegro's "Doubt Uncertainty Possibility Desire" in and (is my suspicion) Thalia Field's recent .
But also something reminds one of Paul Metcalf's technique. You should read Paul Metcalf. (Me too.)
It is much more direct than Tomasula's excellent . His is an excellent place to start with his books.
Get this in hd if you can ; it's such a pretty book. And if you want to burn some dollars, there's even a cyborg edition :: (much like LeGuin's ).
I'm a sucker for these books with a book designer who can really show off his/her chops. Even more so since I read Carla Bolte's piece in about designing Bill's lovely books.
But you've still got to have good novelistic sense to write one of these designed books.
Danielewski is only the tip of the iceberg. Federman's books make an art out of it too.
More Tomasula, please.
The characters are two dimensional ;; names of Square, Circle, and Oval.
Artist and Designer Stephen Farrell gets equal billing.
You'll also want to read .
There is a plot.
There is an opera at the end.
The vasectomy thing leads into a bunch of disturbing stuff about sterilizing the deplorables and other unwanteds. A lot of it.
It's fiction about science, but not in the conventional sense of 'science fiction.'
Two other things that do something similar with science ;; Caponegro's "Doubt Uncertainty Possibility Desire" in and (is my suspicion) Thalia Field's recent .
But also something reminds one of Paul Metcalf's technique. You should read Paul Metcalf. (Me too.)
It is much more direct than Tomasula's excellent . His is an excellent place to start with his books.
Get this in hd if you can ; it's such a pretty book. And if you want to burn some dollars, there's even a cyborg edition :: (much like LeGuin's ).
I'm a sucker for these books with a book designer who can really show off his/her chops. Even more so since I read Carla Bolte's piece in about designing Bill's lovely books.
But you've still got to have good novelistic sense to write one of these designed books.
Danielewski is only the tip of the iceberg. Federman's books make an art out of it too.
More Tomasula, please.
January 19, 2008
Easily the most innovative work of fiction published in at least the last decade. Tomasula is wicked-smaht.
December 13, 2019
I enjoy reading experimental fiction, but I always set the bar really low in terms of expectations. Experimental fiction usually strikes me as a cop out, or drug-induced writing. It has a shit connotation that, generally speaking, is reinforced by my reading experiences. But I still read it.
But this book . . . was actually good. It had a narrative threaded through it, interspersed by data that added context to the story, sometimes tangentially.
The design made it interesting, and after a while the pattern-juxtaposing between the story of square and circle and the content relating to genetics and evolution-made for intuitive navigation.
I learned a lot about the lack of ethics in the medical profession throughout history, the disposability of the human body, all sorts of shit. That was fun.
The story of circle and square wasn’t all that captivating, but it kept me interested enough to keep reading and gave me something concrete to latch onto in between the barrage of random facts about genetics.
It is probably the best work of experimental fiction I have read.
But this book . . . was actually good. It had a narrative threaded through it, interspersed by data that added context to the story, sometimes tangentially.
The design made it interesting, and after a while the pattern-juxtaposing between the story of square and circle and the content relating to genetics and evolution-made for intuitive navigation.
I learned a lot about the lack of ethics in the medical profession throughout history, the disposability of the human body, all sorts of shit. That was fun.
The story of circle and square wasn’t all that captivating, but it kept me interested enough to keep reading and gave me something concrete to latch onto in between the barrage of random facts about genetics.
It is probably the best work of experimental fiction I have read.
June 30, 2021
Confusing, witty, provocative, and adventurous, there is truly no other “book� like this one. Deconstructing what is a graphic novel, this work dives into themes of eugenics, ancestry, fertility, and biology. While the narrative of Circle and Square get somewhat lost in the additions of lab results, entomology trees, and ancient poetry, this read will definitely keep you intrigued and on your toes. The graphic elements are very engaging and enjoyable to discover, although their presences doesn’t support any literal or symbolic importance in some cases. I see this novel as more of a zine that implements a fable-like story, instead of a graphic novel.
Read
December 10, 2018Brilliant
January 17, 2011
Pretentious drivel.
May 31, 2013
An amazing and insightful book into eugenics, biotechnology and language. Darkly funny and beautifully designed, this is a masterpiece of post-print fiction.
Read
November 27, 2024Really neat to see the authors play with the traditional novel format using graphic design
June 22, 2020
I will introduce this book by saying that it is not your typical, linear plot novel. It defies traditional storytelling. It is experimental fiction. It is also full of non-fictional moments as well. It is just weird. It is mind-boggling, but it is also awesome.
The story focuses on our protagonist, Square, who is pressured by his wife, Circle, to get a vasectomy. Throughout the book, many different facts, quotes, pictures, diagrams, etc. are shown and they all come together to question the idea of eugenics, humanity, history, and the idea of free will. How far would people go to chase the idea of perfection? When does the "good of society" outweigh the needs and rights of individuals? How does history portray this? How do we practice "free will" in our society and is it really "free"?
This isn't really a book I would recommend to everyone. Like I said earlier, it is really weird. At one point, the gene sequence for chromosome 12 is listed for over 25 pages. However, despite its strange format, the messages that it conveys is extremely eye-opening and powerful. It changed my perspective and made me realize that we always need to question history, science, and society, because information can be misleading.
In the middle, it depicts two quotes, each from Winston Churchill and Adolf Hitler that essentially say the same thing about eugenics, and yet, history depicts these two men as having completely opposite ideologies; perhaps, not so opposite after all. It certainly makes one rethink what else we been led to believe.
The story focuses on our protagonist, Square, who is pressured by his wife, Circle, to get a vasectomy. Throughout the book, many different facts, quotes, pictures, diagrams, etc. are shown and they all come together to question the idea of eugenics, humanity, history, and the idea of free will. How far would people go to chase the idea of perfection? When does the "good of society" outweigh the needs and rights of individuals? How does history portray this? How do we practice "free will" in our society and is it really "free"?
This isn't really a book I would recommend to everyone. Like I said earlier, it is really weird. At one point, the gene sequence for chromosome 12 is listed for over 25 pages. However, despite its strange format, the messages that it conveys is extremely eye-opening and powerful. It changed my perspective and made me realize that we always need to question history, science, and society, because information can be misleading.
In the middle, it depicts two quotes, each from Winston Churchill and Adolf Hitler that essentially say the same thing about eugenics, and yet, history depicts these two men as having completely opposite ideologies; perhaps, not so opposite after all. It certainly makes one rethink what else we been led to believe.
April 23, 2016
I'm drawn to books that try to do something original with style, but I usually end up being unimpressed. Such was the case again here.
The basic story is of a man contemplating getting a vasectomy at his wife's request because she is afraid of having a child with a genetic defect. She has already terminated one pregnancy for that reason.
As he considers, bits of history are presented about the eugenics movement in America and Europe in the last few centuries, and other there are other musings about what sorts of genetic differences are "defects" and whether we should try to prevent them. Lots of interesting, and often disturbing, things to consider there.
The text is layed-out in inventive ways, with added images and charts and colors and font changes and fold-out pages, etc. For me, that added very little to the story and even made it hard to understand at times.
The link to the "Flatland" story goes something like this: genetic information is encoded in a one-dimensional row of 'letters'; heredity charts use circle and square for male and female; circles and squares are two-dimensional inhabitants of flatland and they were concerned with purity of shapes much as some humans are concerned with purity of genes.
Recommended for people who like to approach such ideas through poetry and free association. That works fine for me for the fictional part of the story. But for the historical parts, I prefer more straightforward presentation, with sources.
The basic story is of a man contemplating getting a vasectomy at his wife's request because she is afraid of having a child with a genetic defect. She has already terminated one pregnancy for that reason.
As he considers, bits of history are presented about the eugenics movement in America and Europe in the last few centuries, and other there are other musings about what sorts of genetic differences are "defects" and whether we should try to prevent them. Lots of interesting, and often disturbing, things to consider there.
The text is layed-out in inventive ways, with added images and charts and colors and font changes and fold-out pages, etc. For me, that added very little to the story and even made it hard to understand at times.
The link to the "Flatland" story goes something like this: genetic information is encoded in a one-dimensional row of 'letters'; heredity charts use circle and square for male and female; circles and squares are two-dimensional inhabitants of flatland and they were concerned with purity of shapes much as some humans are concerned with purity of genes.
Recommended for people who like to approach such ideas through poetry and free association. That works fine for me for the fictional part of the story. But for the historical parts, I prefer more straightforward presentation, with sources.
March 11, 2016
Okay. So when I first picked up this book, I figured I was going to hate it. It looked like an overly complicated monstrosity that would fly over my head, and I would never be able to get through it.
Oh, how wrong I was.
I loved this. It honestly was the most intriguing book that I've had yet to read for this class, and by far my favorite. The historical aspects, small tidbits thrown in here and there, almost in a connected and disjointed way at the same time made me fall in love. It speaks to pieces of history that have always intrigued me, and the history of language that I was surprised I was able to connect to due to my history of the English language class last semester.
It is a piece of art, a novel, and something to puzzle over. I haven't devoured a book like this for class in a very long time. The very fact that I felt like I understood so much of it without having to be walked through it certainly helped. But honestly, it is a stunning work. While not everybody would love it, I feel like with my appreciation for the history aspects that it imbues, the beauty of the language, and the modernity of the text itself, literally embodying itself was unique and quite the ride.
Oh, how wrong I was.
I loved this. It honestly was the most intriguing book that I've had yet to read for this class, and by far my favorite. The historical aspects, small tidbits thrown in here and there, almost in a connected and disjointed way at the same time made me fall in love. It speaks to pieces of history that have always intrigued me, and the history of language that I was surprised I was able to connect to due to my history of the English language class last semester.
It is a piece of art, a novel, and something to puzzle over. I haven't devoured a book like this for class in a very long time. The very fact that I felt like I understood so much of it without having to be walked through it certainly helped. But honestly, it is a stunning work. While not everybody would love it, I feel like with my appreciation for the history aspects that it imbues, the beauty of the language, and the modernity of the text itself, literally embodying itself was unique and quite the ride.
June 24, 2013
It's rare that I manage to read a book and do not develop an opinion about it. But this book successfully bypassed any feelings I might have had. It was a fascinating experiment in form and the content contained, especially in the strange biopolitical diversions was interesting in the way that the news was interesting.
But as a book? Perhaps there wasn't enough narrative to make me care, but too much to make me want to read for information.
Perhaps I'm too much of a traditionalist to appreciate what Tomasula's doing here. Perhaps graphic novels bug me (they do. I think they're books, but the format drives me crazy to read) so this books similarity in form kept me from connecting.
All I know is I can't even summon up enough emotion to rate it.
There should be a "has no opinion at all, no really" button.
But as a book? Perhaps there wasn't enough narrative to make me care, but too much to make me want to read for information.
Perhaps I'm too much of a traditionalist to appreciate what Tomasula's doing here. Perhaps graphic novels bug me (they do. I think they're books, but the format drives me crazy to read) so this books similarity in form kept me from connecting.
All I know is I can't even summon up enough emotion to rate it.
There should be a "has no opinion at all, no really" button.
April 21, 2012
This was not a very entertaining book. I’m glad I read it because it was a different experience and the author used interesting textual and illustrative means to convey his themes. It was definitely interesting, but not something I would ever read again, or would recommend for anything but scholarly interest.
September 8, 2007
Absolutely gorgeously written-designed book, by Steve Tomasula whose writing I deeply respect. Its pages are included in recent books on graphic design. What a book can be in terms of literary writing, design, object...
September 26, 2007
The most beautiful book I've ever read—which is also the book's weakness, as keeping up with the superb design makes it damn near impossible to follow the narrative.
November 18, 2008
Actually, I just looked at the pictures. But I did enjoy the concept.
June 5, 2015
A book that teaches you to read and re-read the world in which you live.
January 11, 2012
Very interesting format - engaging and challenging. I hope substance can keep up with style.
April 27, 2022
27th book of 2022
I'm not really interested in experimental fiction. The quest to push the novel beyond its known limits seems rather pointless to me, and reading this book confirmed my feelings toward experimental fiction.
The amateur always looks at a piece of abstract experimental art and says with great confidence, "I could do that", and I guess the true value of art lies in the amateur's ability to actually do it. I could not do what Tomasula does in this novel. There are moments that are truly poetic, and it's of no doubt to me that Tomasula put a lot of time and effort into perfecting this novel's minimalism. However, the form was truly confusing. I don't really know exactly what the different strands of narrative were leading towards, and while I could grasp the underlying connections between the strands, it was all too much at times.
I think VAS would be a great text for someone whose mind scatters from place to place, but if you're comfortable with the predictability and consistency of narrative, VAS can be a difficult exercise. And I ultimately didn't really care too much for it.
I'm not really interested in experimental fiction. The quest to push the novel beyond its known limits seems rather pointless to me, and reading this book confirmed my feelings toward experimental fiction.
The amateur always looks at a piece of abstract experimental art and says with great confidence, "I could do that", and I guess the true value of art lies in the amateur's ability to actually do it. I could not do what Tomasula does in this novel. There are moments that are truly poetic, and it's of no doubt to me that Tomasula put a lot of time and effort into perfecting this novel's minimalism. However, the form was truly confusing. I don't really know exactly what the different strands of narrative were leading towards, and while I could grasp the underlying connections between the strands, it was all too much at times.
I think VAS would be a great text for someone whose mind scatters from place to place, but if you're comfortable with the predictability and consistency of narrative, VAS can be a difficult exercise. And I ultimately didn't really care too much for it.
February 4, 2023
Blending science fiction, speculative fiction, historical satire, and genuine emotional depth is no easy feat. Tomasula explores the deep cultural anxieties surrounding reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy with the aide of some fantastic graphics, collage, and design. It’s at once clever and dreamy, and I appreciate the precision with which each page was constructed. Sure, the characters are two-dimensional, but that’s kind of the joke of the book.
October 16, 2023
Visually I have never read something that requires so much of my brain, to the point where it feels like I am using many senses to read. A graphic design masterpiece. I think I related more to the medium than the subject matter.
November 27, 2018
Vasectomies and abortions and eugenics, oh my!
April 7, 2021
Best book I've read this year - I've read 20 so far. This book is better than 19 others books (and online poems and essays and articles et al et cetera ad infinitum). Read it. Or I'll punch ya.
October 20, 2022
how many types of mollusks are there?
July 16, 2023
stop trying so hard to be different
February 14, 2025
Techno-fascism in the Land of 1001 Salad Dressings.
February 19, 2017
Vas begins quite simply: The story of a man getting a vasectomy, and the anxiety that induces in him. From this anxiety, however, comes a historical and racial anxiety, tracing the history of forced sterilizations from the Nazis, but also all of the other incarnations thereof, and flowing to the concepts of genetics and social structures. The novel riffs off of opera and the novel Flatland by Edwin Abbott, but also genetic codes, and the nature of writing itself in order to make a multimodal text that defies explanation in a marvelous way.
February 27, 2020
This book explodes the genre of the novel in order to blur the lines between bodies, culture, technology, and text. It explores human evolution and the history of eugenics, genetic engineering and reproductive rights, artificial hearts and transgenic monkeys--all with such stunning and intricate visual design. This is innovative fiction that has both brains and heart.
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