The Consequence of Skating

by Steven Gillis

Gillis as only Gillis the politics of love, human action as theater, and the dreams we dream and chase forever. The Consequence of Skating , Gillis' fourth novel, blends politics, drama, ice skating, mountain climbing, the music industry and world affairs - not to mention artificial intelligence and G.O.D. - to create an inimitable tour de force . Centering on Mickey Greene, an actor who has fallen from grace, the novel follows Mick as he maneuvers through a series of adventures that set him on a course of reconstructing his life in a way he never before imagined.

"Steven Gillis possesses that rarest of gifts, the voice that seems to flow effortlessly. This guy makes it look easy. Read the first three pages of The Consequence of Skating , and if you're not hooked, go see a doctor."
—Jonathan Evison, author of All About Lulu and West of Here

Steven Gillis is the author of the novels Walter Falls (2003), The Weight of Nothing (2005), and Temporary People (2008). Steve's stories, articles and book reviews have appeared in over four dozen journals. A collection of Steve's stories—titled Giraffes —was published in February, 2007. A second collection of Steve's stories—titled The Principles of Landscape —will be published by Black Lawrence Press in 2011. A 3 year member of the Ann Arbor Book Festival Board of Directors, and a finalist for the 2007 Ann Arbor News Citizen of the Year, Steve taught writing at Eastern Michigan University and is the founder of 826michigan and the co-founder of Dzanc Books in partnership with Dan Wickett.

302 pages, Paperback

First published August 31, 2010

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

On good days, most of us can only dream of packing as much experience, as many ups & downs & dekes, as Steven Gillis has packed into this tragedy of recovery & fallback, thick with lust and brains both. Indeed, it’s the lust in the brains, you could say, that leads to the freezing plunge which defines THE CONSEQUENCE OF SKATING. It’s an artist’s plunge, an actor’s: the protagonist is Mickey Greene, whose passion for theater drives all his head-games, now redemptive, now rationalizing, & now spiraling down, down, down. Gillis here impresses with his command of a fictional world new to him, that of plays and movies and the artistic temperament generally; his TV personality, in the earlier TEMPORARY PEOPLE, has nothing like the depth of this actor. Greene’s insights into Pinter alone could provide enough for an advanced seminar — & his best self finds expression in his attempt to stage a breakthrough production of Pinter’s finale, MOONLIGHT. That attempt goes hand in hand with his return to respectability, following an onstage meltdown brought on by abusing some mighty bad drugs (kudos, too, for all the junkie slang Gillis throws in). Greene is well into recovery as the story opens, & for two-thirds of the novel we’re with him, applauding his Samaritan surrogate parenting of a boy with two parents in the hospital, & flat-out cheering his healthy new relationship with a warm & beefy earth-Mama of a singer named Sarah. When Gillis does lovemaking with Sarah, whew, that’s a meaty handful of fine writing, there. When he steps away to speak of a friend’s new software for predicting political shifts, it’s often fascinating in a very different way; a subplot concerns a friend risking his life to learn more about repression Iran. Alas, this blossoming Greene has its predator bug, & that’s Darcie, his former lover & a hottie in snug jeans. Darcie’s still around, still the same casual druggie who lured Greene into overindulgence, & as his star re-rises the actor’s yoked together with the ex in another performance. The tensions rise with many a tingle along the vertebra, & Gillis proves intimate indeed with a decent man’s self-deception. If I were to criticize, though, I’d say he needs to bring the same insight to Darcy’s appeal. That seems to depend mostly on her looks & their shared vocation; concerning that potential seduction, when Gillis detours into Pinter or the Ayotallah, it interferes with understanding. But then again, the glimpses of larger issues, literary & historical, reveal vividly how most of us can only wobble along on the slippery surface of the world, driven by ambitions & luck, & counting on precious few working ligaments, when it comes to emotional intelligence & plain self-control. A fine paradox, these CONSEQUENCES: at once a warm embrace & a cold.

[Thomas Cannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mickey Greene is an actor trying to get his life back together after collapsing onstage due to drugs. He has lost everything- his career, his money, his beautiful actress girlfriend. Forced to take an overnight security job at an amusement park as part of probation, he becomes obsessed with skating on the ice rink.

I loved this book and it kept me turning the page. I came to like Mickey and the people he meets as he tries to rebuild his life. This book is engaging without following any formula, the story unravels in a natural, realistic way. Steven Gillis had me hoping for Mickey to get back with his ex-girlfriend, even though I knew that was not a good idea.

[Ajani Sebastian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slow burn, with wonderful voice and great prose. The interior monologue and long stretches without scene make it a touch meandering at times, and the ending proved a little anti-climantic. Though the true testament I suppose is that whenever I put it down I found myself thinking about the narrative, wondering what will happen next.

[Evan Kingston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gillis presents incredibly diverse and subtle synthesis of philosophy, current events, dramatic theory, and a hundred other interesting ideas exploring the metaphysics of choice and consequence--all the more incredible because they're all swirled into a powerful but pleasant story.

[Dan Wickett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is simply the best book I've read this year. The only title I can say that I've read multiple times, and got more excited each time I read it and got drawn in again.

[Mark Van Aken Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable.

[Torea Frey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hope in sadness. Ways to put things back together after everything falls apart. I didn't really get the G.O.D. stuff, but otherwise solid.

[Shelf Magazine]

Read our review and an interview with author Steven Gillis in the January 2011 issue of Shelf Magazine. http://www.shelfmediagroup.com/staff_...