The People of Paper
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The People of Paper | |
|---|---|
 First edition cover |
|
| Author | Salvador Plascencia |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | McSweeney's Books, Mariner Books |
| Publication date | June 2005 (McSweeney's), November 13, 2006 (Mariner) |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | ISBN 1-932416-21-8 (McSweeney's, hardback), ISBN 978-0156032117 (Mariner, paperback) |
| OCLC Number | 60654785 |
The People of Paper is the debut novel of Salvador Plascencia. It was first published as a part of the Rectangulars line of McSweeney's Books. In form the novel owes a debt to a wide variety of experimental fiction from the magical realism of Latin American writers, to the Beat writings of William S. Burroughs, to the American postmodernists of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly in its turn towards metafiction. The book is notable for its unique layout, featuring columns of text running in different directions across the page, blacked out sections, and a name that has literally been cut out of the novel. The central events depicted by the novel are variously described as a war against Saturn (representing the author), against sadness, and against omniscient narration. The leader of this war is a character named Federico de la Fe, whose is abandoned by his wife Merced due to chronic bed-wetting. As a result of his remorse, he falls into a depression which he cures through "burn-collecting," or burning parts of his body. After leaving Mexico bound for the United States, Federico de la Fe and his daughter Little Merced settle in the small flower-growing town of El Monte Flores. There Federico de la Fe enlists the help of a local gang of flower-pickers calling themselves EMF in order to combat the influence of Saturn.
The novel was republished in paperback by Mariner Books in 2006.
