X out of Wonderland January 9, 2006 – Posted in: Book Reviews

X out of Wonderland
by David Allan Cates
Published by Steerforth

The Global Free Market will solve all ills: That is the premise which propels “X,” the protagonist of Cates’ satirical novel X out of Wonderland, on a journey from successful radio talk-show host to third-world sweatshop laborer, from kill-or-be-killed soldier to oversexed commune citizen. Make no mistake, X out of Wonderland is diatribe — but it’s the funniest and most poignant diatribe about the state of our current society you may ever read. No matter how many times X loses all that he has, no matter how much pain he suffers, he still trusts in the redemptive power of the Global Free Market. Wonderland contains genius twists and turns of phrase which alternately delight and horrify; its only fault is that the novel is rather plotless, moving from one circumstance to the next literally with every gust of wind. But at a breezy 140 pages, this fact can be easily overlooked as we enjoy our light-hearted tour of the rife hypocrisy that passes daily under our noses. Despair over the hopelessness of life on earth has never been so much fun.

January 9, 2006 – Matthew Kressel (courtesy Earthling Magazine).