Steve Anderson

Steve Anderson is the author of The Losing Role and other novels with crime, history, mystery, noir and humor. Anderson has also written short stories and screenplays, and was a Fulbright Fellow in Munich, Germany. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

Website: http://www.stephenfanderson.com
Twitter: SFAnderson66

• SFAnderson66: "Instant written communication." (!) Hey now, that's us: The Internet Imagined in 1969 via @openculture http://t.co/HnbSgSUp
• SFAnderson66: #fridayreads Dispatches by Michael Herr. Staggering nonfiction. Vietnam War up close. Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket borrow from it.
• SFAnderson66: @WolfgangHoffman Hey, thank you too. See ya out there! #RCTID
• SFAnderson66: "That's what they look like." Wish I hadn't looked: The BBC outs an Internet troll on television http://t.co/s4PPAGp4 via @dangermindsblog
• SFAnderson66: Yup. It's an old con RT @jeremyduns 'A world of infinite interns.' Very interesting blog post on The Huffington Post http://t.co/1S60Srou…

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http://www.amazon.com/Losing-Role-Steve-Anderson/dp/1453855459

1940s    america    americans abroad    ardennes    awol    battle of the bulge    berlin wall    cold war    confederacy of dunces    creative nonfiction    crime    espionage    essay    expat    fiction    germany    hawaii    historical    humor    iraq war    kona    literary    memoir    munich    mystery    noir    oktoberfest    political    portland    satire    short stories    ww2   

• Snodgrass Vacation on Feb. 07, 2010
  
  Humor novels are much like literary novels in that they're about characters, motivations, and precise and truthful descriptions -- only turned on their heads. Dave Conifer goes there in Snodgrass vacation and sticks with it. The two families of Dave and Marcie, Vinnie and Nancy commit to a vacation to Merv Snodgrass World and we're off on an extended and funny riff on the Disney empire. The satirical details, wacky and too-true names for rides and park mascots and attractions kept me smiling, and the lines delivered by Vinnie kept me laughing. Vinnie's the type who speaks before he thinks, if he thinks at all, while Dave is the deadpanning, analyzing observer. Also good for laughs is Vinnie's wife Nancy, who plans and commands their days at Snodgrass with the focus and determination of a decorated general staff officer. The amusement park for me said a lot about our obsessions with getting the most from our often meager vacations, for if we stop moving we might just realize not all is what it seems and it might even be a sham. The underground facilities of Snodgrass hint at this but it's never preached. That was just right in a fun story like this. Much of the plot centered around the two families trying to visit an unending whirlwind of amusement attractions as they fight off increasing hordes of line-cutting families and cheaters on four-wheel scooters and in wheelchairs. This was funny, but I needed more, and I got it when Dave and Vinnie embark on a quest to expose the biggest cheater of all, a swindler named, of all things, Van Morrison, which provides for more confusion and chuckles. Van Morrison becomes their Moby Dick, and I wanted to see more of this and sooner. But I'm nitpicking. The old cliche that "comedy is hard" is so true. It's tough to pull off in a sitcom let alone a full novel, stringing together funny situations and jokes in a way that builds a story, and Conifer does a fine job of it.
  
• The American Book of the Dead on Feb. 15, 2010
  
  Novels tagged as apocalyptic sci-fi are usually not my bag, but I gave this one a chance and I'm glad I did. Part apocalyptic sci-fi and part psychological thriller with elements of more accessible literary novels and even neo-noir, this is a deep story that transcends genres. It feels like others' books, with influences ranging from Pynchon to Delillo to Philip K. Dick and more, but it also felt original -- always a good sign. It started a little slow for me, as Baum has a lot to set up, but then it really took off as the end of society as we know it looms and chapters alternate between the wary hero, writer Eugene Myers, and a childish and deluded American president, Charles Winchell. Without giving too much away, both men believe -- and fear -- they are transforming into a new type of human that the post-apocalyptic future will depend on. Who wins out (or do they?) will tell the reader a lot about where we might be heading. As a line in the book states (I'm paraphrasing), the best sci-fi takes present themes and exaggerates them almost beyond recognition. I know they got me thinking. Baum also manages to avoid getting hung up on religion and politics, choosing to focus on the human nature that binds us all. The revolution is not just societal but evolutional. My complaints are few. Some narrative and even dialogue had to be expositional in spots owing to the wide-reaching story and context, but Baum does well to blend it all in. The story could've begun closer to the world war that engulfs the planet and wouldn't have suffered too much. But that's more niggling than it sounds. The quality was there in the beginning to carry us along. Baum creates worlds and lives and psychology with the small details, showing us and not telling us in ways that keep the reader involved -- not something we get enough of in books from any sized publisher. The editing was also first-rate with far fewer typos than I've seen from big publishers charging far more for their books. A book from an independent writer outshines those from the big establishment publishers. As a fellow independent writer (who doesn't know Baum, by the way) that's definitely a revolution I like to see.
  
• Szent István: Hungary's Battleship on July 24, 2011
  
  In the strangely archaic world of early WW1, landlocked Hungary had its first and last battleship. It didn't last the war. I thought it was fascinating that the Austro-Hungarian Empire had to have such a battleship, wanted to know more, and got a concise and well-written overview of this relatively short-lived dreadnaught from Russell Phillips. I look forward to reading Phillips' other articles and books.
  
• A Damn Close-Run Thing: A Brief History of the Falklands Conflict on Nov. 08, 2011
  
  I didn't know much about the Falklands War, and this provided a good overview of the conflict. I learned much. I didn't realize so many lost their lives, and that Argentine agents attempted to hit a British ship in Gibraltar. Russell Phillips writes straightforward narratives that convey a lot of information concisely. You can trust their accuracy. As a historical fiction author looking for topics to research, I rely on articles such as these to point me in the right direction. I look forward to more.