Magazine Review--Shroud #10 (Autumn 2010)

The special Halloween edition of Shroud magazine did not ship out in time for October's end, but that's the only gripe I have with this highly enjoyable issue (which features terrific cover art by Steven Gilberts--a scene of clockwork, pumpkin-headed scribes that might have sprung from the dark imagination of Tim Burton).

The issue's informative nonfiction offerings address various aspects of the holiday.  Jodi Lee ("Sam Hane It's Not") traces the Celtic origins of Halloween, while Elizabeth Tucker ("Exploding Pumpkins and Poisoned Candy") considers some of the darker, modern-day pranks associated with the 31st.  In a pull-no-punches, op-ed-type piece ("Where did All the Monsters Go?"), Kelli Owen laments the ubiquity of slutty costumes in stores these days ("Walt Disney has got to be rolling in his grave," says Owen, "knowing Cinderella, Snow White, and even Sleeping Beauty are all wearing fishnets, four-inch heels and less fabric than Donald Duck--and he only ever wore a shirt").  Also, Norman Partridge (a writer whose name has become synonymous with Halloween fiction in recent years) is interviewed, as is rising star Rio Youers.

All of this makes for some sweet reading, but the true treats are found in the fiction selections (which include a reprint of Partridge's "Three Doors"--a hard-fisted variation on "The Monkey's Paw").  Halloween is held to be a night when the worlds of the living and the dead blur together, and writers Robert Ford, Daniel G. Keohane, and Kelli Owen (again) furnish appropriately haunting tales of restless/vengeful spirits.  Jeremy C. Shipp ("Almost Paradise") gives his signature bizarro twist to the holiday, writing about oppressive Angels who fall into a dormant state every October 31st and who are then decoratively debased by their human subjects.  In "Red Lantern," Alethea Kontis presents an artist who grows too intimate with his painted muse on Halloween (while a party--described in wonderful detail by the author--plays out in the neighboring apartment).  Of all the stories in the magazine, Halloween is probably least integral to the plot of Thomas Phillips's "Vaccination," but this is nonetheless a gripping tale of a zombie-type outbreak (stemming from tainted flu shots) at a 9-1-1 call center.  The issue's most memorable story, though, is the piece of flash fiction in the leadoff slot: Justin Gustainis's "Waiting for G.P."  Gustainis gives us a sinister riff on the classic Peanuts Halloween cartoon, one that makes the notorious Simpsons spoof seem innocuous by comparison.

Kudos to guest editor Kevin Lucia for putting together a delightful issue.  Shroud 10 might not have arrived in time this October, but I can foresee myself returning to it next Halloween season and jumping happily back into its autumnal leaves.