Hystopia, by David Means (Review)

Means does not disappoint with his debut novel Hystopia. The story itself is the creation of a fictitious survivor of the Vietnam war, Eugene Allen, who’s voice frames the novel in a collection of Author’s notes whilst some Editor’s notes offer explanation of his character. Eugene has committed suicide prior to the discovery of his novel, so from the very outset we are immersed in the traumatic effects of the war. I feel Eugene could have had more of a place in the structure of the text. Half way through I forgot that I was reading a novel within a novel and so the effect of this technique was reduced. The novel within the novel takes place in a world where Kennedy has survived several assassination attempts and has entered his third term whilst the Vietnam War rages on. The chapters alternate between the lives of 2 couples. Wendy and Singleton are agents on the hunt for a murderer named Rake. Meanwhile the counter-narrative follows Meg, Rake’s hostage, and Hank who is set on freeing her from Rake’s control. What complicates issues is the process of enfolding; enfolding is the government’s new way of ‘curing’ shell shock. By using a drug called tripizoid ex-veterans can suppress their traumatic memories through this process. The treatment however is never complete, and so Hank, Meg and Singleton are all ‘drifting around with the pivotal points of their lives buried’.

The novel effectively put’s itself in the cannon of dystopian fiction both through elusions and standing out from the crowd. Wendy and Singletons relationship has an unmistakable reminiscence to 1984’s Winston and Julie. Moreover, the issue of trusting our narrators both in fiction and the media is embedded within the plot. Thus the narrative signals a relationship with texts that have come before which strengthens the effect of this ‘hystopian’ world.

The text’s concern with trauma, combined with the free-indirect style, means we see deep into the character’s souls. This close look into the psyche of the individuals through some very disturbing sequences of stream of consciousness makes the novel stand out from the crowd. It is not uncomfortably regimented like Orwell, but instead erratic and, at times, hard to follow due to its complexity. This complexity at times is ineffective, slightly exposing David Means’s inexperience with the novel form. The stream of consciousness, only a few times, felt like overkill that slowed the pace rather than contributing to the tone.

Overall I was impressed by the text. Although at times I was lost, I never wanted to stop reading. Means offers an insight into Vietnam that has neutrality and simultaneously exudes compassion for the people it concerns.