BOOKED Solid

The dark, unsettling tales in Schickler’s first book, Kissing in Manhattan, wind an addictive trail through the human psyche. At once disturbing and arousing, the collection of tales is not really a group of separate short stories, but a progressively linked exploration of an old Manhattan apartment building, the Preemption, and its inhabitants.

The Preemption is an impressive, late 18th century building with gargoyles leering at its peaks. The original owner designed the building using sturdy oak floors and walls, and

thick glass windows. Each apartment also had heavy cast-iron freestanding bathtubs; even the original antique Otis elevator is of the highest quality, still in perfect working order. The residents Schickler describes clearly need these particular building characteristics; each person relies on their relationship with the building-and other residents-to gain some perspective on life. Each person discovers some part of his or her self that must be acknowledged, no matter how dangerous. The Preemption is the kind of apartment building whose inhabitants never move again.

Schickler begins with two relatively minor characters, Donna and Checkers. Through their developing relationship he manipulates even skeptical readers to shift their expectations, their limits on what is acceptable and what is not. Donna is a woman who is, in a sense, bored with life. She is attracted to power, but is frustrated by men and women who refuse to

recognize their own power, and ultimately hers as well. At first glance, the tale seems to suggest that women want to be dominated, an idea that is inaccurate and frightening. What eventually evolves, however, is the sense that the power Donna seeks, and eventually finds in Checkers, is different from what she expected in life. She makes the choice to give herself over to a very unusual man, and in this choice she finds, for the first time, trust and respect for her own power and for his power, too.

Even if this first tale leaves readers unsettled, Schickler accomplishes the task of setting the tone for the rest of the novel. By the end of the first chapter, readers know this will be no ordinary story. Indeed, the second tale, although completely different in content, still revolves around power. This tale, however, also incorporates a sense of duty. Rachel and Jacob have been married for forty-three years when Rachel finally revealed a very special ritual to an upset friend. Every night since their first night together, Rachel has bathed her husband. The Preemption, with its claw-footed tubs, has been their home all this time. This ritual is not sexual, it is simply a duty Rachel felt compelled to begin for reasons she did not completely understand. Through arguments, children, and even one short-lived affair, Jacob has succumbed to his wife’s gentle touch in the soapy bath every night. This very private act becomes public news after Rachel’s friend publishes an article revealing the ritual of the bath via her New York Times column. Jacob’s precarious relationship with his father is changed forever, first with his father’s disgust, then, following a stroke, his father’s complete reliance on Jacob. He gently washes the old man’s face, once scornful, now speechless but understanding.

Although these two tales seem too different to be reconciled with one common theme, the author slowly builds a series of experiences that cause various characters to question their identity, purpose, or relationships, finally focusing on three primary characters, Patrick Rigg, James Branch, and Rally McWilliams. Their lives intersect is very unusual ways. Patrick is a millionaire who lives in the Preemption building with his lonely housemate, James. Patrick is young, about thirty, and he spends every moment of his life reliving his older brother’s death when the two were children. The absurdity of the accident-he was killed by a character in a bizarre fish theme park-never fails to color his decisions and relationships.

Patrick’s life revolves around the absurd; he is both terrified and unafraid of human immortality. He plays with women, trying to get them to recognize their own selves before it is too late. Every night, he lavishes thousands of dollars on a different beautiful woman; he buys them expensive dresses, feeds them exotic meals, and takes them back to his apartment. There he performs a strange ritual, ultimately forcing the women to spend time examining their own beauty in a mirror. The evening does not culminate with sex; instead, Patrick sends the women home. If they are able to begin to fall in love with themselves, Patrick repeats the ritual with the same woman, but never more than once a week. The scenario is weird, erotically asexual. By watching the women come to terms with their bodies, thoughts, and fears, Patrick begins to discover his own humanity.

Rally McWilliams is one of these women. She and Patrick have met every week for months, and she is beginning to understand what he wants her to realize. She is somewhat lost herself. When she travels to provide a basis for her writing, Rally finds herself constantly touched by the bits of souls with which she comes in contact. She is a reflective woman, someone who spends a lot of time mixed up with her own thoughts. When she sees the flicker of a person’s uncertainty, their inner fears or hopes, Rally years to be a part of that person’s experience. She wants to kiss their souls. During one evening with Patrick, Rally meets James, his housemate. The two share an intimate conversation, brought together by their late night periods of reflection (James has a habit of using the old elevator as his private confessional during the hours of twelve and one in the morning). Patrick discovers this connection, and becomes enraged.

These dark and mysterious tales become eerily linked as the book progresses. I left the novel feeling unsettled, but with a sense that I had participated in something much larger than everyday emotions allowed. It is not an easy book to begin, but one that is filled with dark humor and poignant observations about the strange workings of the human mind.