Ride the Range
Ken
Rand once again rides the plains and mountains of his beloved Wyoming, pen in hand,
imagination bust out of the corral and galloping wild and free in the wind. Whoppers, like
you’d hear told by campfire light at the end of a hard days ride, abound in
Rand’s parfleche: There’s a zombie gal who wants her way despite death and
misfortune, a sheriff made of tin you don’t want to cross neither, and a magical mask
that wears you. There’s a new Lucky Nickel story about this guy who grows hair like
nobody’s business , and there’s this bridge out on the range that goes from
here—to somewheres else.
Somewheres else.
Ain’t that where folks want to go in their stories?
Sit.
Read. Rand’ll take you somewheres else.
"It’s hard to find someone to blurb a Ken Rand book because there just
isn’t anyone else doing what Ken does, much less doing it better."
--Selina Rosen
The following review is by Ben Bolton. It was posted on his blog,
Gravestoppers, in March, 2008.
Through Wyoming Eyes is a collection of five short stories, vividly set in the open
spaces of Wyoming, written by Ken Rand. In his introduction Rand explains that Wyoming is
his adopted home, and while he is unable to live there, his "heart is in Wyoming."
The stories explore the people and the terrain of the high plains and the author's love is
visible in his simple and visual descriptions. They are told with a wry sense of humor and
Rand never takes them too seriously.
The stories are unique to Ken Rand. They are a mixture of western, horror and science
fiction. They read more as tall tales than short stories: the characters that inhabit his
worlds are more fantastical than real. They are not super-heroes, but they have the feel
and texture of a Johnny Appleseed, or Paul Bunyan rather than anyone you have ever known
or met.
The collection opens with the story "Bridge O'Doom," which chronicles the
strange events of a Wyoming rancher who discovers a sort of black hole on his land. It
turns into a media circus and then a pop-culture event. The rancher watches as thousands
of people journey to his land as a pilgrimage, looking for their own Shangri La, for their
own escape into a better place, a better future. It is a quiet story that made me yearn
for the older Twilight Zone-like science fiction of the past.
"Calamity Djinn" is the story of a stout and strong frontier woman who is
planning to marry Butch Parker. The only problem is she hasn't informed him of her plans.
This is a fantastical story of love, destiny and just damn poor luck.
"The Clockwork Sheriff," is a genre bending golem story. An aging gunfighter is
called to a small town to help clean out the bad men and ruffians. Only when he arrives,
two weeks late, he finds a replacement has beaten him there. This story has the feel of a
classic robot story, but with the added texture and setting of a true western.
"Through These Eyes,' is the weakest of the stories contained in Through Wyoming
Eyes. It is short, less than two pages, and is built from two viewpoints: a doctor and
a shaman. Its insights are strange and delightful, but I would have loved to see it
fleshed out and built into a stronger, more poignant story.
"Mr. Gibber Saves the Day," is a Lucky Nickel Saloon story that tells the
tallest tale of the collection. The saloon's mortgage is due the next day and Mick can't
pay it with the IOUs stuffed in the till. This leads the Lucky Nickel's regulars on
several ill-begotten wagers to save their favorite haunt. In the end it comes down to a
stranger in town--a reporter and his companion--to save the Lucky Nickel. This is an
inventive and thrilling story that left me wanting more.
Through Wyoming Eyes is a collection that will appeal to a genre-bending audience.
If you have wondered how a golem would fare in the Wild West, or what a window to a
strange dimension would look like on an old ranch this collection is for you. The stories
are well told, clever and climax with less answers than questions. Ken Rand is the
thinking man's writer and these stories will live with you much longer than they take to
read. My only complaint? There should have been another story or two between the covers.
