Only Revolutions
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- The correct title of this article is Only Revolutions. It appears incorrectly here because of technical restrictions.
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| Author | Mark Z. Danielewski |
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| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | literary fiction |
| Publisher | Pantheon Books |
| Released | 12 September 2006 |
| Media Type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 360 |
| Size and Weight | 9.125 x 5.5 inches |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-375-42176-9 |
| Preceded by | The Fifty Year Sword |
Only Revolutions is an American road novel by writer Mark Z. Danielewski. It was released in the United States on 12 September 2006 by Pantheon Books. It has been nominated for the 2006 National Book Award for Fiction.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
The story alternates between two different narratives: Sam and Hailey, and Hailey and Sam, wild and wayward teenagers who never grow old. With an evolving stable of cars, the teenagers move through various places and moments in time as they try to outrace History.
[edit] Volumes, Direction, and Layout
Only Revolutions is printed in such a way that both covers appear to be the front of the book. The side with the green cover is the story as told by Sam, and the side with the gold cover is the story as told by Hailey. Every page contains upside-down text in the bottom margin, which is actually later pages of the opposite volume. For example, the first page of Hailey's story contains the last several lines of Sam's story, apparently upside down. When you reach that page while reading Sam's story, those lines will appear to be the only right-side-up text on the page. (Note: The publisher recommends the reading of eight pages from one story, then the other, and so on.)
In addition, every page contains a sidebar with a date and a list of world-events that happened between that date, and the one which appears on the next page. Dates in Sam's story run from Nov 22 1863 to Nov 22 1963, while dates in Hailey's story run from Nov 22 1963 to Jan 19 2063.
[edit] Color
In Hailey's story, all occurrences of the letter O or the numeral 0 are printed in gold-colored ink. In Sam's story, those characters are printed with green ink. The dates at the top of the sidebars are printed in purple, as well as the words "creep" and "The Creep." The book includes a concordance of sorts, titled "Now Here Found" in red ink, which lists the word "house" in blue ink, bringing the total number of colors in the book to five.
[edit] Publicity
For at least two years before the official title was released, its working title was THAT. Danielewski has referred to THAT in interviews, many of which can be found online.
There was also talk of a secret group of recipients of the ARC (Advanced Reader's Copy) prior to the release of the book. Soon before the official release date of Only Revolutions, it was revealed that there had, in fact, been a secret forum on the MZD discussion boards, where the book had been discussed since Spring 2006. After September 12 (the public release date of OR), the ARC forum has been merged with the regular one.
Special downloadable content is available at the book's official website.
[edit] Reader Participation
Danielewski, most likely fueled by the cult-ish following of his fans gained after the release of House of Leaves, has on numerous occasions called for participation from his readers on certain aspects of the novel. While writing THAT, readers were asked on Danielewski's discussion board to send in their reply to a list of questions pertaining to famous or personal events, their favorite car, animals they respected, and plants that "made them stop", presumably to gather specifics for the book. Also, once the novel was in its final stages, Danielewski called an Open Audition for readers for the audio version of the novel, again on his online forum.
[edit] Dust Jacket
The dust jacket consists of a spine, two front covers, and two inside flaps. The two front covers appear to be identical in all respects save two. First, on one cover, the background image is a green eye flecked in the center with gold, and on the opposite cover, the background image is a gold eye flecked in the center with green. Second, the "O's" on the covers are printed in the color appropriate to the narrator, as described above.
There are three exceptions on the dust jacket to the rule that "O's" are printed in the color of the eye of the associated narrator. Two occur on the dust jacket covers, and they occur on both the gold cover and the green cover. The word "HOUSE" is printed entirely in blue, as it was throughout "House of Leaves," and the word "novel" is printed entirely in purple within the pupil of the eye on each cover. The third exception is the ISBN bar code on the spine; it is printed entirely in black, including zeros and the letter "O" in "fiction."
The covers are identical in the following respects. The pupil of the eye is entirely black save for the author's name, printed in an arc of white block letters around the top of the pupil, the name of the novel, printed in an arc of white block letters (save for the three "O's") around the bottom of the pupil, and the phrase "a novel," printed in purple lower-case lettering in the center of the pupil. Along the bottom of each cover is the phrase "author of "HOUSE OF LEAVES," printed in white lettering save for the word "house" as described above.
The spine of the dust jacket contains five elements. At the top and bottom of the spine there are two identical ISBN bar codes. Between the ISBN bar codes and the center of the spine are two identical (save for the "O's" as described above) circles with "Only Revolutions" in black block letters forming the top of the circle and the author's name forming the bottom of the circle, with the Pantheon logo in the center. In the center of the spine there is a single multicolored circle with two parallel black vertical lines in the center. The multicolored circle itself is green at the top and yellow at the bottom when viewed from the perspective of the green cover being the front. The area of the circle where green turns to yellow is shaded purple.
The inside flaps are identical in the following respects. Both list the price of the book in the US, Canada, and the UK. Both contain identical photographs of the author, below which appear identical author biographies. Both include a note from the publisher instructing the reader to alternate between Sam and Hailey (or "Hailey and Sam," depending on which flap you examine), reading eight pages at a time. Both contain identical credits for the author photograph, jacket design, and jacket photograph, and both contain the Pantheon logo and web addresses for Pantheon's website and the book's website.
The blurbs that appear on the inside flaps differ slightly in character, though the structure of the sentences and paragraphs is nearly identical. In accordance with the general flavor of the two narratives, Sam's blurb (inside the green cover) is slightly darker in its imagery and word choice than Hailey's.
[edit] Binding
The actual bound cover of the book is printed with a full-color still-life photograph of various items lying on a flat surface that appears to be particle board. The photograph is shot from directly above the surface, so no clue to an absolute "up" or "down" can betray the true "front" and "back" covers of the book. The composition of the photograph does seem slightly to favor viewing from Hailey's perspective, that is, with the "front" cover of the book opening to reveal Hailey's narrative.
When viewed from this perspective, the photograph has five main color zones. The top right of the photograph is yellow, dominated by several dozen yellow roses. Other items in the yellow zone include gold-painted leaves and twigs, a vial of yellow liquid with its lid wrapped loosely in a gold ribbon, a chunk of pale yellow mineral of some kind, possibly sulfur, a lock of blonde hair, a sunflower, several yellowish pieces of amber with fossil insect inclusions (visible as black specks), and one item of unknown identity, a translucent cylinder wrapped in gold thread.
The bottom left of the photograph is green, dominated by moss and twenty-four butterflies with wings of pale green tipped with forest green. Other items in the green zone include drying leaves, two green-tinted brown nautilus shells, five brilliantly colored green insects, and a white mouse.
The top left of the photograph is white, dominated by a plant with white buds and a paper-thin substance that resembles birchbark. Other items in the upper white zone include two tiles painted with images of trees and a swatch of a silvery tinsel-like substance.
The bottom right of the photograph is also white, dominated by what looks like snow but is probably white cotton batting. Other items in the lower white zone include the skull of a small cat, two white moths, a pile of small bones (all are the wishbones, or furculae, of birds), a tuft of white fur, and what is either an egg or a spider's egg sac. A large number of straight pins are also visible in this zone.
Between the two zones on the left and the two zones on the right is a red zone, dominated by red seed pods. Other items in the red zone include a bird's nest, two magnolia cones, two brown birds, a pile of red leaves, a pile of several dozen honeybees, a desiccated or mummified grey-green anole (visibly pinned down by straight pins), and two small brown mollusk (snail) shells.
In the lower central portion of the red zone is a brilliant bluebird lying on its back with a green insect on its chest. The bird is clutching a green ribbon flecked with yellow in its claws.
[edit] Concordance
The inside covers of the book are printed with text that is easily readable only when viewed in a mirror. The text is black on both inside covers, while the background is yellow on Hailey's inside cover and green on Sam's inside cover.
Viewed in a mirror with the inside of the book as the "top," the cover appears to be labeled "The Now Here Found Concordance." The words "The Now Here Found" are printed in red ink, including the "O's," and are struck out in black ink, leaving the page apparently titled simply "Concordance." The phrase is surrounded by an ellipse of blank space. Hereafter this orientation will be known as "The Concordance Orientation."
The obvious meaning of the word "Concordance" in this instance is the literary definition, listed in the Dictionary.com unabridged dictionary as follows:
2. an alphabetical index of the principal words of a book, as of the Bible, with a reference to the passage in which each occurs.
However, given the fact that there are two apparently identical Concordances, the word would seem to be a pun, since Dictionary.com also lists the following definition:
4. (in genetic studies) the degree of similarity in a pair of twins with respect to the presence or absence of a particular disease or trait.
The Concordance consists of a complex pattern of circles overlaid upon ellipses overlaid upon circles. In the very center of the concordance are two concentric circles formed by the word "or" repeating many times. Circumscribing those circles are three concentric ellipses, also formed by the word "or." Of all the other circles and ellipses in the Concordance, only two other ellipses and one other circle are concentric with the two center "or" circles. One of the ellipses is an ellipse of words; the longest list in the concordance and the only one whose words are not all printed in the same font size (see below.)
The remaining circle and ellipse that share a center point with the central circles appears to be the letter "O" turned on its side, printed in a slightly darker shade of yellow or green than the background color. The "O" is actually a circle of positive space surrounding an ellipse of negative space.
In the four corners of the Concordance are four distinct elements.
In the top left corner is a circle formed by words listed alphabetically reading clockwise. In the center of the circle is the word "In." This element is right-side up if the book is turned ninety degrees counterclockwise from the Concordance Orientation. The resultant orientation will hereafter be known as the "In Orientation."
In the bottom left corner is a black circle ringed in white. Written in red letters struck out in black (including the "O's",) clockwise along the left edge of the circle is the phrase "Found Once Once There." Along the right edge of the circle is the phrase "Found Once Once Here," otherwise identical to the first phrase. Inside the circle, listed alphabetically from top to bottom and written in white block letters is another alphabetical list of words. This element is right-side up if the book is turned one hundred eighty degrees from the Concordance Orientation. Hereafter this orientation will be known as "The Black Circle Orientation."
In the top left corner of is an arc formed by the phrase "...Ins Increasing Ins Increasing Ins..." In the bottom right corner is the word "Or." These elements are right-side up if the book is turned ninety degrees clockwise from the Concordance Orientation. Hereafter this orientation will be known as "The Or Orientation."
When the reader turns his attention to the text of the concordance, he will find that indeed it is a list of words, but there is no obvious reference to passages in the book in which he might find these words used. Furthermore, different lists are right-side up in different orientations.
Two lists are right-side up in the Concordance Orientation. One list is the long elliptical list that is concentric with the two center "Or" circles. This list contains words dealing with thought, speech, and writing. The last three words of the list are written in a much larger font at the very bottom of the ellipse. These words are "Whole, Word, Write." This list will hereafter be known as The Ablative Ellipse. The second list visible in the Concordance Orientation is a circular list containing words dealing with obfuscation. This list will hereafter be known as The Bamboozle Circle.
Four lists are right-side up in the In Orientation. One is an elliptical list of words dealing with color, light, and vision (hereafter "The Achromatopsia Ellipse.") The second is an elliptical list of words dealing with spirituality and religion (hereafter "The Afterworld Ellipse.") The third is an elliptical list of words dealing with structures and dwellings (hereafter "The Abode Ellipse.") The fourth is a circular list of colors (hereafter "The Azure Ellipse.")
Four lists are right-side up in the Black Circle Orientation. One is an elliptical list of words dealing with relationships and genealogy (hereafter "The Adopt Ellipse.") The second is a circular list of words dealing with the interior of things (hereafter "The Contain Circle.") The third is an elliptical list of words with no apparent relationship except that they all begin with the prefix "in-" (hereafter "The Inalienable Ellipse.") The fourth is a circular list of words dealing with states of mind and parts of the body (hereafter "The Amaze Circle.")
Two lists are right-side up in the Or Orientation. One is an elliptical list of words dealing with mythology, legend, and religion (hereafter "The Abbaddon Ellipse"). The second is an elliptical list of items of technology (hereafter "The 8-Track Ellipse.")
Certain lists are "on top of" other lists and supersede them spatially in the Concordance. These relationships are as follows.
The Ablative Ellipse is superseded by all the other lists; it is "on the bottom."
The Adopt Ellipse supersedes both The 8-Track Ellipse and The Achromatopsia Ellipse.
The Contain Circle supersedes The Abode Ellipse.
The Afterworld Ellipse supersedes The Amaze Circle.
The concentric "Or" ellipses supersede both the Afterworld Ellipse and the Abbaddon Ellipse. The concentric "Or ellipses are the only element that supersedes three other elements, the Afterworld Ellipse, superseding the Amaze Circle, Superseding the Ablative Ellipse.
[edit] External links
- Only Revolutions product page at Amazon.com
- Pantheon Books catalog page
- Official Only Revolutions website
- Exploration Z
| Mark Z. Danielewski |
|---|
| Bibliography |
| Novels: House of Leaves (2000) • Only Revolutions (2006) |
| Novellas: The Whalestoe Letters (2000) |
| Short Stories: The Fifty Year Sword (2005) |
| Audio Recordings |
| Studio albums: Haunted (2000) (appeared on the single Hey Pretty) |
| Audiobooks: Only Revolutions (tbd) (with Alexandria “Alexis” Madden) |
| Filmography |
| Feature films: Derrida (editor, sound mixer) |
