Clarence, MN: Mansfield University

MostlyFiction.com January 2002

Spilling Clarence

"Perhaps the mind's ability to make the past malleable is essential for our survival. Because we've all made horrendous mistakes, suffered trauma, committed troubling acts in our lives. What would happen if we could remember them all, call them up with just a smell or a word? What would it do to us if we remembered our childhoods, our whole lives, every day?"
- From Professor Singer's psychology lecture

The denizens of Clarence, Minnesota are about to experience an event, but they won't actually realize it while it is happening. When the local psychopharmaceutical company catches fire the town is briefly quarantined. For a few hours, there's a desperate hope that this is one of those life-threatening moments that you live to retell; but at the end of the day, they are merely told to go home from wherever they are. And to stay home for one whole day with the reassurance that the smoky air will clear and all will be back to normal. This is essentially a nonevent in a world bent on disaster news. ("The air goes out the collective psychic balloon with a languid hssssss.")

If anything, there is the possibility that a chemical compound called deletrium, a compound normally combined with other psychoactive drugs, has been leaked into the air; and if it has, some, like the students at Mansfield University with personal experience using psychopharmaceutical drugs, can't see how this could be too bad a thing. Shouldn't it just make Clarence a really happy town?

Yet, no one is happy. Some Clarence residents are seeing their doctors without satisfaction of diagnosis, though if they could read the label they'd know their symptoms are similar to deletrium's side effects. There is much crying and weeping at the Sunny Shades Elegant Living Retirement Community. Throughout the town, there are many pauses in conversation as the speaker finds himself remembering the minutest detail that they hadn't thought about in all these many years. And phones are ringing off the hook for travel agents, psychologists, Realtors, continuing education officers and career counselors; people are lining up at Madame Z's Fortunes and Future.

Seasons change. Interior dialogues fill the air with silences as the town attempts to go through its ritual Halloween practices. At night the residents lie in bed, twitching. They find themselves "Awake awake" in the middle of the night but unable to concentrate on reading or television or even a midnight snack. And as the days pass, a general languor starts to settle upon the town.

Then the snow falls and all outside activity comes to a stop. The residents of Clarence are in their beds reliving moments both good and bad. Obviously the experience is different for each person heavily weighted by their age and the severity of their past experiences.

Bennie Singer and Susannah Korbet are two of the people sitting in the Davis and Dean cafe on the day of the "spill" (as so sensationalized by the local TV station even though it is more of a leak). They do not know each other, yet they have much in common, most particularly the need to stay focused on the present. And it's those who protectively reside in the present that are hit the very hardest when the deletrium seeps into their brains and opens the doors of the past.

Spilling Clarence is a surreal picture of what it would be like to remember everything in detail. Through this unusual accident Ursu explores what would happen if we really were able to recall everything we ever knew, saw, or felt at least for a brief period of time. Can there be benefit in remembering childhood cruelty or in reliving a marriage that is long over? How would this serve a soldier who had seen Dachau? And what if you were the one driving the car when your wife, the woman you loved with all your heart, died? Is this what it is like for a person suffering mental illness? And what if you believe a memory is your own, but what you remembered happened to somebody else? Is it as Freud says, that there is a reason for every forgotten word, name or deed?

This is a beautiful and heartwarming novel. Although the idea behind the novel is intriguing, I was skeptical as to how well it would be pulled off. What I discovered is a writer who is not sentimental, but instead playful and introspective, bouncing between the sociology and the psychology of the town and its characters. Yet, the success of the book is not only the stories that she finds to tell (even the animals lose their mind) but also the way she writes about them. She has a unique style that both captures the essence of behavior and conveys its emotion. For example, in the opening chapter, the bookstore customers look out the window and see "creatures covered in yellow billowy plastic." What follows is a paragraph of community inner conversation that crescendos in near panic: "What the--- Yellow guys do not just happen. Yellow guys are not in my life. Yellow guys do not just emerge out of thin air. Yellow guys are in the movies. Yellow guys are not real. Yellow guys are for Chernobyl, not Clarence. Why don't I have a yellow suit? I do not have a yellow suit. Where the hell is my yellow suit? I quite clearly need a yellow suit." And even when she isn't using this technique to portray what is happening to Clarence, she carefully choose her words resulting in some very pregnant sentences, such as "The line between accident and anecdote is a fine one."

Anne Ursu explores just about every aspect related to the study of memory. Therefore its not surprising that one of the recurring themes throughout the novel is that of the way the town smells. Susannah moved to Clarence because of her fiancé Todd but does not find anything she likes about this Podunk town. She being one that likes to "pander to her olfactory glands" is appalled by the smell of the town, which of course is produced by the factory resulting in a "revolting stink that emanates from it and permeates Clarence's every corner." When the factory burns the town no longer smells, at least not the bad smell. ("Breathe in. Separate out the whiffs of crumbling leaves and humbling regret, and there! Do you smell that? That lingering aroma, tinged with bitter almonds and burnt dinner.") If memories are often triggered by smells, if you live in a town that has a perpetual stench, would this limit your ability for spontaneous memories? Perhaps, the release of deletrium in the air combined with the cessation of the odor is why, of the many possible "doors" the deletrium could have opened, memory was the most natural. (Since the author wrote this novel while living in Maine, I can't help but wonder if the paper mills might have influenced this part of the novel.)

In the end, the deletrium does go away, a new factory is built, and the odor does not return. And the reader is left with the notion that just maybe there might be more good than harm done if we could remember more. Maybe, just maybe, we would not be so mean to each other. On the other hand, it may be all the details aren't such a good idea. As for Susannah and Bennie, this spill might be the only way to free them from the everlasting present to find their future. So, what role does the necessity to remember the past influence our ability to choose a future?

Spilling Clarence is a well crafted novel. In fact as I think about it, Ursu has written a really great love story. (Yes, what is love without our memories?) If you like to read for the precision of language as well as its poetry, I highly recommend this novel. Because of the ideas and the many, many characters, I think this would make an excellent choice for a reading group discussion. As for me, this stays in my collection for a future reread so that I can relive it and not ever, ever forget it.

I have to add in one more comment here before I close this review and that is in response to the unkind review posted by Publishers Weekly found at Amazon.com. Since I so enjoyed this novel I have a really hard time understanding why the reviewer didn't. (Note: Lisa Bankoff is Ursu's agent, not the review writer.) On one level it makes my blood boil to think that someone could be so careless as to almost ruin a first time published writer; but then I have to marvel at how the Internet has really leveled the world. With the ability for individuals to provide their own feedback, Ursu will not disappear into oblivion because of one bad "professional" review. Amazon.com gets its share of good and bad press, but there is not doubt they changed the rules of the publishing game when they initiated the ability for everyone to speak up. I am not at all surprised to see that everyone has voted the same way - this novel is worth a solid five out of five stars.

	US Weekly "Best of the Week" "This whimsical, bittersweet debut suggests that the stories of our lives are what save us." The Barnes & Noble Review from Discover Great New Writers "a thought-provoking and timely tale, liberally seasoned with charm and good humor. (Winter 2002 Selection)" The Philadelphia Inqirer "No scalpel can touch the truths Ursu locates" USA Today "Reading their stories is better than eavesdropping on a patient's tale to his analyst." New Orleans Times-Picayune "Ursu does a wonderful job in this imaginative and charming novel." The Library Journal "Ursu is a writer who cares deeply about her characters" Bookreporter.com "this book leaves you chuckling, grinning, tearful, thoughtful, warmed, chilled and, not surprisingly, reminiscent... a brilliant first novel." TheBookHaven.net "an impressive first novel. Anne Ursu has a gift for telling tales. Hopefully, this talent will be utilized for many novels to come." MostlyFiction.com "...the success of the book is not only the stories that she finds to tell but also the way she writes about them." StoryCircle.org "Like many good writers, Ursu draws us into her setting - the fictional town of Clarence, Minnesota - by getting the details just right."
		CLARENCE, MINNESOTA MostlyFiction.com January 2002 Spilling Clarence "Perhaps the mind's ability to make the past malleable is essential for our survival. Because we've all made horrendous mistakes, suffered trauma, committed troubling acts in our lives. What would happen if we could remember them all, call them up with just a smell or a word? What would it do to us if we remembered our childhoods, our whole lives, every day?" - From Professor Singer's psychology lecture The denizens of Clarence, Minnesota are about to experience an event, but they won't actually realize it while it is happening. When the local psychopharmaceutical company catches fire the town is briefly quarantined. For a few hours, there's a desperate hope that this is one of those life-threatening moments that you live to retell; but at the end of the day, they are merely told to go home from wherever they are. And to stay home for one whole day with the reassurance that the smoky air will clear and all will be back to normal. This is essentially a nonevent in a world bent on disaster news. ("The air goes out the collective psychic balloon with a languid hssssss.") If anything, there is the possibility that a chemical compound called deletrium, a compound normally combined with other psychoactive drugs, has been leaked into the air; and if it has, some, like the students at Mansfield University with personal experience using psychopharmaceutical drugs, can't see how this could be too bad a thing. Shouldn't it just make Clarence a really happy town? Yet, no one is happy. Some Clarence residents are seeing their doctors without satisfaction of diagnosis, though if they could read the label they'd know their symptoms are similar to deletrium's side effects. There is much crying and weeping at the Sunny Shades Elegant Living Retirement Community. Throughout the town, there are many pauses in conversation as the speaker finds himself remembering the minutest detail that they hadn't thought about in all these many years. And phones are ringing off the hook for travel agents, psychologists, Realtors, continuing education officers and career counselors; people are lining up at Madame Z's Fortunes and Future. Seasons change. Interior dialogues fill the air with silences as the town attempts to go through its ritual Halloween practices. At night the residents lie in bed, twitching. They find themselves "Awake awake" in the middle of the night but unable to concentrate on reading or television or even a midnight snack. And as the days pass, a general languor starts to settle upon the town. Then the snow falls and all outside activity comes to a stop. The residents of Clarence are in their beds reliving moments both good and bad. Obviously the experience is different for each person heavily weighted by their age and the severity of their past experiences. Bennie Singer and Susannah Korbet are two of the people sitting in the Davis and Dean cafe on the day of the "spill" (as so sensationalized by the local TV station even though it is more of a leak). They do not know each other, yet they have much in common, most particularly the need to stay focused on the present. And it's those who protectively reside in the present that are hit the very hardest when the deletrium seeps into their brains and opens the doors of the past. Spilling Clarence is a surreal picture of what it would be like to remember everything in detail. Through this unusual accident Ursu explores what would happen if we really were able to recall everything we ever knew, saw, or felt at least for a brief period of time. Can there be benefit in remembering childhood cruelty or in reliving a marriage that is long over? How would this serve a soldier who had seen Dachau? And what if you were the one driving the car when your wife, the woman you loved with all your heart, died? Is this what it is like for a person suffering mental illness? And what if you believe a memory is your own, but what you remembered happened to somebody else? Is it as Freud says, that there is a reason for every forgotten word, name or deed? This is a beautiful and heartwarming novel. Although the idea behind the novel is intriguing, I was skeptical as to how well it would be pulled off. What I discovered is a writer who is not sentimental, but instead playful and introspective, bouncing between the sociology and the psychology of the town and its characters. Yet, the success of the book is not only the stories that she finds to tell (even the animals lose their mind) but also the way she writes about them. She has a unique style that both captures the essence of behavior and conveys its emotion. For example, in the opening chapter, the bookstore customers look out the window and see "creatures covered in yellow billowy plastic." What follows is a paragraph of community inner conversation that crescendos in near panic: "What the--- Yellow guys do not just happen. Yellow guys are not in my life. Yellow guys do not just emerge out of thin air. Yellow guys are in the movies. Yellow guys are not real. Yellow guys are for Chernobyl, not Clarence. Why don't I have a yellow suit? I do not have a yellow suit. Where the hell is my yellow suit? I quite clearly need a yellow suit." And even when she isn't using this technique to portray what is happening to Clarence, she carefully choose her words resulting in some very pregnant sentences, such as "The line between accident and anecdote is a fine one." Anne Ursu explores just about every aspect related to the study of memory. Therefore its not surprising that one of the recurring themes throughout the novel is that of the way the town smells. Susannah moved to Clarence because of her fiancé Todd but does not find anything she likes about this Podunk town. She being one that likes to "pander to her olfactory glands" is appalled by the smell of the town, which of course is produced by the factory resulting in a "revolting stink that emanates from it and permeates Clarence's every corner." When the factory burns the town no longer smells, at least not the bad smell. ("Breathe in. Separate out the whiffs of crumbling leaves and humbling regret, and there! Do you smell that? That lingering aroma, tinged with bitter almonds and burnt dinner.") If memories are often triggered by smells, if you live in a town that has a perpetual stench, would this limit your ability for spontaneous memories? Perhaps, the release of deletrium in the air combined with the cessation of the odor is why, of the many possible "doors" the deletrium could have opened, memory was the most natural. (Since the author wrote this novel while living in Maine, I can't help but wonder if the paper mills might have influenced this part of the novel.) In the end, the deletrium does go away, a new factory is built, and the odor does not return. And the reader is left with the notion that just maybe there might be more good than harm done if we could remember more. Maybe, just maybe, we would not be so mean to each other. On the other hand, it may be all the details aren't such a good idea. As for Susannah and Bennie, this spill might be the only way to free them from the everlasting present to find their future. So, what role does the necessity to remember the past influence our ability to choose a future? Spilling Clarence is a well crafted novel. In fact as I think about it, Ursu has written a really great love story. (Yes, what is love without our memories?) If you like to read for the precision of language as well as its poetry, I highly recommend this novel. Because of the ideas and the many, many characters, I think this would make an excellent choice for a reading group discussion. As for me, this stays in my collection for a future reread so that I can relive it and not ever, ever forget it. I have to add in one more comment here before I close this review and that is in response to the unkind review posted by Publishers Weekly found at Amazon.com. Since I so enjoyed this novel I have a really hard time understanding why the reviewer didn't. (Note: Lisa Bankoff is Ursu's agent, not the review writer.) On one level it makes my blood boil to think that someone could be so careless as to almost ruin a first time published writer; but then I have to marvel at how the Internet has really leveled the world. With the ability for individuals to provide their own feedback, Ursu will not disappear into oblivion because of one bad "professional" review. Amazon.com gets its share of good and bad press, but there is not doubt they changed the rules of the publishing game when they initiated the ability for everyone to speak up. I am not at all surprised to see that everyone has voted the same way - this novel is worth a solid five out of five stars.