I look at the picture of the author in the back of the book and have internal dialogue.

"I’ve really enjoyed the time we’ve spent together, but (insert dramatic pause), I’ve, well, this is hard to say, but I’ve met someone else. Where? At the library. She was between Agnes Repplier and Georgia Jo Ressmeyer. What? No. No, she’s not prettier than you are. OK, her spine is smaller than yours. And she’s quite a lot younger. Well, let’s be realistic, who’s not younger than you are since you’ve been dead for 47 years. Ok, ok, that wasn’t nice to say."

And, there are books that I devour, and have this internal dialogue while looking at the author’s picture.

"Wow, that was nice. I need a cigarette. Of course I’ll cuddle with you. Here, let me rub your spine with some oil. No, I’m not saying that your spine is cracking, I just want to do something nice for you after our great six hours together. I usually don’t have that much stamina, but you really inspired me to go for the long hall."

That, my literary fiends, is the internal dialogue I had with Steffen Postaer.

by

Steffan Postaer

"It’s not Armageddon. There are no meteorites. No evil aliens. No warfare of any kind. But no one is being born. What would the world be like if people could not have babies anymore? Just what would the last generation do?"

"It’s not the end of the world, just the end of us."

I love the spiritual, religious/anti-religious theme of this book. It’s a very internal reading. The characters are realistic and reading most of their stories I kept thinking, "Yeah, that’s probably what I would be doing".

Central to all the stories is a cult that has sprung up in Utah called Congress; headed by the never ending sperm making machine of a man, Matthew.  He lures women to him in the promise that he is the chosen one to restart the cycle of birth again with his seed.

I was reading THE LAST GENERATION in line at the grocery store and trying to explain the premise to the cashier who asked me about it, and he gave me a look that read, "I had to go and ask the guy reading a cultish book". Quite funny.

Side note, the author is also the brainchild of Altoid’s "Curiously Strong" ad campaign.

It’s better to have loved and lost than to not love at all, or whatever that quote is. So, go out and be a book slut. Spread your mind wide open and let the words penetrate you.

Remember, most authors are pretty accessible and easy to locate, so if you read a book you like, write the author a little note, send a copy of another book you enjoyed or a gift certificate to a store. Don’t send nude photos of yourself. I learned the hard way. How was I to know she was that young, she sounded so mature in her book?

Literary love,

Tony DuShane