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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN num: 9780345466372
ISBN number: 0345466373
Label: Del Rey
Manufacturer: Del Rey
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 416
Printing Date: January 30, 2007
Publishing house: Del Rey
Release Date: January 30, 2007
Sale Popularity Level: 116097
Studio: Del Rey
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“An outlandish, outrageous tour de force by the most innovative prose stylist in the field.”
–Robert J. Sawyer, author of Hominids
They’re Earth’s mightiest superteam–and dysfunctional as hell.
OMNIPOTENT MAN–a body with the density of steel, and a brain to match
THE FLYING SQUIRREL–aging playboy industrialist by day, avenging krypto-fascist by night
IRON LASS–mythology’s greatest warrior–but the world might be safer if she had a husband
X-MAN–formerly of the League of Angry Blackmen . . . but not formerly enough
THE BROTHERFLY–radioactively fly
POWER GRRRL–perpetually deciding between fighting crime or promoting her latest album, clothing line, or sex scandal
Having finally defeated all archenemies, the members of the Fantastic Order of Justice are reduced to engaging in toxic office politics that could very well lead to a superpowered civil war. Only one woman can save them from themselves: Dr. Eva Brain-Silverman, aka Dr. Brain, the world’s leading therapist for the extraordinarily abled.
“Faust has pretty much invented his own genre. He’s totally original, full of surprises.”
–Richard K. Morgan, author of Altered Carbon
“Samuel Delany, Harlan Ellison, and Ishmael Reed all rolled into one. Faust’s writing is biting, insightful, and hugely entertaining.”
–Ernest Dickerson, director
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
A satire, looking at superheroes and the aggrandisement of media shrinks, as well, presumably.
Faust seems to have some background in the comics from which these come, and the book certainly owes a debt to the Giffen and DeMatteis Justice League along with Robert Mayer's Superfolks novel.
In fact, there's an explicit nod to the former in the form of L-Raunzenu (i.e. L-Ron).
The dysfunctional superteam undergoing therapy has analogues of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, and... Dazzler. Yes, that is right. One of the characters is a graduate of the 'Alison Blair Institute for Advanced Disco Studies'. Now your average novelist wouldn't get that, certainly.
He's taken the character everyone has heard of and are the most famous (and even naming one X-Man, to cover the other famous group, although the guy in question is more Malcom X, not a mutant man from the future).
So for those familiar with the form, a lot of this will be a little on the tedious side. So will the psychological technobabble inbetween the story. Although part of the author's point may be that it IS supposed to be annoying.
The main plot deals with the death of the leader of the Fantastic Justice group - a man that appears to have been somewhere between Captain Marvel and Dr Fate, Egyptian style. Very powerful, together, and not in need of high profile shrinks. Hence now dead.
It appears that it is likely murder, and conspiracies within their organisation erupt cause conflict to erupt.
3.5 out of 5
Rated by buyers 
-
... I was hooked. I was hooked from the moment I started Coyote Kings of the Space Age Bachelour Pad, Minister Faust's previous work, and I was hooked right from the get-go on this one.
There's so much here, so many layers that it boggles the mind. From the superficial Dr. Eva Brain-Silverman to the deeply misunderstood X-Man to the slick and sly Brotherfly, this book pops with flavour, well-developed characters, and a sense of history that's overwhelming. These characters have incredible superpowers, but the most interesting is the X-Man's logogenic powers, I find. He can turn words into anything; is that not what writing creatively is about? It would almost seem that the X-Man may be a bit of the writer himself in a subtle way.
The Flying Squirrel is the crustiest old superhero on the face of the planet; an aging Bruce Wayne parody that is seriously disillusioned with the world. Omnipotent Man is the Superman parody that simply had to be done; he's Superman's hick cousin with a serious problem. Power Grrl is the new girl's idol; smart, bleach-headed blonde with amazing pipes and a HEAT Ray that makes clones of herself, in itself a critique. The Brotherfly is what Spider-man could have become had he been grey and bitten by a fly instead of a spider. Iron Lass is the Nordic Wonder Woman, a Valkyrie and the old guard of feminism.
I won't say much more than this; read it. Support this fantastic author and hope that he continues writing to this calibre and wit.
Rated by buyers -
From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain may be the best superhero deconstruction since Alan Moore's seminal Watchmen in the 80's. The book is steeped in comic book lore and parodies of iconic heroes. The more you know about the Marvel and DC superhero canons, the more you will get the dozens of references and asides that pop up throughout the book. Faust's very first novel, The Coyote Kings of the Space Age Bachelour Pad, was a sci-fi romp featuring a dozen different first-person narrators, all quite distinct in their deliveries. Dr. Brain only has one narrator, the titular psychiatrist. The novel is presented as a superhero self-help book written by Dr. Eva Brain-Silverman. Dr. Brain has been a psychiatrist specializing in superheroes for two decades, and this is her 10th book on the subject.
The novel opens rather slowly, with an action scene that introduces the main heroes in the midst of a crisis. They argue amongst themselves as they try to stop a giant ferris wheel from crushing the city of Los Ditkos. Then the simulation ends and we discover that these six members of the F*O*O*J (Fantastic Order of Justice) have been assigned to therapy with Dr. Brain, under threat of being kicked out of the organization if they don't attend. The six heroes include Power Grrrl, a vapid lesbian pop star with amazing singing powers and the ability to temporarily change any person or group of people into clones of herself. The Brotherfly is basically Spider-Man as a really annoying guy who constantly makes terrible self-congratulatory jokes and invents his own catchphrases. X-Man is a militant, paranoid grey man who believes everything is some sort of conspiracy to keep minorities down. He has the power to make solid shadows into nearly any form he chooses. And there's the three biggies. Omnipotent Man is Superman, with the farmboy roots highly exaggerated, turning him into a complete dimbulb. Iron Lass is Wonder Woman as an Asgardian Valkyrie. And the Flying Squirrel is Batman at age 70; basically he's the Frank Miller incarnation of the character from The Dark Knight Returns.
The novel doesn't really get going until the very first major event occurs. Legendary hero The Hawk King, an ancient Egyptian demi-god who founded the F*O*O*J during World War II, is found dead in his blue pyramid. The death is ruled to be from natural causes, but the event rocks the world and our heroes. X-Man, of course, suspects foul play, alhough he's shouted down by the rest of the group. At this point, Dr. Brain begins to take individual characters aside, and throughout the novel, she presses each character, trying to get them to reveal personal details about themselves. She's both an annoyance to the characters and very good at her job, as they eventually (of course) break down and personal psychoses are probed.
The psychiatric viewpoint is great from a deconstruction standpoint, as the book digs deep, really deep, into each one of these characters. Eventually, most of their histories and personal secrets and motivations are revealed. The downside of using Dr. Brain as a narrator from a reader's standpoint is that she isn't much of a character herself. Her psychobabble is enertaining for a while, but it gets a little old. Faust's very first novel featured two immensely likeable protagonists, and that aspect is definitely missing from Dr. Brain. Fortunately, the story itself takes off after the Hawk King's death, and there's some well-placed foreshadowing early on letting us know that even bigger events are coming.
Faust manages to strike a nice balance between parody and psychiatry. The various villains mentioned in the book are ridiculous-sounding, bearing more than a passing resemblance to the villains of Ben Edlund's The Tick. Many of the other heroes mentioned are equally ridiculous, or clever parodies themselves. The writing and dialogue are often hilarious, as the characters snipe and argue with each other and Dr. Brain. But when it comes to delving into the backgrounds and motivations of these hero archetypes, Faust pulls no punches. From the Flying Squirrel's broken relationship with his former child ward and sidekick, Chip Monk, to Omnipotent Man's weakness to Argonium (Flying Squirrel- "Brilliant bit of logic, there, by the way, being allergic to his entire home planet."), to Iron Lass's difficulties with interpersonal relationships, Dr. Brain gets her answers.
From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain is presented by Del Rey/Ballantine Books as a wild farce, but there's much more substance to the novel than that. I highly, highly recommend it, especially to comic book fans, as they will enjoy the various passing references that pepper the book. I particularly enjoyed the "Alison Blair Institute for Advanced Disco Studies" and Brotherfly's wholly inappropriate use of the song "The Roof is on Fire" after an explosion. But the nice thing about the book is that the more subtle references are incidental. ... Read More
Rated by buyers -
I picked up a copy of From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain thinking that I was getting a Super Hero satire that would be a bit of fun light reading. And on that level, Minister Faust does not disappoint. His is the kind of humour produced by artists with a real love of the genera they are satirizing. This book will deliver a rich reward for anyone who can remember a time when they had a warm place in their hearts for the pulp adventures of costumed heroes.
Beyond that, however, From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain is a very first rate modern novel. In what turns out to be a surprisingly ambitious work, Minister Faust delves into the subjects of perspective, personal identity, politics, and power. The multiple characters in this work prove to be unreliable narrators of the best type. Each of them has a unique voice, and speaks, as well as acts, as a distinct and fully developed character. All of characters in this novel are in possession of some bits of truth, as well as plenty of mistaken ideas, regarding the events that unfold during the course of the story. Not all of them, however, have full acess to that knowledge when the novel begins. Minister Faust uses the process of examination that the characters undergo as a device to explore the often harsh cost of trying to untangle the truth from lies, both in others and in ourselves.
It should be noted that the caliber of the writing in this work is superb. From the personal perspective of the reviewer, one of the greatest attributes of this book is that the author remains fully consistent in his technique. Unlike many books written in the manner of this one, the author does not step in at the end and tell the reader directly what is really going on. By not succumbing to the desire to make as sure as possible that the reader fully gets the points he is trying to make, the overall artistic achievement is much greater. Indeed, the reader ends the book with a much greater understanding of the events that occur than any of the characters in the book.
In summery, From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain, is a superb read, well worth the effort. A rare pleasure, Minster Faust has quite a bit to say on quite a large number of subjects. He says them not only well, and in and interesting manner, but with quite a bit of humor. Definitely a worthwhile addition to anyone's reading list.
Rated by buyers -
From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain is a tough book to characterize. I tried to tell my wife why I was so excited to find out what's happening in the novel, which ended up being an hour long explanation of the interaction of the main characters. In a way, it reminds me of Joss Whedon's Firefly, but not in an obvious way. Firefly had nine main characters, and each of them saw the world in a different way. In "From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain", each of the main characters (including the unreliable narrator, Dr. Brain) has a distinctly different world-view, and they each have a past that greatly influences how they act in the present. "From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain" allows us to gradually peel the layers of overdeveloped personality to find the crucial events that shaped these compelling characters. What's better is that Minister Faust was also able to weave in an allegorical plot that speaks very strongly about power, money, and the sausage factory that is our governmental agencies.
Another part of this book that I greatly enjoyed was Faust's use of simile and metaphor in the descriptive texts in this book. I'd love to quote them, but I don't have the book in front of me.
Dr Brain is equal parts pop psychologist and real psychologist in this book. At times, she employed excellent counseling techniques that could easily be utilized by any practicing psychologist. Other times, she falls vicitim to the oversimplification and shameless self-promotion that are common to any self-help book on the shelf in your local bookstore. I appreciated this, as I do have an undergraduate psychology degree, but have chosen not to enter the strange world of multiple-degree psychobabble and theory making.
In short, buy this book if you want to think, if you want to laugh, and if you want to grow.
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