We think of science fiction as being populated by automatons “living” in the near or distant future. That’s exactly why Australian novelist Max Barry’s works aren’t science fiction (although fans of the genre will likely enjoy them).
Some might argue they are capitalist fact. In his second and third novels, “Jennifer Government” and “Company” -- now out in paperback -- Barry creates (in the former) a world where corporations rule the world -- along with corporations like “government” -- and a company (in the latter) that doesn’t sell anything. They’re sort of “The Office” or “Office Space” on steroids.
The unifying theme? Corporate life is tedious, dull and even worse, torturous and soul destroying, and corporations are basically evil, putting money above all else. While one could argue that he takes these premises to exaggerated heights, it wouldn’t be an easy argument to make.
As he prepares to embark this weekend on a U.S. tour that includes a visit to Milwaukee, we asked Barry -- who garnered a lot of inspiration for his works during two and a half years at Hewlett-Packard -- about his books.
OMC: Having read “Company” first and now going back to “Jennifer Government,” I definitely see a recurring theme in your work, that of corporations gone berserk. Why does this idea so effectively fuel your creativity?
MB: It's not that I think they've gone berserk, exactly, but that their natural state is pretty evil. Corporations have a lot of reality gaps, which makes them interesting to write about -- for example, there's a gap between what corporations would like to employ -- robots, basically -- and what they do employ -- people.
OMC: You had a lot of experience in the corporate world, didn’t you? Do those years continue to inspire you to write?
MB: I only did the corporate thing for two and a half years, but I was a sales rep and got to visit a lot of other company workplaces. And I've always been fascinated with corporations. I've been collecting stories about workplaces for the last 10 years, trying to figure out how to get them into a novel.
OMC: While “Jennifer Government” has a bit of a futuristic sci-fi feel, “Company” feels of the moment, like this could be going on today. Are you trying to tell us something?
MB: I really hope that anyone who's worked for a big company finds a lot in this book that feels very familiar. It's not a novel about an individual company; it's about all of them.
OMC: Both books seem ripe for screenplays. Is there anything happening in that arena?
MB: “Company” is in development with Universal; it's early days but there are great people working on it, so hopefully one day it'll make it.
OMC: Which writers inspire you?
MB: I don't know if writers inspire me so much... I admire many writers, but I get inspired by situations. Some of my current favorite writers are Paul Neilan, Neal Stephenson and Joss Whedon.
OMC: I read somewhere that you have eight novels written, but only three published. Are the others coming soon or did you jettison them?
MB: I have done the world a favor by preventing the others from escaping my hard drive.
OMC: Are you writing number nine yet? Can you tell us anything about it?
MB: Actually, number eight is the next one. But I haven't shown it to my editor yet, and if I tell you about it before him, he'll kill me.
OMC: Any words of wisdom for your readers; anything they should be careful about when they get to the office in the morning?
MB: I think so long as you assume that everyone and everything around you is constantly trying to destroy anything that is good or valuable about you, you'll be fine.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
