Cheerleaders from Gomorrah: Tales from the Lycra Archipelago (1994), a collection of short stories, catches the rootless lives of ski bums, beautiful young people, and hangers-on in Sun Valley. Wickedly funny, its black humor touches on gender conflict, attempts to communicate, and yearning for meaning in a place many of the characters would describe as paradise.
John Rember, who grew up in the Sawtooth Valley, holds an MFA in fiction from the University of Montana and is currently writer-in-residence at Albertson College of Idaho. He has published a book of stories, Coyote in the Mountains and numerous essays, and has worked as a ski patrolman and ranger.
Theme Essay
Read the Tough Paradise essay on Cheerleaders from Gommorah
Book Reviews of John Rember's Cheerleaders from Gommorah
http://www.publicnews.com/issues/829/books.html
Program Notes from Joel Bate, College of Southern Idaho
John Rember:
Native Idahoan who is now on the faculty at Albertson College in Caldwell. Lived in the Wood River Valley for years and served as a ski patrolman, park ranger, bartender and backcountry guide.
Coyote in the Mountains 1989
Cheerleaders from Gomorrah 1994
Gomorrah: An ancient city destroyed, with Sodom, because of its wickedness. Gen 19:24-25
Mammon: A personification of riches as an evil spirit or deity. Luke 16:9 Matt 6:24
Satire: The use of ridicule in exposing, denouncing, or deriding folly, vice, etc. Burlesque, caricature, parody, and travesty. Refers to literary forms which emphasizes the "weakness" more than the "weak" person, and usually implies moral judgement and corrective purpose.
The Stories:
"Cheerleaders from Gomorrah"
Punkin and Angel's quest for men symbolically represented as "Unicorns." Story offers wonderful passages investigating unattainable dreams and the realities we "settle" for.
"Zombie"
Hardesty (symbol of mid-life crisis man) confronts death only to realize he's been living it. The story explores this theme and shows us the "fake world we create" in order to cope. He contemplates his life with his partner Suzanne (who appears in upcoming stories) and their inability to move into the future together.
"Nightwind"
Narrator encounters Ackerman/Sandra. Explores Ackerman's world of get rick quick schemes and Sandra's simple wants and needs in life. Through insightful conversation which takes place in a bar, the narratore and Sandra come up with the insight that it is better to be human and honest than divine. Explores again the theme of how we settle for less than we think we want. Shows two "decent" human beings finding each other among the schemes of the environment.
"Shadowman"
"You" construction (2nd person). Shows the inner terror of a middle-aged real estate salesman. Explores the ideas of "what we really want" and the people we have trapped inside us. The hopes and dreams are personified as a lurker outside the house, begging to get in. Shows what lengths we go to in order to keep these thoughts at bay.
"Post Cowboy Dreams"
A story which explores Sonny, a dude rancher, who used to be a real cowboy. Shows the dreams of his past and how he lost them only to become that which he once despised. Wonderful bar banter between a bartender and Jimmy (a customer and friend of Sonny). Plot in the present involves Janice and Kim, two stewardesses, who help to bring the theme of this story to the forefront. The theme again explores the stories we tell ourselves to validate our existence. How can we lead authentic lives? Sets up the myths we create (plots) in order to live in the world we create.
"Son of a Banshee"
Mongo is a reformed alcoholic who is trying to cope with his new life of sobriety and reality. Klink, is is friend who smokes pot and lives through the TV. Together they keep each other grounded. The story shows us these two ways of living in the world and complicates matters with the emergence of Kiki, a stray who Mongo has taken in. It shows us his care and ability to move outside himself. It proves his humanity and shows us what is sacred about life.
"Endorphin Madness"
Godfrey--character who runs from life. And in his running, in his mind, he has found life through the worship of his body. Rescued from a life of drugs and alcohol by a waitress named LaVicka, Godfrey finds his new addiction. Escapes in the form of a new reality, or possibly the same one in a different form.
"There's a Wreck on the Top of Mount Mammon"
Bad dreams in the mind of the ancient ski patrolman that cause a contemplation of life's existence. The ancient ski patrolman investigates how relationships and realities change with age. The climax highlights this conflict of confronting a new state of life and "skiing through it".
"Idaho Man"
Strange story of the collection. Very plot driven. Story revolves around Chase (former university professor of paleontology) and McShane (local mortician). Together they explore the ramifications of life and death in the grand scheme of things. After finding a fossilized man, the story reaches the tragic climax. Story explores the world of McShane who loses a sense of reality because he see it too vividly; balanced by Chase's wanting to blend into the fabric of a life which doesn't have to think.
"M.I.A."
Bizarre plot driven story of dreams and partial realities. Fenwick and Annie go for an innocent weekend at a local dude ranch only to confront themselves and the realities of their lives. The climax involves a former POW who speaks to us about that which is truly real.
"Flowering"
Annie, LaVicka, Suzanne, and Hardesty all show up again in the final story of the compilation. It explores the games of relationships and the realities (both real and imagined) that people create. Annie see her true self by living in a relationship that requires nothing. Ironic that she accepts the trap at the end. Wonderful sense of introspection and insight.
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