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Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite
When a spacecraft lands at the Washington Fairgrounds, Rosaline Browning discovers gray aliens standing inside her bakery, humming at her display case and the muffins they've been eating in Baker's Dozen by Nathan Lee Trautenberg. News of the landing spreads quickly, drawing Eugene Schumaker, whose railyard borders the Fairgrounds, to witness the visitors for himself. While Rosaline prepares for the Best All-Around Baker Kaleidoscope Award, the aliens return each morning to eat, observe, and gradually assist in her kitchen. At the same time, a fierce rivalry between Eugene and Vice President John Angryberger intensifies after a devastating train explosion linked to competing rail interests. As the federal authorities examine the spacecraft and corporate accusations escalate, Rosaline’s storefront becomes the unexpected center of a widening confrontation that links extraterrestrial visitors, industrial power, and national politics.
Baker's Dozen by Nathan Lee Trautenberg is the extraterrestrial first contact tale I didn't expect to love quite so much, complete with corporate satire and competitive baking, in a work that is audacious in scope and feeling. Trautenberg sets this story in a contemporary America ruled as much by conglomerates as elected officials, which is an excellent backdrop for the small business owner Rosaline, who is exceptionally depicted as a caring protagonist with a steely backbone. The show stealer, however, is the alien named Buttons, who is such a heartening and tender presence. The writing is intelligent and entertaining, and while the sharpest prose usually appears in the dialogue, Trautenberg is a master in the art of description. From Cecil-Lee’s dynamite and reptile tattoos to a fairground gala beneath an illuminated spacecraft, where string lights glint against polished metal, and dignitaries sip champagne, readers who adore speculative fiction that investigates capitalism and throws serious light on political theater will find all this, and more, in Baker's Dozen. Very highly recommended.
