Barthelme’s one National Book Award winner, however, remained out of print: a 1971 children’s book called “The Slightly Irregular Fire Engine,” illustrated with Barthelme’s own collages of 19th-century engravings. This month, at last, the enterprising Overlook Press (an ironic name in this context) has brought it back. It’s the story of a girl named Alice who discovers a Chinese house in her backyard, in which she has Wonderland-like escapades–which she knows to expect. “I suppose I’d better go inside and see what strange things happen to me there.” (Ah. A kids’ book character who’s read some kids’ books.) We can tell you the fire engine’s a bargain because it’s green, not red, but what it’s doing there is for you to find out.
–David Gates
