Dreaming Vienna

<p><em>Dreaming Vienna </em>begins with a quote from Missouri's Mark Twain on how novels carry their authors away and a preface from Conley listing 36 kinds of dreams discussed by Vienna's Sigmund Freud. These openers foreground a tension between objective and subjective realities. How exactly does one believe a novel or interpret a dream? And what exactly does Vienna symbolize especially for Americans? In <em>Dreaming Vienna </em>subjective reactions generally prevail over conventional expectations. Conley is especially adept at painting the shadows and fogs which surround his characters creating moments of confusion chaos despondency acceptance and wisdom. </p><p>Thus Felix Kulpa (Happy Fault in Latin) struggles to find meaning in St. Louis MO first in his family's Catholicism then in philosophical systems and finally in Vienna where in a joyous explosion of passionate folly he dies. Kulpa's experiences resonate. His cousin Victor barely escapes sexual abuse by a priest but carries scars from Missouri to Vienna where he researches the priesthood. The very word research changes meaning as Viennese students quarrel over versions of stories or mock pretentious mentors. </p><p>There's a carnival feel to large sections of<em> Dreaming Vienna</em> as characters pass near one another without quite meeting--leaving traces overlapping moods fragrances fragments memories of bickering brothers a guilt-ridden veteran snow-covered children and orange-clad streetcleaners. To tour guides Vienna may symbolize cultural depth artistic aspiration and human achievement but for Conley those interpretations are radically incomplete. Only the gold-tipped cane of the mysterious Herr Winklemann can offer reliable direction; only rugs handmade by a one-armed feminist can keep readers fully warm.</p><p><br></p>