Boris Vian was a jack of all trades, although unfortunately his name was Boris and "Boris of all trades" never took off as a turn of phrase. Nevertheless, Vian was a great songwriter, playwright, singer, jazz critic, and, of course, novelist. Vian's 1947 novel Autumn in Peking (L'Automne à Pékin) is perhaps Vian's most slapstick work, with an added amount of despair in its exotic recipe for a violent cocktail drink.

The story takes place in the imaginary desert called Exopotamie where all the leading characters take part in the building of a train station with tracks that go nowhere. Houses and buildings are destroyed to build this unnecessary structure - and in Vian's world, waste not, make not.

In Alistair Rolls' pioneering study of Vian's novels, "The Flight of the Angels," he expresses that Exopotamie is a thinly disguised version of Paris, where after the war, the city started changing its previous centuries of architecture to something more modern. Yes, something dull to take the place of what was exciting and mysterious.

Vian, in a mixture of great humor and an unequal amount of disgust, introduces various 'eccentric' characters in this 'desert' adventure, such as Anne and Angel who are best friends; and Rochelle who is in love and sleeps with Anne, while Angel is madly in love with her. Besides the trio, there is also Doctor Mangemanche; the archeologist Athanagore Porphyroginite, his aide, Cuivre; and Pipo - all of them in a locality similar to Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, where there is a tinge of darkness and anything is possible, except for happiness.

Glass Soup is a mesmerizing tale by Jonathan Carroll that blends the ordinary with the extraordinary. Enter a world where the realm of the dead is crafted from the dreams—and nightmares—of the living. Imagine a place where octopuses drive buses and God is a polar bear.

Vincent Ettrich and his lover, Isabelle Neukor, have previously crossed from life to death and back again. Now, Isabelle carries a child with a special destiny, potentially capable of restoring the ever-changing mosaic of reality. But lurking around are the agents of Chaos, who aim to lure her back to the land of the dead and trap her there forever.

This novel is an exquisite creation from an author known for his unique storytelling. The narrative is a surreal adventure that explores themes of life, death, love, and the cosmic battle between order and chaos. As Vincent and Isabelle navigate between life and the dreamlike afterlife, they encounter bizarre and memorable characters, each playing a role in the unfolding cosmic drama.

The stakes are high, and the boundary between dreams and reality becomes increasingly fragile. Will they protect their child from the forces of chaos? Discover the captivating journey in Glass Soup.