Woodstock Rising [Paperback]

One has to wonder what Tom Wayman was thinking when he cast himself as the protagonist in his epic novel set in the late 1960s in southern California. That he would do so smacks of chutzpah. I must admit the question dogged me through the first part of the story. For awhile I wondered what the author had been smoking. Fortunately, the issue soon resolved itself.

Be forewarned: Wayman's novel is chock full of surprises. Here is the first: the book is actually a hybrid novel-memoir. I discerned at least three separate threads. The story begins when a young graduate student (Wayman) returns from his summer vacation in the frozen north (Wayman is Canadian) to complete the final year of work on his MA thesis at UC Irvine. The Viet Nam War is heating up, and with it the anti-war movement. (In those days we were not wise enough to call ourselves the peace movement.) Woodstock has just happened, making rock history, and Wayman and friends debate whether a new counter culture has emerged, i.e., Woodstock Nation, capable of challenging imperial America with a new vision for a better world.

The plot thickens when the hipsters break into a decommissioned US Army missile silo. The hipster group includes two army vets with nerd-like techie skills and, believe it or not, they actually manage to launch the missile into orbit, minus the nuclear payload. In its place the hipsters load a radio transmitter which broadcasts rock `n roll music to the whole world, thus announcing the rise of the Woodstock Nation. This is heady stuff -- though possibly insane.

But as improbable as this may sound, get a grip because you ain't heard nothing yet. The hipsters promptly abscond with the nuclear warhead, then park it in a garage for safe keeping. Ho hum.

The story also unfolds as a personal memoir, and on this level it works quite well. Wayman faithfully recounts the many twists and turns of the the anti-war movement. Let us remember: 1969 was the time of the Days of Rage, when the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) broke up into at least three factions, one of which, the Weathermen, rampaged through the streets of Chicago, busting Bank of America windows and fighting cops.

The author was deeply involved in the political events he describes, and on this level the story delivers a useful retrospective. Although I had forgotten much of this fractious history, I do clearly recall being put off by some of the crazy arguments. One especially idiotic one was that white radicals should surrender the leadership of the anti-war movement to the Black Panthers, because the panthers were the true vanguard. Give me a break.

If the anti-war movement self-destructed it was because of this type of dumb and dumber logic. Nonetheless, it is important to take stock, and by accurately presenting this history Wayman does the no less moribund peace movement of our present-day an important service. I will have more to say about this.

The third thread is the funny bone. Here, Wayman also delivers. For awhile I thought I was reading the Mouse that Roared, or maybe the far side of Play it Again Sam. Wayman's playful antics with the gentler sex are at times hilariously funny. This is vintage stuff, and not to be missed. At this stage I also saw the light. I finally understood why the author cast himself as the protagonist. To wit: for the same reason that Woody played Woody in Play it Again Sam. Wayman could not think of anyone as suitable for the role! (No one was cracked enough.)

Wayman's writing style is not flashy but he gets the job done. From a literary standpoint, however, the book is too damn long. Then again, cutting fifty pages might have weakened the novel-as-memoir. It's the problem with hybrids. The author evidently chose to err on the side of history.

At times, he buries us with detail that can be tedious. But even this sometimes works in a strange way. Some of the humor is in the protagonist (Wayman)'s own fastidious nature. Think Parsifal. Credit the author for being unsparing. He rarely misses an opportunity to poke fun at himself.

The novel is billed as a black comedy. I agree. Nor will I ruin it for the reader by giving away the dark ending. Therein lies the final surprise. Suffice to say: I had no idea Wayman is so pessimistic.

We have come a long way since 1969. Yes, but in the end it seems nothing has changed. After Viet Nam, the US military moved to a volunteer army/air force/navy, in the process eliminating one of the main engines of dissent: the draft. In recent years, we also witnessed the near-total victory of the corporate media over the truth. Meanwhile, the US descended into a swamp of corruption and evil. We live in the age of Orwell. Things get worse.

The latest outrage occurred in January 2009: Israel's genocidal attacks on the unarmed population of Gaza. This was followed by the collapse of the US peace movement. And why? Because of moral decrepitude, i.e., the shameful inability of liberals (and even many progressives) to face the ugly truth about Zionism. As I write, the powers-that-be are gathering, again, to deliver a much wider war, probably involving Iran, a war that could spark Armageddon. And all to make the world safe for Wall Street.

It never ends. But, at least, Wayman has arrived. We are no longer waiting...

Imagine you're a Canadian author who has just completed your first novel, a work of historical fiction set in 1969 in the San Francisco Bay Area. A young Canadian girl heads to California at a time when rebellion, political upheaval, and rampant social change are in the air. Hippies, activists, rock & roll, and the war in Vietnam... Now imagine you suddenly discover that another Canadian author has just published a book set in Southern California in 1969. His story follows a young Canadian man through a similar terrain and backdrop to the one just mentioned. What are the odds? you would ask yourself. Well, since I am aforesaid author, I was, naturally, most interested to check out Tom Wayman's new novel, Woodstock Rising. Comparisons aside, the title by itself was enough to pique my curiosity.

Woodstock Rising is, in fact, a tale of intrigue and what-ifs that strategically blends the headline news of the day with skillfully constructed fiction. Through humor and thoughtful debate, Wayman's characters - mostly students - explore the complexities of trying to reconcile career goals and wavering personal principles with peer pressure and the ever-powerful desire to appear hip. While Wayman's narrative might border on detail overload at times, if you're fond of nostalgia (as I am), that level of nuance is what lends the story its ring of authenticity. His warts-and-all portrayal of the inner struggles of SDS (Students for a Democratic Society), for example, reminds us that for those who truly dreamed of changing the world, these were anything but simpler times. The author even manages to make a fanciful plotline involving a stolen nuclear warhead sound more than halfway plausible.

An eerie aspect to the story's turbulent timeline is its resemblance to a more recent chapter in US history. The country is embroiled in an unpopular war overseas. The Republican governor of California is a washed up actor. The White House is home to a paranoid, fear monger of a president who is voted in for two terms, at the end of which, the country is more polarized than ever. ...Sound familiar?

For an educational trip back into yesteryear, Woodstock Rising is a fun read and should be right up your alley.

Tanya Coad
Author of Love Haight `69
Love Haight '69: A Novel

› Go to Amazon U.S. to see both reviews  5.0 out of 5 stars