The Comeback Kid

John Carter of Mars (by Michael Whelan), pretending to be Oscar of Oscarville

In 1972, when I was eight, I wrote a series of stories (or four “books” – 186 pages’ worth, though typed up and without the original drawings they come to a mere 25 pages total) collectively titled Oscar of Oscarville, about an eight-year-old boy who flew around on the back of an enormous hummingbird while whacking off the heads of monsters with his enchanted sword, in a magical land whose chief characteristic seemed to be the elicitation of various sorts of gigantism in everything from bats and butterflies to houses and hair tonic. (I then had no idea that there were actual places named Oscarville – in Alaska and Georgia, for example.) This was my magnum opus up to that point.

I hadn’t seen the Oscarville stories since 1981 and had feared they were lost, until I rediscovered them going through old boxes last week. As a break from more pressing but less enjoyable work, I’ve transcribed Oscar’s adventures and self-indulgently put them online. Lo, he is risen!

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6 Responses to The Comeback Kid

  1. Jonathan M. F. Catalán August 16, 2010 at 12:00 pm #

    Did you draw the featured picture? If so, that is really good!

  2. MagnusGoddmunsson August 17, 2010 at 12:48 pm #

    Thanks for this, fantastic literature is my favourite type of reading, after your articles, of course!

  3. pfenny August 17, 2010 at 2:38 pm #

    the story is really good! that was charming. you should scan the original artwork. and then think about becoming a children’s book author in your spare time.

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