In his introduction to FUBAR, Weston Ochse comments, "This collection you're holding in your hands or listening to, for all intents and purposes, it is me."
This assemblage of short fiction, a novella, and essays puts Ochse's 30 years of military experience to good use. The adage, "Write what you know," is proven here, whether it's a piece on the rigors of basic training or fighting monsters from a rift in the desert of Arizona, each story rings with the sound of truth.
Although, nearly all of the tales in this collection have appeared elsewhere, only the most hardcore Weston Ochse fan is likely to have read them all. Personally, I had only read one before.
Mixed with his essays on the military experience are some excellent pieces of fiction. For me, one of the most enjoyable was "When I Knew Baseball." A slick combination of Lovecraftian horror and what it means to me a soldier. "Family Man," about a Vietnam POW of twenty years is a powerful story of survival. "The Last Kobyashi Maru" was just great. Powerful, sad, and still entertaining.
Nearly all of the fiction is spot on and I did enjoy the insights provided by the essays sprinkled throughout the collection and one more thing I really liked was the author's notes after each piece. I love seeing how a story comes together.
FUBAR: A Collection of War Stories is available now, in a variety of formats, from Cohesion Press who have made a name for themselves with their SNAFU series of Military Horror anthologies. Be sure to check those out, too.
Recommended.
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