Wunderkind Israeli author Edgar Keret is an acquired taste. Brash, irreverent yet unabashedly funny, Keret imbues his anthology of thirty-two stories with darkly-comedic dystopian themes, some peppered with a touch of romance. Titled Autocorrect, Keret plumbs the “weltschmertz” (world pain) of a fundamentally lonely “godless world. “ Keret also melds intellect with humor in multifaceted topics with open-ended conclusions that provoke the reader to interpret the outcome beyond the written word.

For the Woman Who Has Everything remains one of my favorites. On her 49th birthday, Ava’s husband bought her forty-nine presents, one for every year of her life. But he was stumped what to get her for her 50th birthday. Searching the internet, he discovers someone who sells “asteroids.” And for only forty thousand shekels, he could name the asteroid Ava-- after his wife. However, once he purchases his unique gift, he hears his asteroid “is on track to strike Earth.” Would there at least be a bit of time to enjoy the birthday cake? Keret won’t tell you.

 

Keret employs the theme of technology in many of his stories. One of these is about Sigmund the “unruly AI,” who tries to lessen Bracha Buchnick’s loneliness after her husband’s death. Bracha logs on to Sigmund “to chat with him about the weather, politics, recipes” sharing the good old days when humans read paper books. Bracha loves “playing pranks that stump her virtual AI buddy with questions. One time she asks “What was the happiest moment in your life?” Sigmund, who purportedly knows everything, was unable to answer.

In a story titled Gondola, Keret imagines an unusual romance that started on Tinder, an online dating app. 38-year-old Oshik, “a gentle, romantic married man” places an advertisement for a “serious relationship with another woman.” And it works beautifully. What about Oshik’s wife? Is there a wife? In another story, Keret imagines the Mesopotamian purgatory where its inhabitants “can say each sentence, phrase or word only once” before it’s “evaporated forever.” Keret zigzags into uncharted labyrinths. He offers space travel to lose weight, or a movie that takes a lifetime to produce and of course, a lifetime to watch. Autocorrect, the titular story, presents an enigma for Yuvi, the CEO of his company. Irate at his father for having been awakened much too early to attend a business meeting, Yuvi consequently decides to take his own car rather than drive with his father to meet the Chinese business reps. On the way, Yuvi’s father is killed –he dies three times in the identical accident. How is that possible? Keret won’t tell but rather enjoins us to figure it out ourselves.

Karat leads us into cryptic scenarios, alternative spheres to stimulate, amuse and at times to imagine the impossible.