Across her various reincarnations, Pearly Gates hasn’t been perfect. That’s why, in the heavenly hierarchy of the cosmos, she’s a kind of spiritual waste management professional. When the opportunity arises to try out her dream job—spiritual guide to humans on Earth—she can’t pass it up. But it quickly proves to be more complex than she anticipated, and, despite Pearly’s knowledge and supernatural abilities, the guidance is hardly one-sided.
Bonnie Solomon’s PEARLY GATES isn’t fundamentally groundbreaking. Its vision of the cosmos as a vast celestial bureaucracy (complete with hot-tempered bosses, crummy assignments, and burnout) is funny, but not unprecedented; its story structure (the older, supposedly wiser spirit learns a meaningful lesson or two from working to “help” the mere mortals) is sweet, but also predictable. However, the text soars on its humor, sheer charm, and big heart. The comedy is particularly effective, from wise-cracking one-liners (“Sector 74 is an infamous drop-off for the spiritually toxic—politicians, talent agents, serial killers, mimes”) to vivid descriptive language (an office decorated “like the Wild West had a midlife crisis, went on a bender, and threw up all over the room”) to the absurdist bureaucracy of the cosmos (“Submit self-evaluations by messenger Pegasus at the end of each universe”). Even when the plot is taking relatively familiar turns, PEARLY GATES is still a fun ride.
At its core, though, lies a deeply meaningful thematic arc. There’s a paint-by-numbers setup here, with Pearly taking on three human charges with the responsibility to help them learn and grow, but that structure really works. Each of the characters is well-drawn and distinct, with separate arcs that have both a satisfying internal logic and an important place in the larger structure of the text. Ultimately, PEARLY GATES is about community, and that lesson underpins all of the character work: creating a community of love and mutual care is always more impactful than the actions of any single person, no matter how energetic or well-meaning. This is especially significant in concrete moments that both fulfill a character’s arc and also refuse the typical narrative expectations for resolution. Saying goodbye to a significant intimate relationship, illness, and death—there is no deus ex machina to reverse these ends or “save” us from them. But when they happen in community, they need not feel as sad, frightening, or lonely as they would otherwise; a burden shared is a burden halved, and a community provides the space to share and contextualize the burdens of human life.
Wry, relatable, and deeply human, PEARLY GATES is an excellent read and a stellar debut for Bonnie Solomon.
Bonnie Solomon’s PEARLY GATES spins a playful, zany conceit into a moving story of community-building and love.
~Dan Accardi for IndieReader