In which recovering V-Show writer Rob Trump reflects on Michael Chabon's latest effort.

In 2002, Michael Chabon lashed out against the modern short story, claiming that publications like The New Yorker are filled with nothing but the "quotidian, plotless, moment-of-truth revelatory story." He did this in a McSweeney's compendium, no less, giving the hipster literati two things to think about: 1) What the hell does "quotidian" mean? and 2) Whatever it is, it sounds pretty bad, so what should be done? The answers to these, via the internet and Chabon, respectively, are "everyday or commonplace," and "learn something from genre fiction." Genre fiction, if you can't guess, is fiction that conforms to an established genre—science fiction, fantasy, mystery, horror, etc. To paraphrase: your Tuesdays with Morrie would be a lot more interesting if the old fart's death turned him into a flesh-eating zombie, and you and a double-barreled shotgun were the only things between his bloodlust and your family. Put this way, I think we can all agree.