History of an Executioner
Clancy McGilligan
Reviewed by Sidney Thomas
Clancy McGilligan’s History of an Executioner is a dystopian tale particularly relevant to these strange times. On behalf of “the Republic”, the fictional government ruling this dystopia, a nameless executioner performs his morbid trade dutifully, arcing his axe like his father taught him—feeling unemotional about his fatal blows.
When the Republic deems executions immoral and temporarily suspends them, the executioner finds himself adrift and finds new ways to fill his time—visiting the brothel, exploring the countryside, and imagining escaping to a new, unhindered life away from his small city.
History of an Executioner captures a narrow consciousness struggling against the questionable morals of his superiors. Clancy McGilligan’s debut novella evokes a strong bond between the reader and the executioner by connecting his moral questioning to our natural repulsion of the executions. When the executioner is faced with killing the healthy over the sick he is conflicted, but ultimately concludes that “such things do not matter. These people are still with us.” And is there any sentiment more relevant? McGilligan navigates these themes nimbly in a dark finely drawn fairytale-esque landscape. At once familiar and at times intentionally disorientating, McGilligan’s sparse prose quickly draws the reader into this complex novella.