Ruby and the Stone Age Diet

Though the narrator's life is peppered with myth, demons, werewolves, god and goddesses, the only thing stronger and more sustaining is his friendship with Ruby.

"From now on," Ruby says to her friend, the narrator, "We’re going on the Stone Age diet. It means we only eat the sort of healthy things our ancestors would have eaten. Raw grains and fruits and stuff like that. That’s what our bodies are made for." An admirable plan, but Ruby never eats, and the narrator’s attention span doesn’t lend itself to routine. He’s too busy pining for his ex-girlfriend Cis, who broke up with him and left him with self-pity and a plant: an Aphrodite Cactus that, when it flowers, is supposed to seal the love of the giver to the receiver, according to Ruby. Ruby, who never wears any shoes (even in the dead of winter).

Though lovelorn and lonely, the narrator’s life is rich with myth, demons, werewolves, gods and goddesses; everything is imbued with a spirit. There’s Helena, goddess of electric guitar players; Ascanazl, an ancient and powerful Inca spirit who looks after lonely people; Shumash the sun god; the war and sexuality goddess Astarte; the muse Clio. In fact the only thing stronger and more sustaining than the narrator’s fantasy life is his friendship with Ruby—the kind of friendship a body is made for.

Martin Millar was born in Glasgow, Scotland, but has lived in London, England, for a long time. He has written a lot of things--novels and plays and short stories and articles. His newest novel is Suzy, Led Zeppelin and Me, and it's set in Glasgow. Millar has written six other novels: Love and Peace with Melody Paradise; Milk, Sulphate and Alby Starvation; Lux the Poet; The Good Fairies of New York; Dreams of Sex and Stage Diving and Ruby; and The Stone Age Diet. Millar likes Jane Austen novels, and wrote a stage play of Emma. He even wrote the novelization of the Tank Girl movie. Last, but not least, as Martin Scott, Millar writes the Thraxas series of books. There are five so far, and he won the World Fantasy Award for the first one. When he's not writing, Millar likes to watch Buffy The Vampire Slayer, read history books, especially if they're about ancient Greece, and play the flute.