Marcovaldo, or, The seasons of the city – Italo Calvino
Quaint and charming and so sad! Poor Marcovaldo never gets anything right, halfway because of his (amusing) incompetence, and halfway because of the vagaries of an early capitalist state with its inequality and its unnecessarily complex bureaucracy, the abandonment of nature still incomplete so that forest and lake converge with the boundaries of the city. Marcovaldo’s city is a city already too far gone, but not so far that it does not remember the simplicity of happier days. Calvino is nostalgic and idealistic as much as Marcovaldo is, and I think he’s aware of it.
Quaint and charming and so sad! Poor Marcovaldo never gets anything right, halfway because of his (amusing) incompetence, and halfway because of the vagaries of an early capitalist state with its inequality and its unnecessarily complex bureaucracy, the abandonment of nature still incomplete so that forest and lake converge with the boundaries of the city. Marcovaldo’s city is a city already too far gone, but not so far that it does not remember the simplicity of happier days. Calvino is nostalgic and idealistic as much as Marcovaldo is, and I think he’s aware of it.
Shadowmagic – John Lenahan
What rollicking tale! I am always a little sceptical about modern takes on ancient myth, especially something that tends not to be done justice. But! Lenahan consciously diverges from Celtic myth in significant enough ways to allow familiarity without having to confront accusations of unfaithfulness to sources. “Charming” might just be my word of the year; this book is definitely that. First person narration was, as always, an irritant, as was the maiden-mother-crone thing that he tried (unsuccessfully) to subvert. Also the typing of an entire race as evil is, as always in the literature of the fantastic, disappointing. BUT I really enjoyed this book, it was light and pleasant and, need I say again, charming.
What rollicking tale! I am always a little sceptical about modern takes on ancient myth, especially something that tends not to be done justice. But! Lenahan consciously diverges from Celtic myth in significant enough ways to allow familiarity without having to confront accusations of unfaithfulness to sources. “Charming” might just be my word of the year; this book is definitely that. First person narration was, as always, an irritant, as was the maiden-mother-crone thing that he tried (unsuccessfully) to subvert. Also the typing of an entire race as evil is, as always in the literature of the fantastic, disappointing. BUT I really enjoyed this book, it was light and pleasant and, need I say again, charming.
A Princess of Mars – Edgar Rice Burrows
Xenophobia! Only human-shaped people can have a sense of compassion and justice, of care for the other and the planet! Can you say white male colonialist fantasy? Everything about this accidental civilizing mission makes my postcolonial scholarship-filled head shake with sadness. I believe in scifi that is subversive, that calls the status quo into question, but this is much more of the genre of a western. Unhappy Jessica. Good points include the touching interludes of canine companionship, although Wula has more of a character than any of the female characters, so...
Xenophobia! Only human-shaped people can have a sense of compassion and justice, of care for the other and the planet! Can you say white male colonialist fantasy? Everything about this accidental civilizing mission makes my postcolonial scholarship-filled head shake with sadness. I believe in scifi that is subversive, that calls the status quo into question, but this is much more of the genre of a western. Unhappy Jessica. Good points include the touching interludes of canine companionship, although Wula has more of a character than any of the female characters, so...
Summer and Bird - Katherine Catmull
Sisters and half-myth, half-dream folklore written and destroyed in the space of a few pages, music running through it. I cried, of course, for these things, for the beauty and the loss that come with every good story. What a strange and lovely book, what a start to the summer.
Sisters and half-myth, half-dream folklore written and destroyed in the space of a few pages, music running through it. I cried, of course, for these things, for the beauty and the loss that come with every good story. What a strange and lovely book, what a start to the summer.
Witches Abroad – Terry Pratchett
Pratchett is of course wonderful in every way, but I always love the witches best. He pokes such clever fun at all the things I love, it’s gentle and magnificent. And Granny Weatherwax continues to be one of my favourite characters in fiction.
Pratchett is of course wonderful in every way, but I always love the witches best. He pokes such clever fun at all the things I love, it’s gentle and magnificent. And Granny Weatherwax continues to be one of my favourite characters in fiction.
Moonwalking with Einstein – Joshua Foer
I love this kind of popular mechanics for kids stuff, I just eat it up. Foer’s writing is personable, his story intriguing, his narrative intermixed quite seamlessly with the sort of anecdotal tidbits that I just adore. While I will definitely not go on to curate memory palaces, the things I learned about expertise and about the brain will stick with me for long enough that I think I can make some excellent practical use of them.
I love this kind of popular mechanics for kids stuff, I just eat it up. Foer’s writing is personable, his story intriguing, his narrative intermixed quite seamlessly with the sort of anecdotal tidbits that I just adore. While I will definitely not go on to curate memory palaces, the things I learned about expertise and about the brain will stick with me for long enough that I think I can make some excellent practical use of them.
If on a winter’s night a traveller – Italo Calvino
If you had asked me what I thought of this book up until the last few chapters, I would have said, “It’s a wonderful love song to literature and to readers, resplendent and tricky and amusing and clever and with something lurking just beneath the surface. This is the kind of book you give someone to make them fall in love with you.” Having finished it, I am less certain. I think – rather appropriately, given the subject matter and narrative structure – that the last few chapters are something you only give to someone after you’ve resigned yourself to the fact that they’ll one day leave you. But the book as a whole is…difficult. It is difficult to continue loving something that so colossally disappoints your expectations. It is difficult to continue loving something that disguises philosophising emptily about literature as a love poem.
If you had asked me what I thought of this book up until the last few chapters, I would have said, “It’s a wonderful love song to literature and to readers, resplendent and tricky and amusing and clever and with something lurking just beneath the surface. This is the kind of book you give someone to make them fall in love with you.” Having finished it, I am less certain. I think – rather appropriately, given the subject matter and narrative structure – that the last few chapters are something you only give to someone after you’ve resigned yourself to the fact that they’ll one day leave you. But the book as a whole is…difficult. It is difficult to continue loving something that so colossally disappoints your expectations. It is difficult to continue loving something that disguises philosophising emptily about literature as a love poem.
Poetry of French Canada in Translation - John Glassco, ed.
I am disconcerted by the decision to not include nationalistic or language-protest poetry in this collection. Nature poetry, love poetry, poetry about the loss of either (or both) is all well and good, and some of it here is magnificent (the repeated use of snow in all sorts of different ways is so…Canadian). But when you stop with political poetry after Riel (on purpose, the introduction tells me), your reader misses out on even more magnificence. And, probably, from what might separate French- from English-Canadian poetry. Post-Metis Rebellion, did all French-Canadian poets restrict themselves to snow?
I am disconcerted by the decision to not include nationalistic or language-protest poetry in this collection. Nature poetry, love poetry, poetry about the loss of either (or both) is all well and good, and some of it here is magnificent (the repeated use of snow in all sorts of different ways is so…Canadian). But when you stop with political poetry after Riel (on purpose, the introduction tells me), your reader misses out on even more magnificence. And, probably, from what might separate French- from English-Canadian poetry. Post-Metis Rebellion, did all French-Canadian poets restrict themselves to snow?
Tales of a Tea Leaf - Jill Yates
Charming and brief, although with a few ill-chosen words, this history of tea was refreshingly non-Eurocentric! I learned quite a bit about different methods of tea processing, some wonderfully intriguing tidbits about corporate takeovers, and rather a lot about scientific studies involving the remarkable curative powers of tea.
Charming and brief, although with a few ill-chosen words, this history of tea was refreshingly non-Eurocentric! I learned quite a bit about different methods of tea processing, some wonderfully intriguing tidbits about corporate takeovers, and rather a lot about scientific studies involving the remarkable curative powers of tea.
Japan’s Minorities: The Illusion of Homogeneity - Michael Weiner, ed.
Oh man, minority rights issues. Even though this research is about 15 years out of date, there are some super interesting insights about the way nationality and race are constructed in Japan, as well as some pretty expansive sections of truly fascinating historical context. I am also pretty appalled by how far-reaching have been the impacts of Perry’s opening of Japan and the post-WWII American occupation.
Oh man, minority rights issues. Even though this research is about 15 years out of date, there are some super interesting insights about the way nationality and race are constructed in Japan, as well as some pretty expansive sections of truly fascinating historical context. I am also pretty appalled by how far-reaching have been the impacts of Perry’s opening of Japan and the post-WWII American occupation.
The Fellowship of the Ring – J.R.R. Tolkien
Of course I teared up like every two pages, but that’s beside the point. Three new things, this 12th time through: Lord of the Rings is so connected to the overall mythos, but in the most realistic way! Snatches of songs, stories told late at night, sacred geography…the way the past is woven in is anthropologically sound. Also the narrative thread is very episodic, and I’m wondering if a television adaptation mightn’t have been more wise? And finally: the diction in the descriptive is so careful, so very much like a Hobbit historian (which is of course the point). I will never get over how well-crafted these books are. If you care about the exceedingly heterodox Tom Bombadil theories that made my supervisor consider casting me out of the university, I would be more than happy to share those, too.
Of course I teared up like every two pages, but that’s beside the point. Three new things, this 12th time through: Lord of the Rings is so connected to the overall mythos, but in the most realistic way! Snatches of songs, stories told late at night, sacred geography…the way the past is woven in is anthropologically sound. Also the narrative thread is very episodic, and I’m wondering if a television adaptation mightn’t have been more wise? And finally: the diction in the descriptive is so careful, so very much like a Hobbit historian (which is of course the point). I will never get over how well-crafted these books are. If you care about the exceedingly heterodox Tom Bombadil theories that made my supervisor consider casting me out of the university, I would be more than happy to share those, too.
Thank You, Jeeves – P.G. Wodehouse
I continue to love the way Bertie phrases things. What charm! What wit! What quiet (and not so quiet; sorry, people on the train) amusement! I will never tire of tales of J&W.
I continue to love the way Bertie phrases things. What charm! What wit! What quiet (and not so quiet; sorry, people on the train) amusement! I will never tire of tales of J&W.
The Magicians – Lev Grossman
I can recall now why I didn’t like this book the first time around. The actual story takes second place to the – highly enjoyable! – scene-setting, and as a consequence the pacing of the ending feels very rushed. The characters do not inspire sufficient emotion to make the emotionally-driven plot make sense. And the whole thing tries too hard to set an ironic tone. Plus, the lack of female character development and the unfortunate use of the bad-things-happen-to-girls-so-the-male-lead-can-grow trope…lovely conceptual work aside, this is a rather weak novel.
I can recall now why I didn’t like this book the first time around. The actual story takes second place to the – highly enjoyable! – scene-setting, and as a consequence the pacing of the ending feels very rushed. The characters do not inspire sufficient emotion to make the emotionally-driven plot make sense. And the whole thing tries too hard to set an ironic tone. Plus, the lack of female character development and the unfortunate use of the bad-things-happen-to-girls-so-the-male-lead-can-grow trope…lovely conceptual work aside, this is a rather weak novel.
The Magician King – Lev Grossman
So many things. Not so emotionally wrenching, this time around, and a little repetitive structurally, but still full of so many good things. Character! Plot! World-building! Cleverness and humour and humanity. Definitely not one of the best books I’ve ever read, but good. And worth the reread.
So many things. Not so emotionally wrenching, this time around, and a little repetitive structurally, but still full of so many good things. Character! Plot! World-building! Cleverness and humour and humanity. Definitely not one of the best books I’ve ever read, but good. And worth the reread.
Sailing to Sarantium – Guy Gavriel Kay
Kay and craftsmanship are synonymous. This one feels like the most historical of his novels, is certainly one of the most religious, and I want to say it wins for sheer heartbreaking resignation. Even the happy characters, such as they are, are happy only in the face of larger loss. It is a great thing, to write a book that breathes of endings right from the start.
Kay and craftsmanship are synonymous. This one feels like the most historical of his novels, is certainly one of the most religious, and I want to say it wins for sheer heartbreaking resignation. Even the happy characters, such as they are, are happy only in the face of larger loss. It is a great thing, to write a book that breathes of endings right from the start.
Lord of Emperors – Guy Gavriel Kay
This may be the most finely crafted Kay, The man works well in metaphor, in metonymy, and this book, its pace, its colour, its overwhelming sadness and its unlooked-for happinesses, are a mosaic falling slowly from the ceiling. How do you write a whole duology about an ending? How do you make something so permanent about impermanent things, and keep the fleeting sense of new and old colliding heady in the air? How do you write about change with sadness and acceptance both? I needed that, this summer. And to find again the artistry that makes me recommend this writer to everyone I meet.
This may be the most finely crafted Kay, The man works well in metaphor, in metonymy, and this book, its pace, its colour, its overwhelming sadness and its unlooked-for happinesses, are a mosaic falling slowly from the ceiling. How do you write a whole duology about an ending? How do you make something so permanent about impermanent things, and keep the fleeting sense of new and old colliding heady in the air? How do you write about change with sadness and acceptance both? I needed that, this summer. And to find again the artistry that makes me recommend this writer to everyone I meet.
Modern Short Stories: A Critical Anthology - Robert Heilman
Aside from disliking men from the first half of the 20th century writing women, because they are even worse at it than men writing women at other moments, and disliking white people of the same era writing about everyone even remotely non-white, because they are just so casual about their violent racism, I enjoyed most of these stories. I mostly enjoyed, however, the editor’s voluminous commentary after each story – I do so love reading people who think highly enough of their own taste pontificate on matters of Art. It amuses me to no end. Thurber’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” Mansfield’s “Bliss,” Heard’s “The Great Fog,” Powers’ “The Forks,” and Jackson’s “The Lottery” were my standouts!
Aside from disliking men from the first half of the 20th century writing women, because they are even worse at it than men writing women at other moments, and disliking white people of the same era writing about everyone even remotely non-white, because they are just so casual about their violent racism, I enjoyed most of these stories. I mostly enjoyed, however, the editor’s voluminous commentary after each story – I do so love reading people who think highly enough of their own taste pontificate on matters of Art. It amuses me to no end. Thurber’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” Mansfield’s “Bliss,” Heard’s “The Great Fog,” Powers’ “The Forks,” and Jackson’s “The Lottery” were my standouts!
The Dream of Scipio – Iain Pears
Provence, love and philosophy and war, hard choices, and a brilliant historian’s perspective on the meaning of civilization; parallel narratives and poetic twists and a scholar’s understanding of the scholar’s mind and heart? There was something of the inevitable about it that really touched me, too. What a dazzling read. Stylistically a little jarring, although I appreciated the detachment of the historian’s tone, but, really, that’s my only complaint.
Provence, love and philosophy and war, hard choices, and a brilliant historian’s perspective on the meaning of civilization; parallel narratives and poetic twists and a scholar’s understanding of the scholar’s mind and heart? There was something of the inevitable about it that really touched me, too. What a dazzling read. Stylistically a little jarring, although I appreciated the detachment of the historian’s tone, but, really, that’s my only complaint.
The Chains that You Refuse – Elizabeth Bear
I’ve been reassessing my attitude toward short stories this summer. I liked these – many of them I even loved, almost all of them left me wanting more. There are certain stylistic quirks to which Bear continually returns, all of which I like, but some of which I felt were over-used. But that’s my only criticism, really, aside from the fact that, like all short story collections, I was left deeply unsatisfied with my knowledge of each carefully created world. Bear is a charming, inventive writer; a credit to science fiction and to writing in general.
I’ve been reassessing my attitude toward short stories this summer. I liked these – many of them I even loved, almost all of them left me wanting more. There are certain stylistic quirks to which Bear continually returns, all of which I like, but some of which I felt were over-used. But that’s my only criticism, really, aside from the fact that, like all short story collections, I was left deeply unsatisfied with my knowledge of each carefully created world. Bear is a charming, inventive writer; a credit to science fiction and to writing in general.
Codex – Lev Grossman
What the actual hell. I stayed up all night to finish this book, which I haven’t done in longer than I can remember - I may think Grossman's writing leaves a lot to be desired, but the man tells a damn fine story - and I can't deal with how multilayered it is, how everything weaves together, how much he understands about the nature of narrative. Dammit, nothing was out of place but I'm so angry that there's no resolution, that there isn't MORE. I should have savoured the craft but I couldn't stop long enough and that makes me all-fire mad and hella impressed. Books about books: if Grossman keeps writing them, I will keep having feelings about them. Damn it all, though. What the actual hell.
What the actual hell. I stayed up all night to finish this book, which I haven’t done in longer than I can remember - I may think Grossman's writing leaves a lot to be desired, but the man tells a damn fine story - and I can't deal with how multilayered it is, how everything weaves together, how much he understands about the nature of narrative. Dammit, nothing was out of place but I'm so angry that there's no resolution, that there isn't MORE. I should have savoured the craft but I couldn't stop long enough and that makes me all-fire mad and hella impressed. Books about books: if Grossman keeps writing them, I will keep having feelings about them. Damn it all, though. What the actual hell.
Insurgent – Veronica Roth
I like the fleshing out of concepts, and I like the character growth (although poor Tobias is a little one-dimensional sometimes and I have issues with the unsympathetic portrayal of Evelyn and the framing of Erudite so negatively, but that's what you get with first person narratives: unreliable narrators). All in all, though I sped through the first half, I got kind of bored partway through. Here's hoping the third book goes out with a bang!
I like the fleshing out of concepts, and I like the character growth (although poor Tobias is a little one-dimensional sometimes and I have issues with the unsympathetic portrayal of Evelyn and the framing of Erudite so negatively, but that's what you get with first person narratives: unreliable narrators). All in all, though I sped through the first half, I got kind of bored partway through. Here's hoping the third book goes out with a bang!
Allegiant – Veronica Roth
I still felt Tobias was one-dimensional. I grieved more for Tris for myself, because I got really attached to her, than for him. Overall, though, this book was decent. A believable big bad, a well-played deus ex machina, a well-paced denouement. It's not the best YA I've read, and it's maybe a little preachy, but I enjoyed it. Except the (SPOILERS) Tris dying bit, which I appreciated but did not enjoy.
I still felt Tobias was one-dimensional. I grieved more for Tris for myself, because I got really attached to her, than for him. Overall, though, this book was decent. A believable big bad, a well-played deus ex machina, a well-paced denouement. It's not the best YA I've read, and it's maybe a little preachy, but I enjoyed it. Except the (SPOILERS) Tris dying bit, which I appreciated but did not enjoy.
The Edge Chronicles Book 1: Beyond the Deepwoods – Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
What a sweet book! I mean, aside from the bizarre depictions of maternal figures as almost uniformly fat and mean and awful (someone has a complex). I love the way in which all of the different peoples and animals of the book's universe were introduced so naturally, and Twig is a great protagonist. There were some gruesome bits that maybe made it not a children's book, but as far as children's books go, this was lovely. I loved especially the confrontation between Twig and his own self-doubt; that was sensitive and well-written.
What a sweet book! I mean, aside from the bizarre depictions of maternal figures as almost uniformly fat and mean and awful (someone has a complex). I love the way in which all of the different peoples and animals of the book's universe were introduced so naturally, and Twig is a great protagonist. There were some gruesome bits that maybe made it not a children's book, but as far as children's books go, this was lovely. I loved especially the confrontation between Twig and his own self-doubt; that was sensitive and well-written.
Shoggoth's Old Peculiar – Neil Gaiman
I love Neil Gaiman's irreverence. I love how matter-of-fact his style is, I love how everything kind of never gets resolved, and I love totally casual usage of the supernatural. Also dismissive expert discussions of etymology.
I love Neil Gaiman's irreverence. I love how matter-of-fact his style is, I love how everything kind of never gets resolved, and I love totally casual usage of the supernatural. Also dismissive expert discussions of etymology.
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Charming, in the way only old sci-fi can be; refreshingly not super racist, which was a treat. I was mostly disappointed by the fact that this story, which caused so much terror when read on the radio, boiled down to the musings of a dude who spent the majority of his story (it seemed) talking about other people. When he wasn't trapped in a ruined house. I guess I would be okay with the idea of an apocalyptic sci-fi novel being about how people react to the apocalypse if people's reactions weren't seen through the lens of this kind of bizarre philosopher narrator? Maybe I just object to first-person narration and philosophers too much. Maybe I am reading back into the whole book my disappointment with the (spoilers!) deus ex machina end and lack of a real narrative structure.
Charming, in the way only old sci-fi can be; refreshingly not super racist, which was a treat. I was mostly disappointed by the fact that this story, which caused so much terror when read on the radio, boiled down to the musings of a dude who spent the majority of his story (it seemed) talking about other people. When he wasn't trapped in a ruined house. I guess I would be okay with the idea of an apocalyptic sci-fi novel being about how people react to the apocalypse if people's reactions weren't seen through the lens of this kind of bizarre philosopher narrator? Maybe I just object to first-person narration and philosophers too much. Maybe I am reading back into the whole book my disappointment with the (spoilers!) deus ex machina end and lack of a real narrative structure.
Thornyhold – Mary Stewart
The only word to describe this book is “delightful.” Sweet and quick, with all the hallmarks of a bildungsroman but sans the torturous length and minutiae, hints of drama but nothing too outrageous. Gardens and cottages and jellies and cats, a predictable but still enjoyable love story (the reduction of a male character to a love interest from the first time we meet him!), and just enough maybe-magic to make it a little otherworldly. The perfect summer read.
The only word to describe this book is “delightful.” Sweet and quick, with all the hallmarks of a bildungsroman but sans the torturous length and minutiae, hints of drama but nothing too outrageous. Gardens and cottages and jellies and cats, a predictable but still enjoyable love story (the reduction of a male character to a love interest from the first time we meet him!), and just enough maybe-magic to make it a little otherworldly. The perfect summer read.
The Trumpeter of Krakow – Eric P. Kelly
I was so excited to read this book as a 10-year-old not allowed to read it, and if I had read it then I would have been thoroughly charmed. Fast-paced, easily resolved, historical tidbits that would have made my burgeoning inner researcher squeal with delight and head straight to the encyclopaedia. Totally worth the Newberry medal! Totally should have read it at 10, not 24.
I was so excited to read this book as a 10-year-old not allowed to read it, and if I had read it then I would have been thoroughly charmed. Fast-paced, easily resolved, historical tidbits that would have made my burgeoning inner researcher squeal with delight and head straight to the encyclopaedia. Totally worth the Newberry medal! Totally should have read it at 10, not 24.
In the Country of Men – Hisham Matar
I perpetually felt upset and confused, reading this book. I think it’s a sign that it’s well-written. I don’t know what to say, aside from that the story of an exile before an exile, an exile in an exile, of the way things bubble out and can’t be undone, is so unbeautiful, and Matar tells it in all its ugliness, and I love him for it.
I perpetually felt upset and confused, reading this book. I think it’s a sign that it’s well-written. I don’t know what to say, aside from that the story of an exile before an exile, an exile in an exile, of the way things bubble out and can’t be undone, is so unbeautiful, and Matar tells it in all its ugliness, and I love him for it.
The Harney and Sons Guide to Tea – Michael Harney
Where at first I knew I would love this book because of the overbearingly snobbish tone of the author (I adore a good snob), I really couldn’t help but find it charming. From tea descriptions to scientific tidbits about the chemicals behind flavour and colour to production methods and snapshots of history, this book was a treasure. And completely accessible, not snobbish at all, once you got past the introduction. And it succeeded admirably in its stated intent: I now want to sample every single tea collected in its pages.
Where at first I knew I would love this book because of the overbearingly snobbish tone of the author (I adore a good snob), I really couldn’t help but find it charming. From tea descriptions to scientific tidbits about the chemicals behind flavour and colour to production methods and snapshots of history, this book was a treasure. And completely accessible, not snobbish at all, once you got past the introduction. And it succeeded admirably in its stated intent: I now want to sample every single tea collected in its pages.
The Sparrow – Maria Doria Russel
The first time I read this book, I do not remember sobbing like my heart was breaking. I have not cried, over a book, quite this hard in all my life. Maybe it was this year that a book about losing and about giving up spoke to me. Maybe it was the languages, the family, the sainthood, all things I eat and breathe and sleep. Maybe it was the assurance that things do, eventually, and only after getting much worse, get better, the assurance that when we keep looking for God in our despair, we cannot help but find Him. This book is profoundly careful. I am still unpicking its threads.
The first time I read this book, I do not remember sobbing like my heart was breaking. I have not cried, over a book, quite this hard in all my life. Maybe it was this year that a book about losing and about giving up spoke to me. Maybe it was the languages, the family, the sainthood, all things I eat and breathe and sleep. Maybe it was the assurance that things do, eventually, and only after getting much worse, get better, the assurance that when we keep looking for God in our despair, we cannot help but find Him. This book is profoundly careful. I am still unpicking its threads.
The Night Circus – Erin Morgenstern
What a beautifully crafted book. Archetypal plot played out in a heart-stoppingly atypical way, magnificent use of non-linear narrative, careful trails of intricate breadcrumbs, everything balanced so perfectly. Perhaps too tidy an ending, but, as a lover of tidy endings, this to me is hardly a flaw. What a study in contrasts from the book I read just before (Sparrow), though; Circus is all about finding the loopholes and changing the rules so you can have what you want, although not really ever in the way you thought you might.
What a beautifully crafted book. Archetypal plot played out in a heart-stoppingly atypical way, magnificent use of non-linear narrative, careful trails of intricate breadcrumbs, everything balanced so perfectly. Perhaps too tidy an ending, but, as a lover of tidy endings, this to me is hardly a flaw. What a study in contrasts from the book I read just before (Sparrow), though; Circus is all about finding the loopholes and changing the rules so you can have what you want, although not really ever in the way you thought you might.
X – Sue Grafton
I always think I’m going to like detective novels. This one had a lovely hard-boiled first-person narrator who made me think of old pulps and film noir, but it also had three plots that did not connect even remotely, a rushed and toothless denouement, and an unsatisfying ending where the wrong people got compassion and the main character washed her hands of the pursuit of justice to trust police officers despite spending the whole novel solving a case because their efforts weren’t good enough. And no twist, no reveal, nothing even remotely un-mundane. Detective novels! They let you down every time.
I always think I’m going to like detective novels. This one had a lovely hard-boiled first-person narrator who made me think of old pulps and film noir, but it also had three plots that did not connect even remotely, a rushed and toothless denouement, and an unsatisfying ending where the wrong people got compassion and the main character washed her hands of the pursuit of justice to trust police officers despite spending the whole novel solving a case because their efforts weren’t good enough. And no twist, no reveal, nothing even remotely un-mundane. Detective novels! They let you down every time.
Angelology – Danielle Trussoni
Good grief. How many cardinal sins can you commit in a book? Brand names everywhere, bad chronology, bad descriptive, torturous repetition of proper nouns and even of whole phrases, sloppy writing, sloppy structuring. Sudden and unnecessary love stories, sudden and unnecessary transformations, mangling of characters, senseless plotmaking, everything entirely predictable and boring. Ugh. UGH. Why do the myth-based one have to be the flops?
Good grief. How many cardinal sins can you commit in a book? Brand names everywhere, bad chronology, bad descriptive, torturous repetition of proper nouns and even of whole phrases, sloppy writing, sloppy structuring. Sudden and unnecessary love stories, sudden and unnecessary transformations, mangling of characters, senseless plotmaking, everything entirely predictable and boring. Ugh. UGH. Why do the myth-based one have to be the flops?
Red Queen – Victoria Aveyard
I love me all the tired post-apocalyptic regular girl gets powers and changes the world and a prince falls in love with her tropes. I love them all. I also love compelling concept work, well-fleshed characters, and twists that are appropriately foreshadowed. A+ standard YA-ing, Aveyard. Nothing spectacular here, but a thoroughly respectable and utterly enjoyable exemplar of the genre.
I love me all the tired post-apocalyptic regular girl gets powers and changes the world and a prince falls in love with her tropes. I love them all. I also love compelling concept work, well-fleshed characters, and twists that are appropriately foreshadowed. A+ standard YA-ing, Aveyard. Nothing spectacular here, but a thoroughly respectable and utterly enjoyable exemplar of the genre.
I, Robot – Isaac Asimov
Aside from some amusing assumptions (nuclear energy! A world population below 2 billion! Racism defeated while women in positions of power is still unheard of!), this collection is still startlingly prescient and hugely insightful into human nature and the worries of things taken to their logical extension.
Aside from some amusing assumptions (nuclear energy! A world population below 2 billion! Racism defeated while women in positions of power is still unheard of!), this collection is still startlingly prescient and hugely insightful into human nature and the worries of things taken to their logical extension.
The People in the Trees - Hanya Yanagihara
What an unsettling book. A fascinating study in how we justify our own behaviour to ourselves, and how we rationalise the behaviour of those we love while demonising the behaviour of those who disagree with us. The author-editor voices here (superbly executed) are the least likeable, and the conceit works so well as a way of narrating the author’s deeds while highlighting his objectionable character. What an amazing debut, stylistically. What a travesty, content-wise. I simultaneously love it and do not want you to read it.
What an unsettling book. A fascinating study in how we justify our own behaviour to ourselves, and how we rationalise the behaviour of those we love while demonising the behaviour of those who disagree with us. The author-editor voices here (superbly executed) are the least likeable, and the conceit works so well as a way of narrating the author’s deeds while highlighting his objectionable character. What an amazing debut, stylistically. What a travesty, content-wise. I simultaneously love it and do not want you to read it.
The Lies of Locke Lamora – Scott Lynch
Delicious. This book, in a word, is delicious. Mind-blowing conceptual work, phenomenal world-building, perfectly paced plot, excellent characters (maybe a few more female leads would be nice, there, Scott?) and a keep-you-guessing ethic stitched together with perfect humorous and careful dialect touches. An immense treat, a subtle enjoyment.
Delicious. This book, in a word, is delicious. Mind-blowing conceptual work, phenomenal world-building, perfectly paced plot, excellent characters (maybe a few more female leads would be nice, there, Scott?) and a keep-you-guessing ethic stitched together with perfect humorous and careful dialect touches. An immense treat, a subtle enjoyment.
Embers - Sandor Marai (Carol Brown Janeway, trans.)
Another for my list of weird and trippy books. This was mostly a treatise on friendship, and I don’t know if I agree with the conclusions. Too long-winded to be poignant, neither raw nor subtle enough to call up real emotion, I struggle to understand why I should be interested in the self-absorbed mental perambulations of a bitter old man.
Another for my list of weird and trippy books. This was mostly a treatise on friendship, and I don’t know if I agree with the conclusions. Too long-winded to be poignant, neither raw nor subtle enough to call up real emotion, I struggle to understand why I should be interested in the self-absorbed mental perambulations of a bitter old man.
Across the Nightingale Floor – Lian Hearn
I remember really liking the prequel to this series, which I read when I was in CEGEP, but this was kind of lacklustre. Like, not bad, but just nothing special. Forbidden love, swords and stuff, Japan-esque setting, you know, not bad. Just lots of clichés and not a terribly deft hand with character. And I guess I’ve been spoiled by fantastical histories (KAY) that take their source setting and make it new; this felt like just a copy-paste.
I remember really liking the prequel to this series, which I read when I was in CEGEP, but this was kind of lacklustre. Like, not bad, but just nothing special. Forbidden love, swords and stuff, Japan-esque setting, you know, not bad. Just lots of clichés and not a terribly deft hand with character. And I guess I’ve been spoiled by fantastical histories (KAY) that take their source setting and make it new; this felt like just a copy-paste.
Morality Play – Barry Unsworth
Oooooh. Just…ooooh. All the world’s a stage, basically, is the thesis of this book. Never heavy-handed, showing consummately both the glories and the fears of performance, a mystery wrapped in a deeply historical consciousness, garnished with vibrant characters and startling revelations about what it is to be human. And a brilliant, brilliant use of the limitations and opportunities of well-executed first-person narration.
Oooooh. Just…ooooh. All the world’s a stage, basically, is the thesis of this book. Never heavy-handed, showing consummately both the glories and the fears of performance, a mystery wrapped in a deeply historical consciousness, garnished with vibrant characters and startling revelations about what it is to be human. And a brilliant, brilliant use of the limitations and opportunities of well-executed first-person narration.
The Winter People - Jennifer McMahon
What an entrancing, interlocking history where nothing falls into place too soon. A miracle of pacing! An ingenious use of a majority female cast of thoroughly worked characters, with a supernatural chill and a nostalgia that handily avoids being nostalgic. What women do (and men, but always offscreen, and recounted by a woman, which is delightful) for love is chilling and profound and magnificently expressed.
What an entrancing, interlocking history where nothing falls into place too soon. A miracle of pacing! An ingenious use of a majority female cast of thoroughly worked characters, with a supernatural chill and a nostalgia that handily avoids being nostalgic. What women do (and men, but always offscreen, and recounted by a woman, which is delightful) for love is chilling and profound and magnificently expressed.
Slammerkin – Emma Donoghue
This woman never ceases to pleasantly surprise me by her ability to create a story from a few lines in a newspaper. This particular one and its deving into pre-Victorian England’s seedy underbelly and not-sufficiently-unseedy countryside is both a brilliant historical encounter and a ringing indictment of how people treat each other. Also brilliant use of metaphor throughout. This book is distressing, and intentionally so. Donoghue is the master.
This woman never ceases to pleasantly surprise me by her ability to create a story from a few lines in a newspaper. This particular one and its deving into pre-Victorian England’s seedy underbelly and not-sufficiently-unseedy countryside is both a brilliant historical encounter and a ringing indictment of how people treat each other. Also brilliant use of metaphor throughout. This book is distressing, and intentionally so. Donoghue is the master.
Wolf Hall – Hilary Mantel
I am in love with Mantel’s semicolons; her short sentences. I am in love with her ambiguously unambiguous pronouns. I am in love with her careful pacing, her small detils, her way of making dialogue narrative. The story is of course an interesting one, especially to an Anglican with a love for church history, but it is the writing of it that deserves the highest praise.
I am in love with Mantel’s semicolons; her short sentences. I am in love with her ambiguously unambiguous pronouns. I am in love with her careful pacing, her small detils, her way of making dialogue narrative. The story is of course an interesting one, especially to an Anglican with a love for church history, but it is the writing of it that deserves the highest praise.
Guards, Guards! - Terry Pratchett
Pratchett’s take on the Three Musketeers gave me some giggles, and I appreciated his clever plotting as usual, but it’s Sam Vimes who’s the real treat. Righteous anger, a heart for justice, and despite Pratchett’s careful attempt to disguise it, Vimes is an entirely serious character. I found this less funny, but more real than any Discworld so far.
Pratchett’s take on the Three Musketeers gave me some giggles, and I appreciated his clever plotting as usual, but it’s Sam Vimes who’s the real treat. Righteous anger, a heart for justice, and despite Pratchett’s careful attempt to disguise it, Vimes is an entirely serious character. I found this less funny, but more real than any Discworld so far.
The People’s Act of Love – James Meek
Why is the only woman in the book so unsympathetic, so changeable, why is she the only character who does not get a moment of redemption? Otherwise, I found the storytelling engaging, although the prose was nothing special, and the character arcs worked well together. Thematically ambiguous, too, what with love and death and what might be greater than both. Meek is so obviously a male writer, though, and it is…offputting.
Why is the only woman in the book so unsympathetic, so changeable, why is she the only character who does not get a moment of redemption? Otherwise, I found the storytelling engaging, although the prose was nothing special, and the character arcs worked well together. Thematically ambiguous, too, what with love and death and what might be greater than both. Meek is so obviously a male writer, though, and it is…offputting.
Neuromancer – William Gibson
I definitely found the narrative arc easier to follow than when I first read this book, but my love for it has not changed. Cyberpunk was and has been such a formative genre for me, and this work is a magnificent exemplar. Do I wish there was less sexualisation of every female character? Maybe, yes, but I think Gibson does a reasonable job of signalling that the sexualisation is a cultural phenomenon that is part of the messed-up-ness of his terrifyingly prophetic future. I still think I like Mona Lisa Overdrive better as a story, though, because the pacing here is a little off and the ending a little too tidy for my taste.
I definitely found the narrative arc easier to follow than when I first read this book, but my love for it has not changed. Cyberpunk was and has been such a formative genre for me, and this work is a magnificent exemplar. Do I wish there was less sexualisation of every female character? Maybe, yes, but I think Gibson does a reasonable job of signalling that the sexualisation is a cultural phenomenon that is part of the messed-up-ness of his terrifyingly prophetic future. I still think I like Mona Lisa Overdrive better as a story, though, because the pacing here is a little off and the ending a little too tidy for my taste.