This book caught me off guard. I didn't expect a book so fiercely beautiful and so powerful when I opened it. It'd been sitting on my shelf for the past few years unread, I only began reading it because the film based on it had just come out. But I'm really glad I did.
The story revolves around Susie Salmon, a fourteen year old girl who is murdered in 1973 by a serial killer neighbor. The book deals with the lives of the people close to Susie and how they change as time goes on. There's Susie's father Jack, who becomes obsessed with solving her murder, Susie's younger sister Lindsey, who tries her best to be strong, Susie's mother Abigail, who drifts away from the family, and Rayand Ruth, a boy and girl at Susie's school who both in their way loved Susie and are drawn together by it. And of course there's Mr. Harvey, the murderer himself. Susie, watching in heaven, serves as an omniscient but biased narrator, delving into the thoughts and experiences of the other characters.
Some of the early chapters, dealing with Susie's murder and the various characters attempting to deal with it, are very emotionally powerful and because of it are somewhat hard to read. It can be hard not to be overcome by the grief and pain the characters and Susie experience. But conversely because they are so emotionally powerful that some of these chapters are my favorites in the book. It feels so real that I myself miss Susie and feel sympathy for the characters who are lacking her.
I liked all of the characters, but especially Ruth and Ray, who are drawn together by their common love of Susie. There was just something so powerful and interesting about their relationship, which is completely atypical from the stereotypical relationships one usually encounters in stories. As for the other characters, it is interesting to see how they all evolve over time, how obsessions and traumas over Susie in the short run transform their characters into something different over time, so that when the novel ends 10 years after it starts they no longer resemble themselves from the beginning of the novel. It made them feel like real people to me. Even the psychotically insane Mr. Harvey becomes more sympathetic than you would imagine as the reader is allowed to see what goes on inside his tortured psyche.
The fantasy elements of the story are significantly thinner than I was expecting. We do get some descriptions of the heaven where Susie lives (which is apparently made up mostly of everything you wanted in life), and Susie herself is able to effect certain small events in the narrative occasionally, but the focus is on the living characters mostly and Susie's observations about them. Therefore anyone leery about reading a fantasy novel shouldn't worry abut this one.
I really liked this novel. It has great characters and is immensely emotionally powerful. I reccomend it to anyone willing to deal with the painful emotions it can evoke in the early chapters, as it is a true masterpiece.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Unseen Academicals
"Unseen Academicals" is the latest Discworld book, a series that I can say that I truly love. Terry Pratchett writes complex and interesting stories, that manage to both be laugh-out-loud funny and incredibly emotionally powerful. Even though he's approaching 40 Discworld books, each one is still as awesome as the last.
However, because there are so many books, Pratchett lately has been focusing more on new characters, with old favorites reduced to supporting cast roles or mere cameos. This actually creates some really interesting effects, as for instance, the Watch, who we know of from the books featuring them as intelligent, conscientious people upholding the law in a city where that task is extremely difficult are seen as brutal and abusers of the law when the viewpoint characters are on the other side of the truncheon, as it were.
"Unseen Academicals" does have some important returning characters. As you could probably guess from the title, the faculty of Unseen University features heavily in the story, especially four of them: Archancellor Ridcully,Ponder Stibbons, The Librarian, and the man who used to be the Dean, who has quit and become Archancellor of a competing university. Ponder Stibbons especially receives a great amount of character development, as his position of being the only sensible man at UU has caused him to have gained quite a lot of power unnoticed, and he no longer seems like the Butt Monkey for the rest of the faculty's schemes and exploits. The other major recurring character is Lord Vetinari, the tyrannical but benevolent ruler of Ankh Morpork, who serves his typical role as the Chessmaster manipulating everyone else to achieve his own goals. Although he's served this exact role in the last three or so books, he fills it well, and this book gives him some wonderful scenes, such as one where the reader finally finds out what Vetinari is like drunk.
In addition to the recurrers, we have our new characters, who are all members of the staff of Unseen University. Glenda is the head of the Night Kitchen and a maker of truly outstanding pies, and a sensible young woman, a foil to her friend Juliet,a brainless but incredibly beautiful girl who has great things ahead of her. Trev Likely is a young man who runs the candle vats, a street kid whose father was an infamous football star, who might even surpass his father except that he's terrified of playing. Finally, there's Mr. Nutt, a strange and resourceful creature who also works in the candle vats, who is unbelievably intelligent and capable of doing pretty much everything. He's also shy, has some pretty serious hang-ups, and is for some reason incredibly important to various other characters.
The plot revolves around the sport of football, a raucous violent spectacle enjoyed by many citizens of Ankh-Morpork, where each neighborhood has a fanatical loyalty to their football squad. Two events bring our characters in: the faculty of UU discovering that they need to play a game soon or lose a significant chunk of their funding, and the discovery of an ancient vase depicting how the game used to be played, bringing it to the interest of Vetinari.
From there, the plot takes off in a variety of directions, not all of them having to do with football. Perhaps the most interesting is the concept of the crab bucket that Pratchett plays around with. This is the concept that one does not need to put a lid on a bucket of crabs: those at the bottom will pull down those at the top. Similarly, the common folk of Ankh-Morpork will pull down any who excel, claiming that they have "put on airs" or denigrating them for not doing "real work." Glenda both experiences this, feeling social pressure to stay in her position, while simultaneously inflicting it upon Juliet, whose great beauty could allow her to become a superstar model if Glenda didn't denigrate the work. As Glenda defies social convention, and allows Juliet to do the same, we are also introduced to the concept of the metaphorical hammer, that if you act as if social pressures from above holding you down don't exist, that those above you will be unable to enforce them, and it is awesome to see both girls gain confidence and excel, because they wish to.
The only underwhelming part of the story is the revelation of what Mr. Nutt actually is. We're told early on that he may be a goblin, but the revelation about 3/4 of the way through the book of his actual identity led me to think "Yeah? So what?" It's supposed to be shocking or horrifying, but to me it wasn't that much of a twist. Mr. Nutt himself is quite good, having perhaps the most interesting and complex character, who changes the most of probably anyone in the story. He was definitely my favorite character in the book.
"Unseen Academicals" was a fun book all in all. I loved Pratchett's writing, full of humor and power. Even though it has a plot somewhat reminiscent of a lot of recent Discworld books (social outcast reforms disrespected institution), Pratchett makes it all fresh and interesting. I loved it, and I look forward to the next thing Mr. Pratchett can dish out!
However, because there are so many books, Pratchett lately has been focusing more on new characters, with old favorites reduced to supporting cast roles or mere cameos. This actually creates some really interesting effects, as for instance, the Watch, who we know of from the books featuring them as intelligent, conscientious people upholding the law in a city where that task is extremely difficult are seen as brutal and abusers of the law when the viewpoint characters are on the other side of the truncheon, as it were.
"Unseen Academicals" does have some important returning characters. As you could probably guess from the title, the faculty of Unseen University features heavily in the story, especially four of them: Archancellor Ridcully,Ponder Stibbons, The Librarian, and the man who used to be the Dean, who has quit and become Archancellor of a competing university. Ponder Stibbons especially receives a great amount of character development, as his position of being the only sensible man at UU has caused him to have gained quite a lot of power unnoticed, and he no longer seems like the Butt Monkey for the rest of the faculty's schemes and exploits. The other major recurring character is Lord Vetinari, the tyrannical but benevolent ruler of Ankh Morpork, who serves his typical role as the Chessmaster manipulating everyone else to achieve his own goals. Although he's served this exact role in the last three or so books, he fills it well, and this book gives him some wonderful scenes, such as one where the reader finally finds out what Vetinari is like drunk.
In addition to the recurrers, we have our new characters, who are all members of the staff of Unseen University. Glenda is the head of the Night Kitchen and a maker of truly outstanding pies, and a sensible young woman, a foil to her friend Juliet,a brainless but incredibly beautiful girl who has great things ahead of her. Trev Likely is a young man who runs the candle vats, a street kid whose father was an infamous football star, who might even surpass his father except that he's terrified of playing. Finally, there's Mr. Nutt, a strange and resourceful creature who also works in the candle vats, who is unbelievably intelligent and capable of doing pretty much everything. He's also shy, has some pretty serious hang-ups, and is for some reason incredibly important to various other characters.
The plot revolves around the sport of football, a raucous violent spectacle enjoyed by many citizens of Ankh-Morpork, where each neighborhood has a fanatical loyalty to their football squad. Two events bring our characters in: the faculty of UU discovering that they need to play a game soon or lose a significant chunk of their funding, and the discovery of an ancient vase depicting how the game used to be played, bringing it to the interest of Vetinari.
From there, the plot takes off in a variety of directions, not all of them having to do with football. Perhaps the most interesting is the concept of the crab bucket that Pratchett plays around with. This is the concept that one does not need to put a lid on a bucket of crabs: those at the bottom will pull down those at the top. Similarly, the common folk of Ankh-Morpork will pull down any who excel, claiming that they have "put on airs" or denigrating them for not doing "real work." Glenda both experiences this, feeling social pressure to stay in her position, while simultaneously inflicting it upon Juliet, whose great beauty could allow her to become a superstar model if Glenda didn't denigrate the work. As Glenda defies social convention, and allows Juliet to do the same, we are also introduced to the concept of the metaphorical hammer, that if you act as if social pressures from above holding you down don't exist, that those above you will be unable to enforce them, and it is awesome to see both girls gain confidence and excel, because they wish to.
The only underwhelming part of the story is the revelation of what Mr. Nutt actually is. We're told early on that he may be a goblin, but the revelation about 3/4 of the way through the book of his actual identity led me to think "Yeah? So what?" It's supposed to be shocking or horrifying, but to me it wasn't that much of a twist. Mr. Nutt himself is quite good, having perhaps the most interesting and complex character, who changes the most of probably anyone in the story. He was definitely my favorite character in the book.
"Unseen Academicals" was a fun book all in all. I loved Pratchett's writing, full of humor and power. Even though it has a plot somewhat reminiscent of a lot of recent Discworld books (social outcast reforms disrespected institution), Pratchett makes it all fresh and interesting. I loved it, and I look forward to the next thing Mr. Pratchett can dish out!
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Be Amazing
This is the most recent Mental Floss book. I love these books, which like the magazine they're based on, organize random factoids, generally under some sort of theme.
"Be Amazing" takes the them of being a how-to book, explaining how to do a variety of things. But the things they explain how to do are not necessarily the kind of thing one actually would want to do, for instance how to "Be Raised By Wolves," "be Killed by Soda Water," and "Go Insane." Not that I wouldn't want to know how to be a hacker, get out of jury duty, or become a ninja, but some of this stuff isn't that interesting.
Anyways, the format is just a platform to inform the reader about a truly eclectic collection of facts. I'm now a little afraid of dying by soda water (well, a massive CO2 bubble, but same diff) or a tide of molasses, and I'm intrigued at what ninjas actually were like (they didn't wear black pyjamas, by any rate). Learning about the guy who was the archrival of the Wright Brothers, or that H.G. Wells and Martin Luther King Jr. might have been plagiarists, is really fun.
The only real problem I have with this book is its apparent lack of a copy editor. Words are missing or repeated, and "its" is often spelled "it's," and "whose" "who's." It's distracting, and annoying, and it makes the book harder to respect, but it doesn't subtract from the overall quality of the book.
Overall, I liked "Be Amazing." It was fun, there were a lot of cool facts, and aside from the spelling and grammar errors it was of pretty good quality. I would reccomend it to any knowledge junkies looking for their fix.
"Be Amazing" takes the them of being a how-to book, explaining how to do a variety of things. But the things they explain how to do are not necessarily the kind of thing one actually would want to do, for instance how to "Be Raised By Wolves," "be Killed by Soda Water," and "Go Insane." Not that I wouldn't want to know how to be a hacker, get out of jury duty, or become a ninja, but some of this stuff isn't that interesting.
Anyways, the format is just a platform to inform the reader about a truly eclectic collection of facts. I'm now a little afraid of dying by soda water (well, a massive CO2 bubble, but same diff) or a tide of molasses, and I'm intrigued at what ninjas actually were like (they didn't wear black pyjamas, by any rate). Learning about the guy who was the archrival of the Wright Brothers, or that H.G. Wells and Martin Luther King Jr. might have been plagiarists, is really fun.
The only real problem I have with this book is its apparent lack of a copy editor. Words are missing or repeated, and "its" is often spelled "it's," and "whose" "who's." It's distracting, and annoying, and it makes the book harder to respect, but it doesn't subtract from the overall quality of the book.
Overall, I liked "Be Amazing." It was fun, there were a lot of cool facts, and aside from the spelling and grammar errors it was of pretty good quality. I would reccomend it to any knowledge junkies looking for their fix.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Dandelion Wine
"Dandelion Wine" is a book by Ray Bradbury. I wouldn't call it a novel, as it's more like a collection of vignettes. It's also not quite fantasy, but it is full of magic.
It's set during the summer of 1928 in the town of Green Town, Illinois, and is told mostly through the perspective of a 12 year old boy named Douglas Spaulding. The magic comes from the wonder that Douglas has in the world around him. A wax fortuneteller at the carnival is transformed into poor soul cruelly imprisoned by the black magic of Napoleon, an old man's memories become a vessel for travel into the past, and a new pair of shoes is able to make Douglas run faster than the wind.
I really liked a lot of the little vignettes, and Douglas and his brother Tom are both really fun characters to read about. But they didn't seem quite right to me: too virtuous, too wise, I'm not quite sure what it was. Also, the writing, full of rich details as it was, didn't grab me at first. It was wondrous while reading, but took a while each time I started up again. This might have been because I was constantly being interrupted in my reding of it by schoolwork or other things I needed to read first.
All in all, it was a good book, but not necessarily one I would read again. I'll probably read other Bradbury if I can, however.
It's set during the summer of 1928 in the town of Green Town, Illinois, and is told mostly through the perspective of a 12 year old boy named Douglas Spaulding. The magic comes from the wonder that Douglas has in the world around him. A wax fortuneteller at the carnival is transformed into poor soul cruelly imprisoned by the black magic of Napoleon, an old man's memories become a vessel for travel into the past, and a new pair of shoes is able to make Douglas run faster than the wind.
I really liked a lot of the little vignettes, and Douglas and his brother Tom are both really fun characters to read about. But they didn't seem quite right to me: too virtuous, too wise, I'm not quite sure what it was. Also, the writing, full of rich details as it was, didn't grab me at first. It was wondrous while reading, but took a while each time I started up again. This might have been because I was constantly being interrupted in my reding of it by schoolwork or other things I needed to read first.
All in all, it was a good book, but not necessarily one I would read again. I'll probably read other Bradbury if I can, however.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Who Killed Amanda Palmer
This is a strange book. A collaboration between writer Neil Gaiman, singer Amanda Palmer, and various photographers (most especially Kyle Cassidy), this is a collection of stories, and pictures, all depicting the death of Amanda Palmer. There is also a tie-in CD of the same name, and Palmer's lyrics for her songs are also interspersed with the rest.
I loved Neil Gaiman's stories. He comes up with some rather strange ideas, like a time travel story where an older Amanda travels back in time to kill her younger self, or a modern day folk tale where Amanda is sent to get drugs for her evil stepmother and is rewarded for her kindness to junkies and drug dealers with the ability to have jewels come out of her mouth. Some of Gaiman's stories are really helped with the pictures that accompany with them, such as the picture that appears on the cover, of Amanda's body on a couch covered in leaves which is accompanied with a fake catalog entry as if it was an art installation. There are also some nice pics that are unaccompanied by a story, such as Amanda dead surrounded by wallabies.
However, too many of the pics are too similar, just Amanda lying face down in some location or other, and the locations are too similar for the differences to matter.
Also, I didn't really like Amanda's lyrics. I'm not that big a fan of her music anyways, and reading the lyrics misses something. It was like really bad poetry that's also completely nonsensical.
All in all, Neil Gaiman's stuff is OK, and the photography is nice, but all in all, it wasn't quite worth it. I don't regret reading it, but I don't think I'll read it again, except maybe some of the Gaiman stuff.
I loved Neil Gaiman's stories. He comes up with some rather strange ideas, like a time travel story where an older Amanda travels back in time to kill her younger self, or a modern day folk tale where Amanda is sent to get drugs for her evil stepmother and is rewarded for her kindness to junkies and drug dealers with the ability to have jewels come out of her mouth. Some of Gaiman's stories are really helped with the pictures that accompany with them, such as the picture that appears on the cover, of Amanda's body on a couch covered in leaves which is accompanied with a fake catalog entry as if it was an art installation. There are also some nice pics that are unaccompanied by a story, such as Amanda dead surrounded by wallabies.
However, too many of the pics are too similar, just Amanda lying face down in some location or other, and the locations are too similar for the differences to matter.
Also, I didn't really like Amanda's lyrics. I'm not that big a fan of her music anyways, and reading the lyrics misses something. It was like really bad poetry that's also completely nonsensical.
All in all, Neil Gaiman's stuff is OK, and the photography is nice, but all in all, it wasn't quite worth it. I don't regret reading it, but I don't think I'll read it again, except maybe some of the Gaiman stuff.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
And Another Thing...
"And Another Thing..." is the sixth Hitchhiker's Guide book, and the first one not to be written by Douglas Adams, given that Adams has died. Instead, it is by the Irish writer Eoin Colfer, which unfortunately means that most of the people I've mentioned it to to declare they don't want to read it, because it "isn't Adams." But I decided to try it out, and was not disappointed.
"And Another Thing..." starts off where the last book, "Mostly Harmless," left off, with the obliteration of the planet Earth in all possible universes. However, our main characters are saved through a series of ass pulls, first being saved by ex-President of the Universe Zaphod Beeblebrox in the improbabilty drive-powered ship The Heart of Gold, then by the immortal alien Wowbanger the Infinitely Prolonged in the dark-energy powered Viking longship he stole from the god Thor. Already you're beginning to sense that Colfer is able to capture at least some of the insanity of Adams in his writing.
However, Colfer seems to have based a lot of what is featured in "And Another Thing" based on characters and incidents that Adams had mentioned in passing in his books. The two most notable examples of this are Wowbanger and Thor, both minor incidents in previous books and both major important characters here. Colfer does a pretty good job of it, and Adams did it as well (most notably in the character of Fenchurch, who appeared first in the first book only to become a main character in the fourth), but it does make it seem that Colfer isn't really creating all that much original of his own.
However, nothing further could be the truth. The book is littered with notes from the Hitchhiker's Guide itself, which more often than not are just as random and off-the-wall as Adams' mentions from the guide. The most notable touch of Colfer's comes in the leader of the planet Nano, a colony of super-rich humans who managed to escape Earth before it was eradicated, who's an Irishman who behaves exactly like the most stereotypical Irish person imaginable ("fecks" and "begorrahs" included), in order to distract people from his manipulations. I'm sure Colfer was digging at the British and American readers of the book who probably believe some of those stereotypes.
Colfer is able to develop all of the human characters he inherited from Adams (Arthur Dent, Trillian, and Random) into very unique characters. Ford Prefect and Zaphod Beeblebrox don't change all that much, but both are as fun to read as they always were. The new characters of Wowbanger and Thor are both interesting and somewhat complicated, Wowbanger being snarky and jaded because of his involutary immortality while still sympathetic, and Thor being big, powerful, and strong, while gripped with a very pronounced insecurity. The Vogons are back as the big bad, specifically Prostetnic Jeltz, who was fun in his utter evil horribleness. His son Mown, who's secretly sympathetic to the humans, is slightly too hard to believe: Vogons have been set up as evil, ugly, and totally unsympathetic, and it's a little hard to buy a sympathetic, even good, Vogon.
the plot is interesting, mostly getting all of the characters to the planet Nano and then seeing what happens. Thor and Wowbanger are set up as rivals (basically Wowbanger thinks only a god would be able to actually kill him, and so stole Thor's ship to provoke him), while still being both sympathetic: the reader wants both to succeed in their struggles against each other. I liked how this book drew upon Adams' material while forging its own path. I can see this growing into a series of its own, one that could even possibly be as cool as the original. The ending is a little bit of a confusing downer, so I didn't like that all that much, but aside from that it was a pretty fun book, and I would suggest all Adams fans check the book out if they can. You won't be disappointed
"And Another Thing..." starts off where the last book, "Mostly Harmless," left off, with the obliteration of the planet Earth in all possible universes. However, our main characters are saved through a series of ass pulls, first being saved by ex-President of the Universe Zaphod Beeblebrox in the improbabilty drive-powered ship The Heart of Gold, then by the immortal alien Wowbanger the Infinitely Prolonged in the dark-energy powered Viking longship he stole from the god Thor. Already you're beginning to sense that Colfer is able to capture at least some of the insanity of Adams in his writing.
However, Colfer seems to have based a lot of what is featured in "And Another Thing" based on characters and incidents that Adams had mentioned in passing in his books. The two most notable examples of this are Wowbanger and Thor, both minor incidents in previous books and both major important characters here. Colfer does a pretty good job of it, and Adams did it as well (most notably in the character of Fenchurch, who appeared first in the first book only to become a main character in the fourth), but it does make it seem that Colfer isn't really creating all that much original of his own.
However, nothing further could be the truth. The book is littered with notes from the Hitchhiker's Guide itself, which more often than not are just as random and off-the-wall as Adams' mentions from the guide. The most notable touch of Colfer's comes in the leader of the planet Nano, a colony of super-rich humans who managed to escape Earth before it was eradicated, who's an Irishman who behaves exactly like the most stereotypical Irish person imaginable ("fecks" and "begorrahs" included), in order to distract people from his manipulations. I'm sure Colfer was digging at the British and American readers of the book who probably believe some of those stereotypes.
Colfer is able to develop all of the human characters he inherited from Adams (Arthur Dent, Trillian, and Random) into very unique characters. Ford Prefect and Zaphod Beeblebrox don't change all that much, but both are as fun to read as they always were. The new characters of Wowbanger and Thor are both interesting and somewhat complicated, Wowbanger being snarky and jaded because of his involutary immortality while still sympathetic, and Thor being big, powerful, and strong, while gripped with a very pronounced insecurity. The Vogons are back as the big bad, specifically Prostetnic Jeltz, who was fun in his utter evil horribleness. His son Mown, who's secretly sympathetic to the humans, is slightly too hard to believe: Vogons have been set up as evil, ugly, and totally unsympathetic, and it's a little hard to buy a sympathetic, even good, Vogon.
the plot is interesting, mostly getting all of the characters to the planet Nano and then seeing what happens. Thor and Wowbanger are set up as rivals (basically Wowbanger thinks only a god would be able to actually kill him, and so stole Thor's ship to provoke him), while still being both sympathetic: the reader wants both to succeed in their struggles against each other. I liked how this book drew upon Adams' material while forging its own path. I can see this growing into a series of its own, one that could even possibly be as cool as the original. The ending is a little bit of a confusing downer, so I didn't like that all that much, but aside from that it was a pretty fun book, and I would suggest all Adams fans check the book out if they can. You won't be disappointed
Friday, November 20, 2009
Moonlight and Vines
Canadian author Charles De Lint is most well known for his Newford stories, all set within the fictional city of Newford. "Moonlight And Vines" is the third collection of short stories set in Newford, and it demonstrates quite well all of the neat things one can do if all of the stories have a common setting.
This is largely because Newford is an expansive and diverse locations. Stories in "Moonlight and Vines" are set in the artsy bohemian area of Gracie Street, Newford's gay district, the slums known as the Tombs, and the blue-collar neighborhood of Crowsea. De Lint's talents lie in his ability to tie all of these places together: all seem like part of the same city, despite being significantly different. Each story that takes place in a different area immerses the reader in a place that has history, culture, and its own dynamic, unique characters.
The characters as well as quite diverse. they include temps, journalists, strippers, the homeless, fortunetellers, and De Lint's apparent favorite class of people, artists. There are all kinds of artists: musicians, painters, sculptors, writers, and even a comic book creator. It's this presence of an art scene that really makes Newford seem dynamic and interesting.
De Lint is a fantasy writer, and so almost all of the stories have a fantastical element. A lot of the stories deal with what happens after death, but they vary from a story about a fiddler who doesn't want to move on after his death to a countrysinger having a final chat with the dead aunt who inspired her, to a gritty crime story of two people murdered by the mob who have to take revenge against their killers. Quite a lot of stories also involve human interaction with supernatural beings, be they the mysterious "animal people" who seem to be Native American animal spirits, to faerie folk who appear in the most unique guises, to a very odd take on the Greek Fates. But what is most important in De Lint's stories is not the external magic of spells and faeries, but the internal magic of the characters discovering the beauty and magic of the mundane world around them, or the kindness of those around them. This makes almost all of the stories inspirational and uplifting, leaving the reader with a good feeling after finishing a story.
I really loved this book, and it really made me want to read more De Lint, to immerse myself more into his intricate and interesting world. If Newford was a real city, I would move there in a second. Characters like the artist Jilly, folklorist Christy, and fortunetellers Cassie and Bone seem like such interesting, diverse, and real people that I really intensely want to meet and just hang out with them. I think that's probably the best rule of thumb for whether a book had succeeded or not: whether you would want to be around its characters. All of the stories are interesting and unique, and I highly reccomend this book.
This is largely because Newford is an expansive and diverse locations. Stories in "Moonlight and Vines" are set in the artsy bohemian area of Gracie Street, Newford's gay district, the slums known as the Tombs, and the blue-collar neighborhood of Crowsea. De Lint's talents lie in his ability to tie all of these places together: all seem like part of the same city, despite being significantly different. Each story that takes place in a different area immerses the reader in a place that has history, culture, and its own dynamic, unique characters.
The characters as well as quite diverse. they include temps, journalists, strippers, the homeless, fortunetellers, and De Lint's apparent favorite class of people, artists. There are all kinds of artists: musicians, painters, sculptors, writers, and even a comic book creator. It's this presence of an art scene that really makes Newford seem dynamic and interesting.
De Lint is a fantasy writer, and so almost all of the stories have a fantastical element. A lot of the stories deal with what happens after death, but they vary from a story about a fiddler who doesn't want to move on after his death to a countrysinger having a final chat with the dead aunt who inspired her, to a gritty crime story of two people murdered by the mob who have to take revenge against their killers. Quite a lot of stories also involve human interaction with supernatural beings, be they the mysterious "animal people" who seem to be Native American animal spirits, to faerie folk who appear in the most unique guises, to a very odd take on the Greek Fates. But what is most important in De Lint's stories is not the external magic of spells and faeries, but the internal magic of the characters discovering the beauty and magic of the mundane world around them, or the kindness of those around them. This makes almost all of the stories inspirational and uplifting, leaving the reader with a good feeling after finishing a story.
I really loved this book, and it really made me want to read more De Lint, to immerse myself more into his intricate and interesting world. If Newford was a real city, I would move there in a second. Characters like the artist Jilly, folklorist Christy, and fortunetellers Cassie and Bone seem like such interesting, diverse, and real people that I really intensely want to meet and just hang out with them. I think that's probably the best rule of thumb for whether a book had succeeded or not: whether you would want to be around its characters. All of the stories are interesting and unique, and I highly reccomend this book.
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