Sarah's review
Titus Groan (Gormenghast Trilogy, 1)
by Mervyn Peake
Sarah's review
Titus Groan (Gormenghast Trilogy, 1) by Mervyn Peake
Sarah's review
rating:
bookshelves:
released
I've wanted to
read the Gormenghast trilogy since I saw the 6 hour (?)
miniseries a couple of years ago. The miniseries had the feel of
a movie made from a book (or books) in the same way that the
Harry Potter movies do. It seemed that a lot of details were being
left out to keep the pacing good on the assumption that people
interested in watching had read the book(s) and could fill in the
details from memory.
I'm pleasantly surprised at how good the book is. The focus is
on how strange and stilted culture can become when it is no
longer allowed to progress. So much of the plot is centered
around the description of the decaying castle.
There's a scene where the library is torched. The library had
been the one place where the 76th Earl of Gormenghast felt at
all at home and was at all human. I think any avid bookcrosser
would find meaning in this short passage.
Then there is the title character. Poor little Titus! I really feel sorry
for him in this first book. On...more
read the Gormenghast trilogy since I saw the 6 hour (?)
miniseries a couple of years ago. The miniseries had the feel of
a movie made from a book (or books) in the same way that the
Harry Potter movies do. It seemed that a lot of details were being
left out to keep the pacing good on the assumption that people
interested in watching had read the book(s) and could fill in the
details from memory.
I'm pleasantly surprised at how good the book is. The focus is
on how strange and stilted culture can become when it is no
longer allowed to progress. So much of the plot is centered
around the description of the decaying castle.
There's a scene where the library is torched. The library had
been the one place where the 76th Earl of Gormenghast felt at
all at home and was at all human. I think any avid bookcrosser
would find meaning in this short passage.
Then there is the title character. Poor little Titus! I really feel sorry
for him in this first book. On...more
