A fairly slight tale which, if you edited out all the repetition and digression would be better as a short story a third of its current length. A couple of interesting ideas are briefly raised, but it's all very limp and wispy, and the ambiguous, quasi-mystical ending falls flat.
The afterword in which Lessing explains how she was inspired by reading about Scott's Antarctic expedition is far more engaging. ]]>
Assuming that you're not put off by the prose style which uses long, rambling, clause-cluttered Proustian sentences, or by the fact that the narrator isn't a particularly likeable fellow, there's an awful lot to enjoy here.
As Marlowe picks over the scabs of his failed relationship with a fellow language teacher, we are treated to a series of perceptive and witty remarks on everything from sex to philosophy to nationality to architecture to language. Wait, I'm making it sound awfully dry and pompous, aren't I? In fact the emotional charge is the book's main strength; the overwhelming sensations of regret and frustration with oneself and the way one behaves in relationships, the way we deceive ourselves about what we see in our partners. ]]>
Three stories of varying quality:
The Rose is a strange length. At 90 pages it's too long for a short story but too short for a novel. The premise of human evolution into homo superior is one I always enjoy, but here it's married to a rather pretentious and absurd "art vs. science" debate which adds little.
The Chessplayers is basically a joke; inconsequential but amusing enough for the few pages it lasts.
The New Reality is much more interesting. Choked with infodumps and technobabble it may be, but the philosophical implications are mind-bending. Shame about the oh-so-clichéd Book of Genesis allusions at the end, though. ]]>
This ended up going in a different direction than I'd expected. I assumed it was going to expand in scope into an all-encompassing global mystical/literary conspiracy thriller for some reason, whereas in fact as it goes on the focus narrows down to a suffocating Gothic family melodrama. A good one, though, with memorable characters, a hint of socio-historical commentary (many characters are terrorized and abused by dictatorial fathers...) and a series of nested flashbacks which keep the pages turning.
One nit-pick: why would a copy of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles be in the "Cemetery of Forgotten Books"? ]]>
I'd never heard of the author before and don't usually read scientific philosophy, but I found it in a secondhand bookshop for 70 cents, so thought I'd give it a try.
It was a bit of a slog, to be honest. Less rigorously scientific than expected, and too philosophically woolly. Some interesting ideas buried under a pile of frustratingly vague and incoherent waffle. ]]>
by John Kennedy Toole
Tell me about it. Sometimes I even wonder if I'll have time to read all of them. ]]>
The good: a vividly described setting, rounded characters, interesting ideas about artificial intelligence.
The bad: too many characters means the focus on the plot is lost, and the explanation given in the last three pages for what actually happened is tantalising, but should have been given more depth and detail rather than just a rushed coda. ]]>
Simon
read and liked
Res's
review of River of Gods:
"The one set in a near-future India, where a non-natural object is found in the asteroid belt which is older than the solar system and contains pictures of three humans currently alive. Leadership and scientific struggles at the nation's largest power...more "
"The one set in a near-future India, where a non-natural object is found in the asteroid belt which is older than the solar system and contains pictures of three humans currently alive. Leadership and scientific struggles at the nation's largest power...more "
An interesting angle on an old topic, with lots of fun detail about the protagonist's twin obssessions of escape artistry and comic books, well-drawn characters, fluid and even poetic prose style. And yet I found my interest waning just after the halfway point, the plot meanders for a bit, and some key events are inexplicably skimmed over, while other, much less momentous ones receive too much attention. Still, original and gripping nonetheless. ]]>
I enjoyed this one a lot more than I expected to.
The first third is the least interesting: typical American Tourist In Italy stuff where she coos over how beautiful everything is, how delicious the ice cream, how handsome the men, etc.
The India section is all about transcendental meditation, but manages to take you inside her experience quite well. Slightly disappointing that she doesn't get to see anything of the rest of the country, but you respect her reasons for that.
The best section is the last, in Bali, which successfully blends local colour, interesting supporting characters, cultural observation, romance and personal development. ]]>