What do you think?
Rate this book
Water! #3
Branch and Crown
Stranded in the sacred Library of the Three Kingdoms, Sara, an herbalist and woman of the Goddess, reluctantly teams up with a pretentious scholar and an argumentative crown prince turned thief in order to survive. Original.
- GenresFantasy
336 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 1, 1996
53 people want to read
About the author
Gael Baudino
20 books73 followersGael Baudino (born 1955) is a contemporary American fantasy author who also writes under the pseudonyms of Gael A. Kathryns, K.M. Tonso, and G.A. Kathryns.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 3, 2017
This book, and the whole trilogy, was a revelation to me. It was the first time I realized that a fantasy book could also be, well, literary. The writing is sharp, funny, and carefully crafted. It also plays fan service to many of literature's greats, with scenes written in the style of Joyce here, Faulkner there, and nods to many others. I come back to the trilogy every handful of years or so, to see what other references and jokes I missed last time but can recognize now.
The series does at times demand some careful reading, but for those who pay close attention, the deeper you look, the more there is to enjoy. There are places that seem confusing at first pass, but I assure you they not only aren't nonsense, if you look closer they're probably hilarious. Or you can gloss over the more confusing bits and still come through with a delightfully twisted and consistently funny fantasy adventure.
I've read a lot of fantasy, most of it somewhere between pure fluff and well-polished fluff. Entertaining, maybe even memorable, but in the end sort of insubstantial. Gael Baudino's "Water!" series is entertaining, memorable, and well polished, but it's also something different--it's True Art.
The series does at times demand some careful reading, but for those who pay close attention, the deeper you look, the more there is to enjoy. There are places that seem confusing at first pass, but I assure you they not only aren't nonsense, if you look closer they're probably hilarious. Or you can gloss over the more confusing bits and still come through with a delightfully twisted and consistently funny fantasy adventure.
I've read a lot of fantasy, most of it somewhere between pure fluff and well-polished fluff. Entertaining, maybe even memorable, but in the end sort of insubstantial. Gael Baudino's "Water!" series is entertaining, memorable, and well polished, but it's also something different--it's True Art.
Displaying 1 of 1 review