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The Elementals
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The Elementals by Michael McDowell
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Jordan
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Nov 13, 2018 05:17AM
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I thought this was fun and a little spooky. I enjoyed the character development even their names gave them personality. Loved the relationship between Luker and India. The setting was great both in Mobile and Beldame. The over all southern feel to the book was great.I got the initial draw to Beldame a peaceful and beautiful place to shut out the modern world and daily demands. However, they were all obviously scared and aware of something sinister there and yet they continued to go back. I wish the author would have gone into that a bit. Was there some type of other worldly thing calling them back? Maybe I missed something.
One thing that bugged me is that I don't think there are porpoises in the Gulf and these people were not tourists that would mistake a dolphin for a porpoise. Small thing really but still...
Great pick Danielle.
This club has been my gateway into the horror genre and The Elementals has probably been my favorite so far. Like Gretchen, I enjoyed the settings. The idea of a secluded southern victorian mini-villiage where phones don't work might be enough to keep me coming, ghosts or not!
The characters were nicely developed too, although I think Dauphin needed a little polishing. He wasn't involved enough in the story for his death to be meaningful to me. The death of Odessa had much more impact than Dauphin's death.
Luker's dad, who's name escapes me at the moment, seemed a bit of a wasted character. I'd of cut his storyline entirely and given more focus on Dauphin and his wife (who I forgot was even there until her name was mentioned).
I particularly enjoyed the lack of a clear explanation to what the elementals were, why they were there, and what they wanted. It left a lot to the imagination and I think that really worked in this story.
Gretchen, that's interesting trivia about the porpoises. Do you live near the gulf?
Ryan, I have visited Florida an knew there were dolphins in the Atlantic. I always like to research the setting of a book if it's a real location and wondered if porpoises hung out in the gulf and everything I read pointed to no.I agree that the vagueness about who and what the elementals were added to the spookiness a little. I feel like why they were there had something to do with the Savages more so than the McCrays. However, I would love to learn more about both families histories and what was going on. Maybe from Odessa's point of view.
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I agree with both of you on Beldame. I'm going on Airbnb to find my own haunted southern gothic getaway.
Ryan, I'm glad to hear this club has broadened your horizons. I find your thoughts in the death of Dauphin interesting. His character grabbed my attention from the funeral, but like you, I wanted more of him in the story. Reading his parts felt vaguely like Mary Shelly's Frankenstein to me. In the correspondence portions of that book between Robert Walton and his sister. (I had to look up their names) The dialog, being written in a time so far removed from modern horror, felt weird and unnatural to me. Dauphin's character felt the same. The weirdness persisted until his rather sudden and anticlimactic end. I thought he was going to possess some supernatural skill inherited from the Savage bloodline that would allow him to keep the Elementals at bay. I hoped he would kick some ass.
I think I agree with Ryan about Luker's dad, Lawton. His character was better when he was only spoken of, not present.
Gretchen, I like your research. I should do that myself. It adds some depth to the story and makes for good discussion!
So, there are a few things about this book that I didn't care for. Some parts of it didn't age well. The character Odessa, for example. She is a racist stereotype. She was one step from saying "Oh no, massa, I swears I never seent no ghosts!" Every other time her character was referenced it began with "The black woman said.." or some other reminder that she was not white. She was not intelligent, barely made sense half the time, and had no redeeming traits beyond being a good servant and having magical eyeball juice.
Jordan, I found the relationship between Luker and India intriguing because it was so unconventional. I can't remember how old India was, 13?? I thought he treated her as if she was older than she was which I think had it's pros and cons. I was also surprised how Odessa seemed okay with her following into the house and saying things like "eat my eyes". I wasn't gonna bring up Odessa but I thought all the "the black women" said or did was stupid. We got the picture and you don't have to remind us. Very stereo typical of an older time. Obviously she believed in some pretty archaic stuff as well.
These characters were rich in personality but I think the author could have revealed more about them so the reader could better understand what was motivating them.
Did the author do this intentionally? Did he have plans to do more with these characters maybe? I just feel like there was so much more going on that we are left to speculate about.
Hey everyone sorry im late to the party! lolI liked this book mostly but I thought the same thing about Odessa. It seems like the author was a little racist huh? It made me cringe reading those parts.
I think Big Barbara was the most interesting character. Not only is her name funny but I know people who call members of their family big someone. She seemed right out of an old movie to me.
Did anyone think the elementals were native american spirits?
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When Odessa told India to eat her eyes I too felt it was a little abrupt. As the kids would say "That escalated quickly..."
Amy, I don't know much about the author, but I wonder if he wasn't just a product of his time, susceptible to the casual racism that older generations exhibit these days. If he was an older man in the south in 1981 he most certainly experienced overt racism, and even if he considered himself artistic or part of the beatnick crowd he may have been more comfortable with themes or ideas than his contemporary counterparts would be today.
As far as the elementals being Native American spirits, I didn't catch anything that specifically suggested that, but I don't see why not. Maybe they were, or maybe they were even older than that. Maybe they were minions of the nameless horrors that lie below the oceans.
Gretchen and Jordan, I did a little reading after I saw your current exchange. It turns out the author was gay and died of aids. I mention this because it would be my guess that he would be on the liberal side and thus probably not "casually racist" as Jordan suggested.I didn't find the character of Odessa racist to the point of being offensive. After all, Big Barbara wasn't exactly a beacon of higher thought. It could also be argued that she is a stereotype attributed to obese, southern women.
I will agree that the relationship between Luker and India would likely result in CPS being called today.
Overall, I'd not look too deeply for themes and hidden meanings in this book.
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I tried to find interviews with the author to see what he had to say about this book, and the Odessa character, but I wasn't able to turn anything up.
Sorry for the delay in my response! Thanks, Gretchen! I had only heard of this book weeks before choosing it. It had great reviews about its' spookiness so I was intrigued. I am glad you enjoyed it. :)There were both things I liked, and disliked, about this book. I didn't find it as spooky as I had anticipated. That may have been because I listened to the audiobook version of it while I was driving to and from work. Perhaps that took away some of the attention needed to increase the scare factor. That being said there were spooky elements to it.
I agree with you, Gretchen, that how the author left some mystery to the elementals added to the creep factor. I imagine that if it were made into a movie, the vagueness would allow for serious creative liberties to be taken and they could end up really terrifying.
I have to agree with you, Jordan, about the Luker/India characters. Their relationship was definitely an odd one. I'm not exactly sure where the author was going with creating them that way. I didn't particularly think it added anything important to the story. Did anyone think that the strangeness in their relationship was intentional for some reason that I am not getting?
Moving on to Odessa, I agree with both Gretchen and Jordan on that one. The racism was less than vague on the part of the author. Honestly, it turned me off from the story. I am surprised that you didn't find the racism in it, Ryan.
I didn't say I didn't find any racism, I said I didn't find it overdone to the point of being offensive. Offensive to me. The "outrage culture" in America has grown to a fever pitch. We can't do or say anything anymore without someone getting all worked up and offended.People pick apart decades or centuries old books looking for signs of racism, sexism, or whatever -ism is the new fad. We used to just read something for what is was without trying to apply whatever modern opinions are currently in vogue to it. It was a different time, they were different people, get over it!
OMG, the only person offended here is you Ryan LOL!! We are just talking about a book and how it could be interpreted in modern societies. Don't let it ruin your day!Also, Merry Christmas everyone, or Happy Hanakuh, or Festivus, or whatever you celebrate lol!
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I'll dig into my spreadsheet to see who is next up!
