George R. R. Martin - A Dance With Dragons (Book Review)

At first, I meant to wait and publish this review on 12th of July, but then a bunch of reviews got released a few days ago and I changed my mind. :) Keep in mind that I’m a huge fan of ASOIAF series; I tried my best to write a non-biased review, but reviewing books you like is always hard. This review does NOT include any significant spoilers for ADWD, but it does include some references to previous volumes.

I was one of the lucky few who got their books from Amazon.de – in my case, though, it was also through kindness of Adz, who was actually the one who pre-ordered the books and was generous enough to send me one of her two copies. Thanks again! You can imagine how thrilled I was when the book arrived, and I began reading it immediately, but by the time I finally put it down, my excitement had somewhat waned. Why?

Well, the first thing is that A Dance with Dragons is, as Wert aptly described it, sprawling. It takes place on many different locations of The Seven Kingdoms and The Free Cities that are sometimes a whole continent apart. Before, we mostly followed events that took place in The Seven Kingdoms, with Dany and later Arya being the only POVS in The Free Cities. This time around, The Free Cities are in the centre of it all, but plenty of POVs still remain scattered throughout The Seven Kingdoms – and each is telling their own story. This can sometimes make the story seem a bit too diffused; the reader has to follow both the politics of The Free Cities and the events in The Seven Kingdoms, which are not in the best of states after the events of A Feast for Crows.

Jumping to and fro between POVs doesn’t help the reader any. In the first half of the book, the POVs are mostly Tyrion, Jon and Daenerys, which makes the plot very easy to follow even though it’s as complex as always. In the other half of the book, though, the POVs grow considerably more numerous and incredibly fragmented, with plenty of characters only appearing in one or two chapters. The plot is thus much harder to follow and the flow of the story is interrupted, but on the other hand, this fragmentation also brings some insight into the events that transpire in The Seven Kingdoms. Still, it all left me a bit confused, if very much curious as to what will happen next.

A Dance with Dragons will not answer most of the questions you’ve had ever since you’ve read A Feast for Crows or even A Storm of Swords; it will rather give you plenty more things to wonder about. In the second half of the book, we reach the final events of A Feast for Crows and see some of the familiar faces again, but to my great disappointment, most of POVs from A Feast for Crows only appear briefly and in some cases not at all.

What probably irked me most about A Dance with Dragons was that many characters previously thought dead or missing appear again. Even though they are mostly minor characters, this took some edge off my constant worry over who will get killed next. A Dance with Dragons has its share of shocking events, but they left me skeptical – after all, I’ve just been shown that not everything happened the way I thought it did, so who says it’s any different this time around? Who says those characters will not return in The Winds of Winter? The problem is that I like to worry about who will die next – it means that I actually care about the characters and this emotional investment is an important part of my reading experience. So while I do not believe that all of the characters presumed dead or missing will stay this way in the next two installments, I sure hope that most of them will.

So, was A Dance with Dragons worth the wait? I honestly can’t give a definite answer to that question. It’s definitely a wonderful and complex book that did not disappoint me, but on the other hand, it could hardly live up to the expectations I’ve had of it after all these years. The style is often not as flowing as I’d like it to be, there is still some repetition of certain phrases – ‘words are wind’ especially seems to be everyone’s new favourite saying – and, much like A Feast for Crows, A Dance with Dragons seems to suffer from being one of the middle books of the series, as the events that transpire in it are mostly just setting the stage for the grand finale. Still, I can’t say anything but ‘kudos’ to Martin – despite the complexity of the book he holds the reins of the plot firmly in his hands.

And so begins our wait again. Is The Winds of Winter out yet?

4,5/5

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I hate hate hate hate IE so much aaaarghhhhh >:(

Snippy Snippets: "The Separation" by Christoper Priest

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"The Separation" by CHRISTOPER PRIEST is a prime example of great and mind-boggling alternative history fiction. You get caught up in a story narrated by two identical twins through their journals and a few external publications on the lives of the two. The story is about the lives of Jack (the bomber pilot) and Joe L. Sawyer (the pacifist ambulance driver) during the WWII England. They have a love-hate relationship and they are both in love with the same woman. The war and their personal differences separate them, but as we follow their journal entries and external ("objective") facts are introduced along the way via newspaper articles and other official publications, we realize that a lot of the information we picked up along the way really contradicts itself. Priest does not spoon-feed the reader with the right answers, but leaves you to juggle with your thoughts and come up with a reasonable explanation for what was really going on. The writing is superb as well. A great page-turner even though the book offers limited action. If you want a breezy read full of adventure this probably isn't it, but what it offers is high quality drama, a well-written and highly enjoyable prose (the red herrings and the conflicting facts are masterfully woven into the fable so they don't disrupt the flow of the novel at all), and a sharp mind to connect the dots at the end to come up with an answer for the factual discrepancies. A great, heartily recommended read! Somewhere in between 4/5 and 4.5/5.

- Thrinidir -

Carlos Ruiz Zafón - The Shadow of the Wind (Book Review)

"The Shadow of the Wind" (Amazon: UK, US)
by CARLOS RUIZ ZAFÓN
Format: Paperback, 544/487 pages
Publisher: Phoenix / Penguin (October 2005 / January 2005)

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CARLOS RUIZ ZAFÓN was quite famous in his motherland Spain for his appealing YA literature even before he set his pen to write "The Shadow of the Wind" (which will, from now on, be referred to as "TSotW"). But it was "TSotW" that brought him international fame and recognition as one of the speculative fiction's most promising new authors (where 'new' is a relative term). Even though "TSotW" was written back in 2001 it took several years for the various translations to circle the globe and reach world-wide popularity and acclaim.

If we look at this novel at face value only, it's a pretty straightforward mystery/crime story set in Spain's lascivious metropolis Barcelona in one of it's more ominous periods - reign of fascism and general Franco. Our protagonist, a 10-year-old by the name of Daniel, discovers a spellbinding book and the more fascinated that he becomes with it, the more he prods into it's authors shady past, more dangerous, interwoven and jarring the discoveries and his everyday life become. But "TSotW" wouldn't be written by a Spaniard if it didn't include tinges of Mediterranean passion and love for life. But when you finish the book and think of it, this is so much more than a 'simple' mystery/crime story (which isn't all that simple to begin with), but a book about life itself and why it's worth living for - and what's worth dying for as well. So, like all great literature, "The Shadow of the Wind" transcends any simple genre labeling.

Telling you more about the story than I just did would be pointless and counterproductive to the message I'm trying to convey in this review, but let it be enough to say that the plot itself is as enigmatic, gripping and intense as one would want from a mystery/detective story. The pace - after a slow start - and suspension of disbelief are handled with the guile of a master storyteller for the better part of the novel as well.

Characters are, for the most part, complex and multi-layered, but also most vivid and sympathetic. ZAFÓN is prone to caricature his characters (i.e. representing them in a mildly exaggerated manner for the purpose of comic relief from the otherwise often bleak and dreary content). If there was a specific character in the novel, beside the main protagonist Daniel, that I'd want to expose, it would definitely be Fermin, once secret agent and now homeless person who played for the wrong side and attracted an unwanted attention from a certain vicious police inspector. His musings and dialogues are really an accomplishment of smart writing. ZAFÓN's history as a writer of YA literature is most clearly evident with how he approaches and handles his characters and this is one of the biggest appeals of "TSotW"; characters of this novel stir up the reader in a profound way, they bring out the awe, youth and innocence in us, and it's simply priceless.

If I had any grievances with the book they would be that the start is somewhat slow and that I didn't always like how Zafon handled the relationship between Daniel and his father. Well, when I think on it, quite a few families we meet in "TSotW" are portrayed as at least mildly, if not severely, dysfunctional and estranged, but with Daniel and his father it feels like there is a void in narration; the reader expects some kind of shift, closure or...something, but it never comes. But other than that, "The Shadow of the Wind" is a terrific example of how powerful - as in meaningful, smart and moving - can a scribbled slab of dead wood be. May ZAFÓN's fate never reflect that of Julian Carax*.

----(4,5/5 Fruitcakes)
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- Thrinidir -

* Julián Carax - The alleged author of "The Shadow of the Wind". Daniel desperately seeks to find out the truth about this mysterious man: the reasons for his journeys, the truth about his childhood, and the explanation for why his books are all being destroyed.

p.s. Definitely the best book I've read in the last year and a half (rivalled only by the brilliant "Flowers of Algernon" by Daniel Keyes - reviewed by Trin).

Catherynne M. Valente - The Orphan's Tales Duology (Book Review)

The Orphan's Tales: In The Night Garden (Amazon: US, UK)
& In the Cities of Coin and Spice (Amazon: US, UK)
by Catherynne M. Valente
Format: Paperback, 496 pages & 528 pages
Publisher: Spectra Books

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Once, there was a palace of a sultan, and around the palace, a garden was spread wide and blooming. In this garden, full of beautiful flowers, exotic trees and singing birds, there was also one young, wild girl. No one knew her name and origins - even more, they all turned away from her and never let her set foot onto the palace floor. That was because this girl had dark circles around her eyes like a raccoon, and so people whispered she was a demon, a devil, a cursed one.

But despite all that, one day there came a young boy from the palace who didn't fear the girl. She revealed her secret to this young prince and then told him stories she read in the ink around her eyes ...

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As a kid, how fond were you of fairytales? Personally, I loved them. I had a book where there was a tale for each day, a set of 'seasonal' books which included a book of tales for each season, Grimms' Fairy Tales and The Great Big Treasury of Beatrix Potter. Later on, these were replaced by a depressing book, written by Oscar Wilde (The Happy Prince and Other Tales) and a huge, nameless collection of folk tales, edited and collected by Italo Calvino. Maybe you've red other stories, ones I have no clue about, but I'm sure about one thing - my younger self would kill for "Orphan's Tales" and made it reasonable with only one sentence: it's the ultimate storybook. And by this I most certainly don't mean to say that this duology is meant for children only - it's more like a book for children of all ages.

At first glance, "Orphan's Tales" doesn't differ from an ordinary storybook, despite being published in two volumes. The story begins like all classicall tales, there are pretty illustrations accompanying the text, a nicely done deckled edge and the books as a whole are overall quite adorable. But as you immerse deeper and deeper into Valente's wonderful world, you realise there is something more to the tales. There are small details and trinkets we usually don't find in fairytales - e.g. when a girl dances with a Firebird, she inevitably gets severe burns. It's a realistich touch that makes the tales much more believable, despite the fantastic elements and the often grotesque settings and creatures. A touch of light irony is also sensed at times, as Valente plays with the romantic, idealistic view which is found in classical fairytales. In "Orphan's Tales", the brave princes are often stupid, pretty princesses turn out to be half-monsters and your friend in need is the ugliest, most savage beest in the whole forest. But despite all this, the "Orphan's Tales" is essentially a 'serious' storybook, unlike Sapkowski's "Last Wish", where classical tales are turned upside-down and modernised, sometimes even made fun of.

One thing I really adored in "Orphan's Tales" is how incredibly intertwined the stories are. There is a frame narrative that supports a horde of substories, which sometimes lead to a bit of confusion, especially when you fail to remember what exactly all those were about. Both books can also be a bit long-winded if read in one big gulp and one after another, but on the other hand, it's good to read them in that way, lest you forget what exactly happened in the previous volume and miss a lot of little details that connect the stories. For example, the characters from different stories often meet later on or tell tales of one another, which I found thrilling - it's a great cohesive touch and the read is packed with realisations in the vein of "Hey, I know that one!".

While a lot of authors, even some of the masters of the trade, have trouble with writing good endings and therefore often fail to do so; Valente avoids writing a 'bad ending' with grace and certainly succeeds in writing an almost perfect ending. Since I liked the frame narrative a lot and could hardly wait to see how it ends, the fact that ending is well-written is even more important to me. It all clicks together perfectly, creating a rather surprising and (at least for me) very exciting mosaic. The only thing I would wish different is a bit happier ending for Dinrzard, but I guess one can't have everything. Anyways, "Orphan's Tales" is a superb duology and I heartily reccomend it to everyone who wishes to please his/hers inner child.
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Gardner Dozois (ed.) - Galileo's Children: Tales Of Science vs. Superstition (Book Review)

"Galileo's Children"
edited by: Gardner Dozois
hardcover, 343 pages
publisher: PYR (imprint from Prometheus Books)

Galileo Galilei is best known for his sotto-voce defiance of the inquisition. This, one of the most famous quotes in history - "Eppur si muove" (but still, it does move) - is without doubt apocryphal. The sentiment was surely present, but Galileo was a cautious man, well aware of the fate that befall Giordano Bruno. Some would say that so much of his fame comes from good PR, which made of him a martyr of reason, others look on his work at the fields of physics, mathematic, astronomy and philosophy and see in him a true man of science and ratio (which includes self-preservation, of course) and say without a doubt that he is a true father of (modern) science.

That being said, it is a little wonder, that his name that was chosen for the title of anthology of SF stories that PYR published in 2005, and his tale made the frame in which stories had to fit to be included. But Galileo is not the only great name that found its way on the cover of the 343 pages long book. PYR has left the selection of stories to the veteran of anthologies - Gardner Dozois and he proved that he wasn't named best professional editor for fifteen times in vain. Looking back over the last half a century he selected the stories which in his eyes best encompassed the conflict between the opposites of science and superstition, often written by authors with names as well known as his. Anthology includes thirteen tales:

• The Stars Below (1974) by Ursula K. LeGuin
• The Will of God (1991) by Keith Roberts
• The Way of Cross and Dragon (1979) by George R.R. Martin
• The Pope of the Chimps (1982) by Robert Silverberg
• The World is a Sphere (1973) by Edgar Pangborn
• Written in Blood (1999) by Chris Lawson
• Falling Star (2004) by Brendan DuBois
• Three Hearings on the Existence of Snakes in the Human Bloodstream (1997) by James Alan Gardner
• The Star (1955) by Arthur C. Clarke
• The Last Homosexual (1996) by Paul Park
• The Man Who Walked Home (1972) by James Tiptree Jr.
• When the Old Gods Die (1995) by Mike Resnick
• Oracle (2000) by Greg Egan

As said, the main theme is the conflict between ratio of science and the intolerance, misapplication of facts, glorification of ignorance and use of all these in propagation of fear and ever increasing control found in every culture known to man. It will not come as a big surprise that the main "bad guy" that embody most of these in many of the tales is (organized) religion. With rampant fundamentalism on all the continents, screaming for return to one kind of so called "true values" or another and seeing science as the root of all evil, that is easy to understand, but nonetheless sometimes hard to swallow. In a way I found it odd. I agree with such a view of the situation, but when faced with such an en-masse fingerpointing I can not help myself but to think over some darker aspects of science.

I love short stories and novelettes. In some ways I consider them the true form of the genre that had lately put quantity over the "idea", which was the yardstick of a tale for better part of the century. Within these still lives that simple, playful "What if..." which, sometimes written softer, other harder and sometimes just for fun, is always a pleasure to read. Then again, perhaps in part such a feeling comes from my Slavic soul, with its romantically fatalistic individuality (LOL). I do hope you will not think worse of me if I confess that for me Clark's 'The Star' with it's simple but profound dilemma and many subtle points still shines most brightly (pun intended) among all of these tales. But if you were to ask me which I liked the least, I could not answer you, because all of the stories are great.

Those among you, that look first at the numbers of Fruitcakes, than at the cover and only then decide whether to read the review, by now probably wonder how come, with all the praise, there are only four (and a half) of our beloved maced barbarians beneath the text? For two reasons, and I have already hinted at both:

• When one thinks about it, it is obvious that the tales were selected for a certain quality. Dozois's introduction offers explanation enough, but nonetheless I got the feeling that the book lacks a tiny bit of balance. There is a prominent "we are in the right" feeling which I found a tad irritating. This, I suppose, also explains the vague but nagging feeling of deja-vu that follows you through the book. It is also true that this impression can be easily avoided, simply by reading one story at a time.
  

• The oldest among the tales was first published in 1955 and only three of them are less than a decade old. This assures us a quality of writing, that is true. Not because new authors would write worse than those decades ago, but because any such tale had already stood and survived the judgment of time and change of generations. This fact will on the one hand without a doubt put this anthology on many of 'must have' lists, but on the other it also represents a weakness of a sort. If one is a veteran reader of anthologies and publications that run such form of SF tales (or, in many cases had just read through award winning tales) he had already read most, if not all, of chosen tales.

So, as said (damn, I think this is the highest mark I've ever bestowed on this blog):

Well folks it's been a while, beeing the end of a school year and all. But now (or really soon) I'm back among the ranks of unemployed, so I suppose we'll be reading more of each other. THX for the wait (especially to ThRiNiDiR, for not skinning me alive, since I've been promising him this piece for the better part of three months). And a BIG "thank you!" to PYR.

Joe Abercrombie - Before They Are Hanged (Book Review)

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---If the first novel of The First Law trilogy plummeted into the fantasy genre as a delightfully refreshing and innovative subversion of (epic) fantasy tropes, “Before They Are Hanged” delivers a heightened style into the mix, it also triples the action and multiplies the humor. Simply put– Abecrombie managed to write a rock-hard sophomore effort; and the best of it is that he managed to keep the plot interesting and simple at the same time - skillfully avoiding the danger of making it too dense or convoluted and therefore detract the attention from the biggest strength of the first two books in the trilogy – c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n.
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---Although it did not take him long to put out the sequel of “The Blade Itself”, Abercrombie matured as a writer somewhere in-between the books, learning from the experience of writing “The Blade Itself” and its shortcomings. In the first instalemnt, he acted unsure at some parts of the novel, relying heavily on his (otherwise cracking) sense of humor and at times the story just felt a bit confusing. The humor is as dark and as present as in the first book but even subtler this time around, with Glokta clearly stealing the show displaying his bitter irony and world-weariness. The plot itself evolved somewhat from a light-fantasy fare interwoven with humor and occasional gritty scenes, to a more realistic setting where webs within webs of conspiracies, backstabbing politics, raging battles and endless lust for power flourish. At the same time however, “Before They Are Hanged” still manages to retain the lighter elements of its predecessor. Characters remain realistic and quite unusual, although sometimes a bit stereotypical (prevalently the gentry) – but still a good distance from the typical fantasy geezers I’d say.
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---It might come as a surprise, but Abercrombie doesn’t pay heavy attention to detailed world-building; or at least that’s how it appears at first. The narrative in “Before They Are Hanged” does not baffle the reader with the depictions of land or people, but regardless to that Abercrombie stands triumphant, because the reader easily conjures up in his mind the fictional world of the book down to its grittiest details. The catch is that Joe inserts many simple, but shrewd observations into his characters’ dialogue and uses the occurring events themselves to build up stones, paths, trees, houses and walls and the rest of the surroundings. The final result is a more or less completed image of the world, acquired without having to read through boring descriptions of the world and (sometimes) tedious info-dumps.
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---The one flaw - if you could call it that, of his subtle world-building is that the reader can easily lose track of time. Joe jumps from one scene to another in order to keep the action unabated and manages not to flounder in the hellish tempo of all the activities that are going on. That, unfortunately, costs him a bit when it comes to the perception of the passing of time; the voyage to the end of the world, which takes months, seems to last only about weeks or so. Mind you, I didn’t find this very off-putting, since I read the book in one reading, devouring it in one afternoon – what I want to say is that Abercrombie keeps only the interesting parts and skips the potentially boring ones but it might bother some of you, who enjoy and prefer the process of telling of a story in favor of relatively bare and goal-driven plot.
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---Another fallacy that still plagues Abercrombie's writing is predictability (but that changes with the third book, I can tell you that now :) and unusually so if you consider the unpredictability of a couple of protagonists.
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*minor spoilers ahead*

---For example, Jezal - a high-brow noble with a slight but undeniable potential to become a bearable, if not worthy companion in the first book - now, unsurprisingly, grows into a skilled fighter with a rational touch to everything he does, thus being a bit easier to cope with and maybe being even slightly likable. The situation with Glokta is somewhat similar. He expects to be killed (in one way or another) throughout the book and is so sure of his inevitable demise that he says (monologue) his goodbyes at every possible occasion. If the reader is not completely naïve or a beginner, he doesn’t actually believe in Glokta’s imminent demise It therefore comes as no surprise when Glokta manages to stay alive and ‘well’. But that is actually ok, since he is one of my favorite characters, if not the favorite.

*end of spoilers*

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---“Before They Are Hanged” will not be remembered for its arguably pedestrian plot, neither can it boast with great epic battles or vivid world-building, but it nevertheless holds your unwavering attention up to the end. The book is strong on humor and sharp dialogue, not to mention how it manages to render (rather than avoid) many clichés. It is true that it sometimes feels a bit predictable, but that doesn’t spoil the reading experience at all. Quite on the contrary, “Before They Are Hanged” is one of the more enjoyable fantasy books I’ve read - not to mention the fact that I can hardly remember the last time I laughed so hard and so often while reading a work of fiction. Strongly recommended.
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~ Trin ~

Joe Haldeman - The Forever War (Book Review)

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"The Forever War" was first published in 1974 and since then it was republished on several occasions (I've counted around 13) – these editions varying from simple reprints to the authors definite edition in 1997 and to the inclusion into the "royal" SF Masterworks collection. The novel was a solemn winner of both Nebula and Hugo awards and the fact that it is praised worldwide as one of the cornerstones of science fiction ever-since leaves little doubt that "The Forever War" withstood the test of time, as well as cows this reviewer with the weight of its historically accumulated pedigree. It’s really hard to review such a weighty title without being a part of the period that defined its becoming. Among other themes Haldeman tackles various contemporary issues of that time – Vietnam War is a prominent one for example (Haldeman fought there for a while). But let us not forget the fact that "The Forever War" would have never be lauded as a "classic", if the book hadn’t dealt with the issues of that time in a more general, universal and all-comprising way, if you wish. Haldeman deftly tackles and speculates about the nature of war, politics, society, philosophy, science, essence of humanity and personal relations in grand, intelligent and on occasion even clairvoyant manner.

It is the year of 1996. Humankind is in possession of space faring technology, and the conquest of the universe runs smoothly until one of the human colonists’ ship is attacked by before unencountered but obviously belligerent alien race – the Taurans. William Mandella is a first wave conscript for the elite UN task force being assembled for a war against Taurans. What makes him a candidate for the task force is his above average intelligence, education and physical prowess. The story begins during the stark and uncompromising initial training of the first group of recruits, which is the cause of first military casualties. Afterwards, “the real thing” follows; we are witness to long and time-consuming space voyages destined at some obscure out-in-the-nowhere solar systems, where battles with Taurans rage to and fro. There is always a chance that the enemy will have technological advantage over human forces or the other way around due to the time discrepancies, caused by faster than light travel. The toll on human life is excruciating. Mandella succeeds in retiring, but finds The Earth some twenty-one years later, two years of his subjective time, changed beyond the face of recognition (sadly for the worse) and once everything that ties him down passes away he volunteers back into the army. Just as soon as that he finds himself in the clutches of interstellar warmongering…for another thousand years or so - give or take a few years. Hence the name of the novel – “The Forever War”...indeed.

An example of successful attempt at humor:
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“William?” She had MCCOY stenciled above her face-plate.
“Hi, Sean. Anything special?”
“I just wondered if you had anyone to sleep with tonight?”
That’s right; I’d forgotten. There wasn’t any sleeping rooster here. Everybody chose his own partner. “Sure, I mean…” (he accepts the offer)
…
Everybody was jumping up and down to keep warm.
“How c-cold do you think, it is, M-Mandella?” That was McCoy.
“I don’t even want to think about it…At least as cold as Missouri was.”
“Ung…wish they’d, get some, fucken, heat in, this place.” It always affects the small women more than anybody else. McCoy was the littlest one in the company, a waspwaist doll barely five feet high.
“They’ve got the airco going. It can’t be long now.”
“I wish I, was a big, slab of, meat like, you.”
I was glad she wasn’t. (pg.21; pg.22)
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I’m aware of the fact that I might be reiterating some of the facts that have been pointed out a countless of times before, but that is always a risk when reviewing things that have been in circulation and public eye for so long. William Mandella is a well round character, presented with conviction and what is always welcome – likable. He is well-read, fair, observant, introspected and slightly disinclined towards arrogance and authority (or any other kind of position holding power). I always had a thing for first person narrative, if and especially if the protagonist is consistent and sympathetic. Other characters in the novel are coping with the situation in a way as as anyone would in such morose circumstances. Staying alive is a top priority, while enjoying every free moment follows by a small margin.

Even though there are some explicit themes involved, Haldeman handles them civilly and with elegance throughout. They are incorporated naturally without making them the focal point of the plot or treating them abrasively, even though there is some pretty avant-garde tinkering with social conventions involved (state approved homosexuality; queerness of heterosexuality; military coordinating who gets to bunk with whom over night etc.).

Everything from scientific breakthroughs to sociological speculations about how future societies might look like is well thought out and explained. “The Forever War” certainly has similar flavor to one other SF Masterworks classic I’ve managed to read; I’m speaking of “The Left Hand of Darkness” by Ursula K. LeGuin, this book I cannot recommend highly enough.

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Orion Publishing Group (2001) / Author's prefered edition (1997) / Eos paperback (2003)
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"The Forever War" is by no means dauntless. The prose shows signs of old age as do some of the concepts, which the newer generations of science fiction authors managed to polish further. Haldeman can be sometimes also quite heavy on the science part of the fiction. This makes the setting more plausible, but disrupts and dampens the pace. Of action we see surprisingly little, at odds with the fact that this is basically considered a war novel. I would also have opted for more dialogue and more of the witty snipets which would normally spice things up (Haldeman certainly has a flair for being funny and ironic), but this is really just my personal preference and not an objective criticism.

It seems I’m on a goodreadin’ streak lately; enjoying all the books that I read, but that does nothing to diminish the worth garnered by this novel over the years. As I’ve already said it is quite on par, quality-wise, with LeGuin’s heavyweight novel from about the same time - “The Left Hand of Darkness”. Do yourself a favor and pick up at least one of these two books, as they are (1)great representatives of their genre; (2)they shine an illuminating light on contemporary science fiction literature; as well as (3)contain a distinct flavor of the period in which they were written in.
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I’m unable to decide between the grade 4/5 and 4,5/5, so I leave this to decide for yourselves.
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- Thrinidir -

Cormac McCarthy - The Road (Book Review)

Homo Homini Lupus
~ an ancient proverb comes to life in the most literal of senses ~

It is the end of the world...or very close to it anyhow. We are introduced to ashen ruins of what once was Northern America, now transformed into a slob of lawless grey hell on Earth, devastated by nuclear war. Here and now, scant survivors who haven't abandoned the mores and constraints of old civilized Earth are preyed upon by the ruthless gangs which forsook even the greatest taboo of all – feasting upon the flesh of fellow men and women. In such a godforsaken place we partake the journey of one man and his son on “the road” predestined from the beginning to end with a disaster.

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“When he woke in the woods in the night and the cold of the night…Nights dark beyond darkness and the days more gray each one what had gone before…he raised himself in the stinking robes and blankets and looked toward the east for any light but there was none.” (pg.1)

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The above passage chimes eerily prophetic. The tone of the book does not change often, and even then it might be for the worse and not for the better. I should confide to you right away, that this book mesmerized me. I cannot remember the last time a work of fiction awed me so. “The Road” is a heavy-hitter, a true emotional sledgehammer. You ought to be inhuman not to sympathize with one forlorn man and his offspring on their sordid journey, fighting a hapless struggle against the dying earth and the scum that pollutes it.

McCarthy employs a very detached and unembellishing prose; he strums the exactly right emotional cords, and doing it in such a virtuoso sequence so that the story does not turn out overbearingly dramatic or even cheesy. The story is compelling enough to keep you turning the pages, but at the same time you are really afraid to go on, because you don’t want anything bad to happen to the main protagonists. This (1)inherent tension as well as (2)the masterfully built suspense (=)point at a perfect example of literary master work, in my opinion at least.

Our main protagonists, actually the only people really worth mentioning, remain elegantly unnamed, and known to the reader only as “the man” or “papa” and “the child”. McCarthy’s dogged and unblemished descriptions of banal menial chores that only result in small triumphs, which would seem inconsistential in “normal” circumstances, but in the world they are living in decide the difference between life and death. All the above mentioned strategies that the author uses might seem as simple writing tools, but wielded by the hands of such a gifted writer as is McCarthy, they become very powerful – powerful enough to win him the Pulitzer award.

The Atmosphere McCarthy creates is at once simple, extra-sensual, desolate as well as terrifying. “The Road” therefore functions not only as a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel but also as an imaginative horror story.

The biggest off put I can come up with is the ever-present, soul crushing sense of doom. You really have to be in the mood for such an emotionally laden and disturbing tale. But after you turn the last page, you really feel a sense of accomplishment and all the effort pays off.

I must admit that I haven’t read any other works by Cormac McCarthy, but if his other writings are nearly as good as this one, I really should. A bit of trivia – his novel “No Country for Old Men” was adopted to film last year and won 4 Oscars. Congratulations! But this fact doesn’t really surprise me.

A brilliant novel. Read it.

4,5/5 (reviewer)
4,5/5 (Trin)

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- Thrinidir -