Josh More's Amazon Reviews

Josh More gave 3 stars to: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Wed, 9 Apr 2008 02:36:29 GMT

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

Well written, but somewhat cliched, April 8, 2008

This review contains spoilers

OK, seriously, how I could pass up a book with a title like The Perks of Being a Wallflower? Especially after I read the back and it painted a picture of a shy, gawky and confused highschool kid who had to deal with similar issues that I did during that time?

Well, at least that's what I thought I'd be reading. It started out good enough. The writing is amusing, and some of the teenage "insights" were downright hilarious. There were also a few bits here and there that were amazingly well done and surprisingly painful.

However, taken as a whole, it's a bit too busy and I lost the believability near the end. I don't doubt that a great many intelligent kids have social difficulties in high school (I know that my own experiences were... suboptimal)...

However, the concept that, in the course of one year, a kid can learn about sex and masturbation, get addicted to tobacco, experiment with marijuana and LSD, overcome his own self-esteem problems, deal with child molestation, witness a rape, witness physical abuse, deal with an abortion, have his first drink, etc etc etc... well, it seems contrived. (As is the concept of a kid that gets to be freshman, knows about sex, but has never masturbated before.)

Let me just say that a person can be interesting and have emotional issues resulting from intelligence and poor social skills without having to have been physically or sexually abused. It gets tiresome to read books where such a situation either launches the character on their journey, or (in the case of this book) it becomes a surprise twist at the end.

This book would have been so much better had the kid just been a really bright kid who "didn't get it". There's ample drama and angst in a normal well-adjusted teenager that it's unnecessary to create especially painful experiences for the reader. In many ways, this seems to be the easy way out.

The format is one that is easy to do wrong (collection of letters), but works in this case because the writing style is believable for the type of character writing it... and it's all written by one person, so you don't have the problem of tracking dialogue that often results such such a format.

All in all, the writing is good, and there are some very well written and evocative bits. However, I don't recommend that anyone make it a point to read this one. More importantly, I don't recommend that any angsty teenagers read it at all... it's not likely to help (and could well hinder).

Josh More gave 4 stars to: Things You Should Know

Wed, 9 Apr 2008 02:32:10 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Things You Should Know : A Collection of Stories by A. M. Homes

Good collection, very honest, April 8, 2008

Another book that I picked up simply because it had a great title was Things You Should Know by A. M. Holmes. Not only do I like to know things (so a book that detailed what I should know was particularly appealing), but it has a lovely picture of a penguin-badger on the cover.

I know you're thinking "Penguin-badgers? We don't need no stinkin' penguin-badgers!", but in this case you might want to reconsider. This is a collection of short stories is wonderful, despite the yellow post-it note that informs me: "this book sucks" (I love used books. :)

She writes from the heart, which is something that reviewers say quite often but never define. This is unsurprising, as the heart is a tricky thing. Most authors tend not to write about four chambers that endlessly pump oxygenated erythrocytes, choosing instead to write from a metaphorical heart. This is the approach that A. M. Homes has taken. In her case, however, "writing from the heart" and "writing heart-warming stories" are very different.

She opens the collection with "The Chinese Lesson", which doesn't so much explore the issue of an interracial marriage (half unrecognized) as drop you into it and let you find your own way out (sans-machete). She then goes into incomprehensible magical realism in "Raft in Water, Floating", which doesn't even being to make sense until you read "The Weather Outside is Sunny and Bright", her other magical realism story later in the volume. Even then, it's not entirely clear what's going on, but such things do not have to be understood to be appreciated.

Then, just in case you were liking her characters, you get to meet a woman who you really want to like, but can't quite manage to. This is largely because she is emotionally crippled and indulges in what I can only describe as "genetic rape". "Georgica" is a spooky story, one about loss and pain and longing. I'm still not sure if I liked it. I certainly didn't enjoy it... but of all the stories in this book, it's the most memorable.

The woman in "Remedy", however, is very likable. It's a story about maturity and anxiety. It's about trust and communication... and about how easy it is to lose them both in the business of the everyday.

In contrast, "Rockets Around the Moon" doesn't hit nearly as hard. It's about family -- families of birth and families of choice. It really should be more powerful than it is, but I just didn't find myself caring about the characters. People with other upbringings might have different reactions to it.

Then I read "Please Remain Calm" and my world was shaken. Some of you know bits of my past. This was a story about marriage and suicide. I'll just say that it hit very close to home, and I may have been crying at the end. In some ways, I wish I had read it years ago. In others, I'm glad that I have taken the path I have.

The title story "Things You Should Know" is about uncertainty and (possibly) a psychotic break. Generally speaking, it does not present the things you should know, but it does discuss them in their absence. It's hard to boil a three page story down further, so I will merely say that it's about expectation and the eventually realization that, contrary to the common message of society, you have to make a life for yourself. Things don't magically fall into place because there are no places for them to land.

"The Whiz Kids" is about sexual abuse among children. I did not enjoy it... but then I wasn't supposed to.

The other story that stuck with me was "Do Not Disturb". Homes has a way of writing emotionally distant characters, and it really shines in this story. You get to meet a woman who is amazingly egotistical and self-centered as well as her husband who never stands up for himself. It's an unbalanced relationship between two people who become progressively more unbalanced as the story progresses. It's good. It's not fun, but it's good... and it's probably good to read stories that aren't fun sometimes.

The story ends with "The Former First Lady and the Football Hero", which (to spoil it) is about Nancy Regan's life taking care of her husband as he slips into Alzheimer's. It's really good. I never thought that I'd think that about a story about a political figure... especially one with whom's policies I disagree, but it's just so well written. Unlike most of the characters in this book who are somewhat distant and crippled, Nancy Regan is portrayed as being amazingly strong and capable. It's a great end to the collection.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: The Magic City

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 03:33:06 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Magic City by Edith Nesbit

Good book, but hard for young readers, February 18, 2008

Years ago, I stumbled across a book by Edward Eager (Knight's Castle, I believe). This guy wrote books for his children when he ran out of E. Nesbit stories to read to them. So, I discovered E. Nesbit through Edward Eager. When I started reading her, it rapidly became clear that many of my favorite authors were likely influenced by her, so when I found a book that I had not read yet, I was excited.

It's good. It's not as good as her more famous books, and it does not age well. However, there is more creativity in this work than in anything of hers that I have read. Sadly, I'm also older now, and was able to see things in this book that I would not have noticed when I was younger.

The story introduces two children who are forced to live together when their caretakers marry. (Unlike The Ogre Downstairs, I don't find fault with this plot device because the book is set around 1900. Culture was quite different then.) The girl (Lucy) quite likes the boy (Phillip), but he does not return her affection because he's upset that his life has changed. This continues when they both get magically sucked into a world that was created when Phillip built a city out of various things around the house.

This is where it gets difficult to read, due to cultural differences. See, the city is populated by the toys that the boy used to build the city. Additionally, the things in the books that he used for walls sometimes come out. So, there are a LOT of references to toys and educational materials that simply aren't common any longer. However, her writing more than makes up for the cultural divide. I am going to share some with you. If you do not wish the spoilers, buy it and read it yourself.

'I was about to tell you,' said Mr. Noah, 'and I will not answer questions. Of course it is magic. Everything in the world is magic, until you understand it.
(Mr. Noah is a character from the Noah's Ark toy set.)

'Because,' he said, 'I'm more likely to meet Lucy. Girls always keep to paths. They never explore.'

Which just shows how little he knew about girls.
(This is after Philip loses Lucy due to a strange series of circumstances.)

'But laws can't be useful and beautiful, can they?'

'They can certainly be useful,' said Mr. Noah, 'and,' he added with modest pride, 'my laws are beautiful. What do you think of this? "Everybody must try to be kind to everybody else. Any one who has been unkind must be sorry and say so."'
(Mr. Noah is also the Chief Judge, so he gets to make the laws.)

'Is it something we shall be afraid of too?' Lucy asked. And Philip at once said, 'Oh, then she really did mean to come, did she? But she wasn't to if she was afraid. Girls weren't expected to be brave.'

'They are, here,' said Mr. Noah, 'the girls are expected to be brave and the boys kind.'
(That fact that I grew up reading stuff like this goes a long way to explain my attitudes towards gender, I suppose.)

The sun was shining--there was a sun, and Mr. Noah had told the children that it came out of the poetry books, together with rain and flowers and the changing seasons--and in spite of the strange, almost-tumble-no-it's-all-right-but-you'd-better-look-out way in which the camel walked, the two travellers were very happy. The dogs bounded along in the best of spirits, and even the camel seemed less a prey than usual to that proud melancholy which you must have noticed in your visits to the Zoo as his most striking quality.
(It's true, camels are quite mournful beasts. I'll try to take photos for you some time.)

'Oh, anybody can steer then,' said Billy; 'you if you like.' So it was Lucy who steered the ark into harbour, under Mr. Noah's directions. Arks are very easy to steer if you only know the way. Of course arks are not like other vessels; they require neither sails nor steam engines, nor oars to make them move. The very arkishness of the ark makes it move just as the steersman wishes. He only has to say 'Port,' 'Starboard,' 'Right ahead,' 'Slow' and so on, and the ark (unlike many people I know) immediately does as it is told.
(I probably picked up my proclivity for parentheticals from E. Nesbit as well. Oh, and who can not bask in the awesomeness that is the word "arkishness"?)

* * * * * *

I'm sorry this chapter is cut up into bits with lines of stars, but stars are difficult to avoid when you have to tell about a lot of different things happening all at once. That is why it is much better always to keep your party together if you can. And I have allowed mine to get separated so that Philip, the parrot and the rest of the company are going through three sets of adventures all at the same time. This is most trying for me, and fully accounts for the stars. Which I hope you'll excuse. However.
(Nothing special to say here. I'm just going to let the beauty of that paragraph stand on its own.)

'The more a present costs you, the more it's worth,' said Mr. Noah. 'This has cost you so much, it's the most splendid present in the world.'
(Look, a moral lesson - just hiding in there waiting to jump out at the unwary reader.)

'Oh, dear,' said Lucy despairingly, 'aren't there any women here? They always have more sense than men.'

'What you say is rude as well as untrue,' said the red leader; 'but to avoid fuss we will lead you and your fierce dog to the huts of the women. And then perhaps you will allow us to go to sleep.'
(More gender-preconception correction. Also, note the presence of "red leader". George Lucas must have read E. Nesbit as well.)

So there you go, excellent writing and a story about creativity, magic and the imagination. How can you go wrong?

Well, you can make reference to numerous things that are no longer commonplace (Noah's Ark set, motor veils, white dominoes, draughts, blotting pads, lead soldiers, wooden dollhouse food, etc). You can also casually accept the fact that, at that time, there was a strict social hierarchy in England and only address this book to young children of the upper class. (This is very slightly addressed in the end, but not by much.) Oh, and you can suggest that it's a good idea for children to lick lead paint off of wooden toys.

However, if you can accept the book as a product of its time, and one that did try to address inequality and prejudice, just not everywhere, it's a very enjoyable read. I burst out laughing several times (especially at the end, which I shan't spoil for you). If you like reading children's stories, it's a delight. If you have children, this would be a good read-aloud book. It's not a good children's read-on-your-own book, because of the cultural differences.

I'd give this book six stars, but E. Nesbit already did

Josh More gave 1 star to: The Ogre Downstairs

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 01:37:04 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Ogre Downstairs by Diana Wynne Jones

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Don't waste your time, February 10, 2008

I've enjoyed Diana Wynne Jones's work for years. When I got this book, I thought it would be nice to take a peek into her earlier work. Sometimes you can get hints of how an author evolves her style over time. Sometimes it gives you hints for appreciating her other work. Sometimes it gives you a backstory to characters that you already know.

Sometimes.

Not this time.

The book opens with two young boys, Caspar and Johnny. They're pretty much interchangeable except that one is older than the other. It doesn't really matter who. Their mother has recently married, horror of horrors, a man with (pause for dramatic effect) two similarly interchangeable sons. Oh, the mom also has a daughter who is effectively a plot device.

Basically, the step-father (step parents are inherently evil, as you'll remember from your fairy tales) knows that the two boys (not his) don't like him, so he tries to bribe them into liking them by buying them a chemistry set. Now, this book was published in 1974, and I assume that the chemistry sets that you could get back then had all sorts of fun stuff in it. Based on the stories that I'm hearing, kids today don't even get magnesium to light on fire, get scared by the bright light, drop it on the carpet, freak out over the smoke, attempt to smother it with a pillow, eventually remember the fire extinguisher, and then solve the "how do I not tell my parents?" problem by rearranging the furniture in their room and put the pillow in the trash. . . but I digress. This chemistry set is magic.

You can, of course, tell that it's magic because the strange chemicals have italicized Latin-esque names. That's a dead giveaway.

So, when the mom and step-father are downstairs, and the step-father is shouting for quiet so he can watch TV (a certain indicator of deep, soul destroying evil, of course), the mother's boys are playing with the chemistry set in their room, and the plot device wanders in and is stereotypically annoying. Then, she spills the chemicals on herself and gains the magical power of flight.

Such powers are less than effective indoors.

It dawns on me, at this point, that the novel might be intended to teach children the importance of conserving our natural resources, because the rest of the book is primarily focused on trying to not run out of the limited quantity of magical Latinates. Conveniently, there are sufficient amounts of the various magical chemicals for both sets of interchangeable youths to experiment with their mutual chemistry sets and more or less determine what they do... yet have small enough amounts yet to place them in jeopardy when they have their trivial adventures due to them not playing together.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that the step-father's boys also have a chemistry set of their own, but that's OK, Jones forgets to make that clear too. Apparently, in England in the early 70s, one gets two sets of children to play together by putting them in separate rooms with separate toys.

*shrug*

Anyway, things move forward. The parents squabble because raising five children is difficult when they don't get to meet one another until after you get married. It's also difficult when you don't bother to introduce the new parents to the children until after the wedding. Apparently causes stress. Who knew? Oh, it's also a good idea to discuss how finances might change when you go from a three person household to having to support seven people. . . I'm just saying is all.

The children have a series of tedious adventures whereby:

* They fly and almost run out of the magic chemical that keeps them in the air.
* They shrink and almost get caught by the oh-so horrendous step father... who is yelling in italics by now.
* They switch bodies and almost have a learning experience by living one another's lives for a day.
* They bring their toys to life, including their step-father's pipe, which almost gets them in trouble. (This one was actually kinda cool, except that you have to know what toffee bars and construction sets are. Toys have changed a lot since this book was published. Oh, and you can't say "Lego", so you have to say "brightly coloured plastic building brick" instead... gotta stay legal ya know.)
* They turn invisible, which is apparently the same as turning into a wrathful murderous ghost. I tell you, you learn something new every day. Oh, they almost murder their step-father, but they don't
* They create a group of angry mushroom people that only speak Greek, and fight for their lives against them... almost bonding in the process.

The step-father also tries to bribe the mother's kids by giving them footballs (which, since this story is English, I chose to interpret as soccer balls), but, given that he is the antichrist, the footballs are pink and the boys lives are ruined forever.

The mother can't take the stress and goes to stay with her sister... and doesn't bother to tell her kids that she's going. The step-father also doesn't see a need to tell them where she want, preferring to tell the kids that "she's gone away". Of course, the kids assume that their step-father murdered their mother, thereby creating an excuse for the plot device to try to poison him and for the afore-mentioned murderous ghost incident.

However, in a shocking twist, it turns out that the step-father isn't evil, but just stressed, and when the kids find a way to turn base metals into gold, the money problems are magically resolved, the mother and step-father suddenly become attentive and caring parents, and all of the children magically get along. Oh, and the magic toy store, from whence the chemistry sets originated, mysteriously vanishes for no reason at all.

By the way, this book advocates splashing chemicals on your siblings as well as eating the strange-looking ones. I have absolutely no idea why it didn't catch on.

Oh, and the coolest thing in the book - the living toffee bars which eat sweaters and carpeting - die horribly. Just a little warning.

I will leave you with the one really good exchange in the book, because it's not worth reading the book to get this part, but it's damn good. This is right after Gwinny (the plot device) decides to kill the Ogre's (the kids' name for the step-father) with a poisoned cupcake, feels guilty about it and confesses:

"I put," she sobbed, "I put Noct. Vest. out of Malcolm's chemistry set."

"Well, that's supposed to be nontoxic," said the Ogre. "Maybe there's no harm done."

"But I put six of Mummy's sleeping pills squashed-up in it," continued Gwinny, "and detergent and the bottle from the cupboard that says Poison and some firelighter and ammonia, and then I rolled it on the floor to get germs and spat on it for more germs, and instead of sugar on the outside I put the burning kind of soda. And I think it ended up awfully poisonous."

Josh More gave 5 stars to: The Tower at Stony Wood

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 01:33:05 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Tower at Stony Wood by Patricia A. McKillip

A tapestry, February 10, 2008

My grandmother died when I was young. Mostly, my memories of her are of her being sick and in a wheelchair. However, my absolute earliest memory of her was when she was sitting at her loom. To a four year old, a loom is a fascinating device (and one that should not be touched by grubby hands). It's gigantic and full of strings and things. When your grandmother sits at it, it whistles and hums, and string magically turns into blankets.

As an adult, weaving is fascinating, but from a very different perspective. It is a linear process, where you stack the threads up and form an image or pattern over time. Embroidery, by contrast, leaps around as the artist can choose the colour, location, and type of stitch. Weavers are somewhat more limited in their possible techniques. This limitation makes tapestries all the more impressive, as unlike embroidery, a weaver must hold the entire design in their mind as they work. If something must be changed, the work must be unraveled to the point of change and then re-woven.

Whether the pictures are formed through embroidery or weaving, the eye appreciates them the same way as painting, photography and other image-based art. The challenge of the artist is that the viewer will never "see" the piece in the same way as the artist. The artist can guide the viewer's eye through a combination of colour, placement, and contrast. In painting and embroidery, the artist can also use variations in texture. However, the artist has no direct control over the viewer.

Interestingly, the written world is the exact opposite. The author has the freedom to write in whatever order they choose. They can write parts of the story out of order. They can unravel parts of the plot and change things as they go with complete impunity. However, the reader must (generally) appreciate the work in a linear fashion. Thus, the writer has the combination of freedom over the work combined with control over the reader.

This is what makes The Tower at Stony Wood all the more interesting. When I started reading it, it was a confusing story about two men and their respective attachments and driving forces (family, girlfriend, honor and freedom, to be precise). It's a story about a mother and her daughter and how the magic they deny themselves traps them in their lives. It's also a story about Fate.

It's hard to read. The perspective shifts from character to character and the personal pronouns are incredibly difficult to follow. It's even harder because the magic happens "behind the scenes" leaving the reader utterly befuddled as to what is real and what is not as people transform into other people, embroidery transforms into that which it depicts, memories change and retroactively alter the plot.

It turns out, in the end, that Patricia McKillip wrote a book that must be read in the same way that one weaves a tapestry. By the end, and only at the end, do you understand why everything had to happen in exactly the same way it did. You understand why she picked the threads that she did, why the characters are placed where they are, and why the Fates are commonly depicted with a loom.

When I've read the Greek myths, I always envision Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos standing in a dark cave... but with my grandmother's loom. When I think of Patricia McKillip, I envision her sitting at an old fashioned writing desk... in the same room that my grandmother's loom used to be.

Much like a watching your grandmother weave a blanket, you don't fully appreciate this book while you're in the process... you appreciate it once you're done and you look at it and think "Wow".

Josh More gave 1 star to: Zima Blue and Other Stories

Wed, 6 Feb 2008 16:45:12 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Zima Blue and Other Stories by Alastair Reynolds

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

Awful stories, glad I'm done reading it., February 6, 2008

Warning, this review is non-spoilery, but quite negative. If you're a Reynolds fan, you are as welcome to a differing opinion as I am to mine.

Over the weekend, I finished reading Zima Blue and Other Stories by Alastair Reynolds. To be fair, I only picked this up because he is to be the guest of honor at Minicon, and I thought I should give him a try. Interestingly, I was then sitting at home, the book was on my stack, and a friend noted the author and said "Yeah, I had to stop reading him. Too depressing."

In nutshell, I have to say that this is the last book of his that I intend to read. He's too depressing.

Going to a deeper level, of the various stories here, they all tended to end on something of a downer. Sometimes this can be good, as in "Beyond the Aquila Rift", which delves into just how alien alien worlds can be. However, it's not generally so good, and the entire volume reads as a combination of a mishmash of events and a catalog of missed opportunities. I was happy when I finished the last story, not because it was happy (it was NOT), but because I didn't have to read any more of his stories.

His protagonists lack a certain positivity that seems to be inherent in the characters that I like. In most of my favorite stories, characters will overcome adversity. In these stories, the characters surrender to it. The depression is offset by some decent physics... though Reynolds does seem to have something of a black hole fetish (taking appreciation of super massive bodies to a whole new level). However, this offet is offset by his utter lack of understanding of evolutionary biology. It is ridiculous to assume that evolution will halt once humans start living in space, especially as evolutionary changes increase in the face of stressors.

* "The Real Story" explores the man who first landed on Mars and the woman who is interviewing him. It does not end satisfactorily for either.
* "Beyond the Aquila Rift" is excellently written and a brilliant idea from the beginning to anti-penultimate page, after which it all falls down a deep dark hole. (Metaphorical, not literal... that comes later). Stargate did a better job with the concept.
* "Enola" is a post-apocalyptic story about machines that is ruined by a lack of mathematically-realistic metric terms. It ends in a way to irritate the reader, which would work well except that I was already irritated by "Beyond the Aquila Rift". It's also twice as long as it should be, and still doesn't explain things satisfactorily. This should be taken back in time and re-written by Theodore Sturgeon.
* "Signal to Noise" is a brilliant concept with characters that are almost realistic... but since they're not, it doesn't work. The end was predictable and utterly irrelevant to me. This is a classic example of a "neat idea" that is ruined by poor relationship writing. Sadly, many "hard scifi" authors suffer from this problem.
* "Hideaway" explores a far future and is one of the stories that I hated due to a disregard of evolution. That, and the fact that there is a whole of start-stop action that takes FOREVER to get to the point, and when we finally get there, it's not really worth the journey. Oh, and it's got black holes for no good reason.
* "Merlin's Gun" is the sequel to "Hideaway", in that one character makes it to the sequel. This would be good if he were written (even marginally) as the same person. It's also a sequel in that we get more black holes! You know how Alien had one alien, and was scary, and Aliens had to add a LOT more aliens to be almost as scary? He did that with black holes here. They have the advantage of being marginally useful to the plot, but the phrase "Rocks fall, everyone dies" would have worked just as well.
* "Angels of Ashes" gets the benefit of the doubt as it was clearly written with Catholic symbologies, and as I am not a Catholic, I might have missed something. However, the core premise is that of the quantum anthropomorphic principle (if you know what that is, you wouldn't enjoy the story, so I'm not spoiling anything), and could have been better.
* "Spirey and the Queen" is cool. I wouldn't go out and get the book for this one story, but it's a neat idea and I actually cared about one of the characters. It made sense, and though some of the twists were unnecessary, it was enjoyable.
* "Understanding Space and Time" would have been EXCELLENT were it half as long. As it stands, it's just depressing in that "the world sucks, but I accept it" sort of way. Of course, there is a black hole. No reason for one, mind you. There are many many ways to reach the same end without one, but there's one anyway. Maybe he's got a quota?
* "Zima Blue" is a brilliant idea that ends just as it should. It's well crafted though a trifle wordy. Also, I recommend that the wrist-slitting knife be rusty, 'cause it will hurt more -- thus magnifying its depressing brilliance once you're done with it.

In conclusion, this is a good book to read and be able to say "Yes, I've ready Alastair Reynolds" and then change the subject. It's also good if you've just been dumped, gotten fired, or had a friend die and need something other than alcohol to drive you to your own person nadir. However, it's excellent if you have the need of an approximately rectangular solid 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches (or 2.31E8 x 1.6E8 x 3E8 nanometers, if you're a Reynolds fan).

Of course, if you have a decent wooden plank and saw, you can make your own.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: Portable Childhoods

Wed, 6 Feb 2008 16:43:58 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Portable Childhoods by Ellen Klages

Phenomenal second book, February 6, 2008

Josh More gave 5 stars to: Courting Disasters and Other Strange Affinities

Wed, 6 Feb 2008 16:42:31 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Courting Disasters and Other Strange Affinities: Short Stories by Nina Kiriki Hoffman

Best book of 1991 read in 2008, February 6, 2008

There are stories, and there are Stories. The former are idle pleasantries, constructed to amuse, entertain, teach, or otherwise create an effect. The latter, ah the latter, are not constructed but rather, are born. They exist for no other purpose other than it is entirely right and proper that they do, and (I suspect) are written for no other reason than that they must be. In the last few weeks, I have been lucky enough to encounter, not one, but TWO volumes of the latter.

They come to me on two very different paths, yet two that are entirely appropriate.

Courting Disasters (And Other Strange Affinities) by Nina Kiriki Hoffman has taken a very winding path. Once upon a time, many years ago, I was wandering through a used book store needing (not wanting) something NEW. Of course, such a need can never be filled directly (for that would render the world far too mundane and predictable), and must be fulfilled from side... sneaking up on the solution while it is lounging near a waterhole gazing at the clouds and pondering the nature of cheese (or linen, you never know). So... I asked the bookstore to help me. Not a clerk, the bookstore itself. Clerks are good at finding what you know you want, but only the bookstore can help you find what you need. Once I did that, The Silent Strength of Stones leapt from the shelf and into my hands... my first book by Nina Kirki Hoffman. I quickly gathered all that I could, but there were numerous volumes that were difficult to find. Several years later, I was at work... doing one of those late night server things... when I suddenly felt the overwhelming need to go to eBay and search. That is when I just happened to find an individual who was selling off the old Pulphouse/Axolotl volumes. These are hard to come by, partly because of very limit printed runs, and partly because axolotls only live in a single lake in Mexico. I imagine that it must be hard to run a printing press from a lake, which explains the limited editions. Anyway, that's how I managed to get almost the last of her books (including one in "staff red", oh the bibliophilic joy). A few weeks ago, I felt a similar urge to check the net again, and I found a copy of Courting Disasters . . . I'd only been looking for years.

This volume contains short Stories. There are Stories that make you cry with joy and others that make you cry with sadness and pain. This is Just and Proper, and Exactly What They Should Do.

"Voices in a Shelter Home" is a ghost story of the living. Combined with "Courting Disasters", the two stories serve as bookends that discuss domestic/relationship abuse. The first introduces us to a character who has put it behind her, but has not yet begun to heal. It's hard to read. The second gives us two characters, one who is running away from the patterns and the other who is oblivious to them (and a car, a tree, a mother and a ghost -- all vital to the story). The second ends with hope, and is a wonderful way to leave the collection.

Then, things get REALLY interesting.

* "Waiting for the Hunger" starts with a kidnapping and goes gothic from there. It's brilliant and should be read.
* "The Glass Mountain" is what it would be like if Nina Kiriki Hoffman wrote a Patricia McKillip story.
* "Lost Lives" is about the soul and strength in the face of adversity.
* "Variations on a Scream" is good on it's on, but was re-imagined much better in "The Skeleton Key" (collected in Time Travelers, Ghosts and Other Visitors). I found it interesting from a evolution of story perspective.
* "Echos and Mirrors" and "Housewife" are experimental fiction.
* "The Open Air My Grave" will pull out your heart and stomp on while wearing size 12 army boots... and make you like it.
* "A Step Into Darkness" is about child abuse and witchcraft. I do not know my friendslist well enough to directly recommend it, so I shall just say that it's good.
* "Rumors of Greatness" is hard to read, both due to the material and the writing technique.
* "Hushabye" is a very short and very haunting story about mental illness. If you're a writer, you'll likely appreciate the craft. Everyone else can just be haunted by the story.
* "Family Tree", "Out of Hand". and "Exact Change" are classic examples of Nina Kirki Hoffman's newer work. If you enjoyed A Red Heart of Memories and the like, you'll like them. If not, start with the more easily-available novels.

Now, the bad news is that Courting Disasters (And Other Strange Affinities) will be very hard to find, you might need to find one through a library.

Josh More gave 3 stars to: Daywatchers

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 04:44:29 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Daywatchers by Peter Parnall

Great pictures... acceptable writing, January 19, 2008

The Daywatchers is a different type of Natural History book. Unlike most that simply list the species and some interesting facts, Peter Parnall takes a much more personal view. It is clear that he loves birds of prey, and he is an excellent illustrator. He tells rambling stories about his experiences out in the wilds as he observes and interacts with these birds. There is an air of life in both his descriptions and (most especially) in his drawings.

Now, I am not a fan of hawks and eagles. I don't dislike them, I just don't have particularly strong feelings for birds -- never have. However, when I read this, I could certainly appreciate that Mr. Parnall does, and they run deep. It was fun to read about his experiences...

However, it was also frustrating. He is a passable writer, not an excellent one. His skill is usually up to the task of writing in a rambling style, but not always. To make matters worse (and I do not hold this against him), my copy is mis-bound, so you jump from page 15 to 57 to 34 to 43 to 29 etc etc etc. This wouldn't be so bad, except that not every page is numbered. The net effect of this is that of attempting to read a long rambling essay in the form of a Choose Your Own Adventure book... without the aid of page numbers.

This challenge aside, the gorgeous line drawings more than make up for the confusion and make this book worth what I paid for it (which, as I picked it up used, was admittedly low). Given that this book is out of print, I do not recommend purchase. However, if you enjoy the birds of prey or if you appreciate well done and expressive black and white art, it's probably worth finding in a library or book sale.

Josh More gave 4 stars to: Crossing Midnight Vol. 1

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:47:31 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Crossing Midnight Vol. 1: Cut Here by Mike Carey

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Good start, hope it continues, January 19, 2008

Crossing Midnight: Cut Here is the first volume of what will hopefully be a decent-length series by Mike Carey. Though better known for his work on Hellblazer and Lucifer, Mike Carey is an excellent writer who all-to-seldom works with characters and universes of his own creation. In Crossing Midnight, we get introduced to a family in modern Japan and the mythical realms that lay beside it. As is often the case in stories of this type, our view of the story is through a handful of characters who figure out what is going on as we do. Thus, we are peripherally introduced to three beings (kami) who are not gods and not demons, but something else. They are, in some way, creatures that control animistic forces of specific types - blades and needles (at least, thus far).

Now, that sounds interesting enough in of itself, but there are a few warnings. First of all, this is a work of horror. Bad things happen to good people, and that's just how things are. In many ways, this is a common feature of Mike Carey's work. However, as this is a graphic novel, these events are also rendered... graphically. If blood and violence disturb you, you should give this one a pass. (Personally, my trigger point is unnecessary blood and violence. Since it's necessary to the plot, I was able to tolerate it.)

Enough hints are dropped that we know that there is a significant back story, both among the kami and the two youngsters around whom the story shall weave. There is sufficient material that this story could take years to tell, and since I buy these as collections, a bit longer to read. I look forward to reading the occasional volume as the years go by.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: Winter Rose

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:46:30 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Winter Rose by Patricia A. McKillip

Excellent writing, world, and premise, January 19, 2008

Winter Rose is typical of Patricia A. McKillip's recent work. It is extremely well written and evokes not only the images of her created worlds, but the textures and scents as well. While, on the surface, this feels like one of a number of similar stories wherein a young girl faces adversity and saves the day while simultaneously growing as a person, there is a deeper (and darker) undercurrent to the prose. McKillip draws upon numerous myths, but twists them together like the briars that she uses as theme. There are hints of Tam Lin, Rip Van Winkle (aka Thomas the Rhymer), and the Mabinogion among others.

However, there is a very human element as well. As the characters attempt to (and in many cases, fail to) understand what is going on, the story resonates between the present and the past, between reality and hallucination, and between dreams. Some characters grow, some characters do not. Some of the ones that do not are the very ones that should, and some of the ones that grow grow in saddening ways -- much like life, I suppose.

By the end, I was confused as to which events were real and which were dream. I was as uncertain as to which characters felt what as the characters themselves seemed to be. Most unsettling and yet in perfect correspondence with the myths of encountering the Fey. I am certain that this was intentional on McKillip's part.

It's an excellent read that I heartilly recommend...

Just don't read it in the winter.

Josh More gave 4 stars to: Summers at Castle Auburn

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:45:27 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Fun, not deep, read, January 19, 2008

Summers at Castle Auburn is just plain fun to read. I'm generally not a fan of books that focus on medieval politics, but this one does it from a very fun premise. The protagonist is a royal [...] girl who is brought into the castle and courtly life as a young teenager. Normally, I tend to dislike books where the reader knows more about events than the characters do, however, the disconnect between my understanding of political maneuverings and the understanding of a fourteen year-old girl is so wide that I found myself laughing out loud at several points.

Though this is a fairly stereotypical coming-of-age romance, it was well written enough to be enjoyable. Also, while it was often predictable, it was still fun to see the characters slowly come to realize what I did. I did not feel as though the characters were being pulled through the story, more like they were slowly coming to terms with their own feelings and their associated destinies.

The world is lightly-defined and the magical realms are hardly explored at all, so that left me wanting. However, since this is mostly a story about character, not place, I was able to let that go and enjoy the ride. Though it's not exactly literature-quality, it's most certainly not fluff either. If you just need an enjoyable read, I recommend it.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: The Botany of Desire

Sat, 22 Dec 2007 15:43:18 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World by Michael Pollan

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Fascinating read, December 22, 2007

Botany of Desire was recommended to me last summer. It covers the stories of four plants: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. Interestingly, it reads similarly to The Beak of the Finch in that it discusses the nature of evolution. However, unlike the finches, the focus of this book is on how communion with humans, rather than isolation, has driven the evolution of these plants. While there are many items of interest in this book, I will primarily focus on what I did not know prior to reading it.

Apples
The story of the apple starts with John Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed. What I didn't know here was that the apple was spread throughout the new world as a source of alcohol rather than food. It makes perfect historical sense, but I had never given it much thought. The "apple cider" and "applejack" about which I had previously read without consideration was a form of moonshine that was extremely potent and must have gone a long way towards making frontier life more bearable. The fact that apples spread the taste of "sweetness" was also something that I had not previously appreciated. Before the European honey bees swarmed the US, and before cane and beet sugar were available, most people would seldom get to taste that flavor, so it was to be savored.

Another thing that I didn't know about apples was that they don't breed true. Like most kids, I tried planting apple trees from seed, but I never stayed interested in the project for the 4-6 years it would take to actually get apples from the resulting progeny. If I had, I would have found out that each seed has randomized genetics, and therefore makes entirely different types of apples. (I now imagine each apple to be like Doctor Who, playing genetic Russian roulette with each seed.) So, all the apples we eat are cloned.

Tulips
The tulip story wasn't quite so interesting, because I was already aware of the tulip boom and associated economic disaster. What was interesting was the "college" system of bidding on tulips. Apparently, if you wanted to "invest" in tulip futures, you first went to the bar. (That would have been a huge warning for me but hey, I'm not Dutch, what do I know?) Once there, the seller and bidder would each write down a price, and hand the slates to a pair of trusted proxies. The proxies would then dicker over the price and return something that they thought was fair. If they both agreed, the deal went through and both parties paid a fee for doing business. If they both disagreed, the deal was canceled. If only one disagreed, he had to pay a fine. . . The fees and fines then went to buying drinks for everyone at the bar.

Yeah. Day trading looks like a reputable career in comparison.

Marijuana
The marijuana story was fascinating for someone who only ever thought of the plant as "ditch weed". Apparently, since it was criminalized, the "gardeners" have been tinkering with the genetics trying to balance the best of the different plants, maximizing the THC and minimizing the other toxic chemicals. The descriptions of modern grow rooms were astonishing, describing the millions of dollars in technology needed to grow these hybrids, the billions that they're worth and frighteningly, how growers get just as habituated to the cash flow and genetic improvement process as the buyers do to the product.

Another interesting side observation that Michael Pollan made was that the incidents of shamans/visionaries have gone down as global nutrition levels have gone up. Not sure if I buy the link, but it was interesting to consider.

Potato(e)s
The potato section was mostly about direct genetic manipulation by the Monsanto corporation. It's supposed to be a story about control, but actually reads like a story about blind hope and arrogance. It gets into a natural insecticide known as Bt that Monsanto merged into potato(e)s. While this has been around for millennia, it has never existed in sufficient concentration to promote evolutionary resistance until now. The nightmare scenario is that of breeding super-insects that are not only immune to our existing insecticides, but also immune to the natural ones -- resulting in a population explosion of pest-insects that utterly destroys the global food supply. Monsanto's answer is basically "we'll deal with that when it happens".

I can follow the logic, but have my doubts that it would get quite so bad. Again though, it's interesting to think about.

The other item of interest from this section was about "net necrosis" in Russet Burbanks. When I was young, I remember getting the occasional french fry that had a dark spot. This was caused by net necrosis -- a harmless spotting of the potato. The large fast food companies believe (probably correctly) that their customers do not like spotty fries, so they will refuse an entire batch if one potato shows this condition. So, to prevent this from happening, the commercial potato producers spray the entire field with nerve toxin, and keep all of their people out of the fields for up to five days to keep them from being killed.

Then they sell the potato(e)s to us to eat.

I already had potato(e)s on my "organic-only" list for pesticide reasons. After reading this book, they're going to stay there.

Generally
Really, most of the book was a fascinating read, but the only bit that probably changed my life is the net necrosis stuff. That said, it's a well written book and the author's voice rings through so it's more than a selection of facts. If you like plants, it's worth reading. If you don't like plants, but enjoy thinking, read it... you might start liking plants.

Of course, if you are botanophobic, you should avoid it (and I commend you for reading this far without fleeing in terror).

Josh More gave 4 stars to: The Green Glass Sea

Sun, 9 Dec 2007 09:23:41 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Good read for most thinking persons, December 9, 2007

Tonight started as expected. A nice salad for dinner followed by some light research for my podcast. I found myself growing tired around 20:00, and thought about going to bed early. However, that's a bit early even for an early-to-bed, so the question became "What to read?".

I looked at my tidy little row of books that I had pre-selected as "next". Of course, I couldn't see them, so I moved the pile of other "next" books out of the way first. There I saw The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages. I had no idea what it was about when I bought it. See, at last Minicon, I asked Charles de Lint what he'd recommend that would be like what Nina Kirki Hoffman writes, given I have everything she's written and she's not releasing anything anytime soon. And after all, it's all his fault since he introduced me to her work. The man's got to make amends, right?

Anyway, I open this book hoping to read an oddly magical tale that drifts along like a tendril of smoke. Instead, I get a story about two children living at Los Alamos during 1944-5. No magic at all, just a story about some quirky kids growing up on a military base surrounded by famous scientists working together as had never been seen before or since.

Oh darn.

By the way, I'm not a WWII buff, as I tend to dislike military history. I am, however, utterly fascinated by nuclear physics, the Manhattan project and what subsequently occurred in New Mexico and Japan. I'm also a sucker for stories about personal growth within unusual circumstances, so even though it was nothing like Nina Kirki Hoffman's work, it was exactly what I've been looking for.

I won't go so far as to say that Ellen Klages writes children well, but she certainly writes quirky children better than most authors (who seem to like to turn children into mini adults). The characters were believable, though not fully developed. The storyline was engaging, and didn't feel pulled off course by the actual historical events. It was a very easy read, but that's likely because it's one of those new "not really a children's book, but aimed at the upper young adult market" novels. You know, a typical Sharyn November / Viking imprint. Honestly, I think that most kids today would be lost in the historical references (What's a LIFE magazine? What's a PX?) but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Generally speaking, it's a good read for most thinking persons... But it's an excellent read if you're interested by the project and time period.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: Set This House in Order

Fri, 7 Dec 2007 22:15:29 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Set This House in Order: A Romance of Souls by Matt Ruff

Excellent book, potential issues, December 7, 2007

First off, let me say that Set This House in Order is a book about child abuse and the psychotic breaks that the protagonists suffer as a result thereof. Therefore, it might be unpleasant and triggery for some. It is, however, a highly engaging and engrossing read that is entirely unlike anything I have read before. It takes, as a core concept, the idea that some people with multiple personality disorder (MPD) should not attempt to reintegrate their personalities but learn to live with them instead.

Thus, you have two characters, one who has learned to cohabitate and another who does not even realize that MPD is an issue. The story flips back and forth between these two people and all of the people within the two people. Moreover, due to the nature of the personal discoveries that occur, it flips around in time as well. Then, just in case you've managed to stay on top of what's going on, there's a nice bout of gender confusion.

I didn't have any trouble following the action, which may say more about me than the writer's skill. That said, it's good. It's really good. The characters seem real, and though I've never (to my knowledge) dealt with anyone with that particular oddity, the lives described seem quite realistic when compared to the lives of friends of mine who come close. Also, the ending has the type of ending that I find that I begin to prefer*, and everything is not tied up neatly. Instead, life goes on it's merry way, pulling some characters along, pushing others aside, and generally reminding everyone that they're not as in control of their destiny as they'd like to believe. A bit like real life in that respect.

If you don't have the triggery issues, I recommend reading it.

* Note: I am still a sappy romantic to some extent, and am very glad that ALL stories do not wind up that way. I need some happily ever after, after all.

Josh More gave 5 stars to: Promises to Keep

Sun, 9 Sep 2007 18:59:44 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

Promises to Keep by Charles De Lint

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

Wonderful read, worth the wait, September 9, 2007

This weekend, my copy of Promises to Keep arrived. I had intended to let it sit until I had finished some of the work that I had do, but then it's hard to focus on preparing a talk when there is a bright shiny new Charles de Lint book sitting there looking at you. I swear, the book had little glistening eyes that watched everything I did and then suddenly looked away whenever I checked to see what it was doing. But I digress...

As stated in the "story about the book" on the inside cover, this was the book that grew from a short story that was to be put into a collection of stories that were never collected. It's about Jilly's early years in Newford, as Charles de Lint doesn't want to write more about her after Widdershins (Newford). It's a fine story which takes its time popping between Jilly's early life and "present day", which is when Jilly is in college. I won't spoil any of the plot points, but to say that it is fully consistent with the mythologies around Newford.

To digress a bit, the best thing about the first Alien movie was that no one really knew what the alien was. There was a sense of mystery and discovery there that wasn't possible to achieve in later films until AVP came along and reset the story. In many ways, this book does that for Newford. In fact, Charles de Lint states that he hopes that this book can become a good entry point for new readers. However, much like I wouldn't want a viewer to start with AVP, I wouldn't want a reader to start here.

There is as great a joy in rediscovery as there is in the initial discovery. If someone reads this book first, the later books will feel like review. However, if you start at the beginning with Dreams Underfoot and meander slowly through the rest of Newford, this book will feel like what it truly is. A sweet little bonus to Jilly's story; one that I'm happy to have.

Josh More gave 4 stars to: The Coyote Road

Sun, 9 Sep 2007 10:27:27 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

The Coyote Road by Ellen Datlow

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

Excellent story, meandering collection, September 9, 2007

I picked up The Coyote Road because it's edited by Ellen Datlow and Terry Windling. This one is in the same line as The Green Man and The Faery Reel, so it's aimed at adults and collects some of the bigger names in the Mythic Fiction genre. This volume aims to be a collection of trickster tails, but surprisingly, the majority of the stories don't involve what I would generally consider "tricking". I was somewhat disappointed in this, as I was expecting some modernized variants of the Coyote, Loki and Anansi myths. These stories do not tend to fit that pattern, though they touch on the traditional myths by reference. That said, given that this is an anthology, some of the stories do -- just not the work as a whole.

"The Listeners" by Nina Kirki Hoffman does fit my conception of the trickster theme, focusing on Hermes. As usual, I absolutely enjoyed Nina's writing, and time (for the most part) just dropped away as I read it. Basing the story in ancient Greece provides a backdrop for the story to meander through myth and social commentary, taking the reader along for the ride. Unlike most of Nina's works, I didn't feel like I was pulled into the middle of the story, but that's OK, I can handle stories with a bit of structure too. I will say that the ending is both surprising and wholly appropriate, though I shan't spoil anything.

"The Fiddler of Bayou Teche" by Delia Sherman, however, does give the feeling of starting in the middle. While, in framing, the story matches the common "devil challenge" pattern, the characters are believable enough that it's not too jarring to be pulled along somewhat predictably. Luckily, the end, while not surprising, breaks out of the pattern. Most interesting is that the story is set in an alien (to me) culture, and is not well explained for the outsider. This is a nice contrast to the realm of stories that include an outsider to provide exposition to the reader.

"Friday Night at St. Cecila's" by Ellen Klages uses an interesting game-based theme. There are a few tricks, but it didn't really feel like a trickster tale to me. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find the character to be as believable (though not as fleshed out, but hey, it's a short story instead of a novel) as those in _The Green Glass Sea_. I did find it somewhat contrived, but enjoyable nonetheless. After all, it's hard to write stories that are based on board games. I think that she did a decent job with the idea.

"Crow Roads" by Charles de Lint was somewhat disappointing. I generally like his work a lot, but this one feel somewhat flat. The story fits his pattern, but the character of mystery wound up being somewhat weak. Upon reflection, I suspect that part of the problem was that in most of de Lint's short stories I am already either familiar with the characters or with the world in which the story is placed. In this case, more time should likely have been spent to establish one of the two.

"Cat of the World" by Michael Cadnum was a huge surprise. Finally, a fantasy story about a cat that reads like it's about a cat. I get so tired of people dressing up snooty lords and vain lady stereotypes in cat's clothing. Instead, we get a story about a cat god who honestly believes that the world revolves around him, and simply acts accordingly. It was a wonderful experience.

"The Seniorita and the Cactus Thorn" by Kim Aniteau was nice because it was about the desert. I love the desert, specifically the Sonora Desert, so the stories that are increasingly placed there are a true joy to read. The theme of city girl vs nature woman was fun, though somewhat overly simplified. I have trouble believing that such a scenario would truly arise. Though it failed to meet my idea of a trickster tale, it was fun.

"Black Rock Blues" by Will Shetterly was amazing. It felt like Will was trying to write a Nina Kiriki Hoffman story. The story started in the middle and continued from there, leaving the reader (me) utterly confused. As it moves along, it slowly becomes apparent what is going on, and only at the end do you realize that you're reading a Coyote tale. This one plus "The Evolution of Trickster Stories Among the Dogs of North Park After the Change" are worth the price of the book in of themselves. The other stories are gravy.

"The Evolution of Trickster Stories Among the Dogs of North Park After the Change" (figures I'd pick the longest title to type twice) by Kij Johnson was a complete surprise. It is a "post world change" story, focusing on the aftermath of a non-specific event which grants animals the power of speech. Obviously this causes problems for pet owners. Not so obviously is how Kij explores the concept. Very much worth reading.

Josh More gave 4 stars to: InterWorld

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 01:56:35 GMT

Josh More reviewed:

InterWorld by Neil Gaiman

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Fun read, good world, not much more., July 25, 2007

InterWorld is the new book by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves. At first, I was surprised to see a collaboration with Neil, as other than comics, he seems to prefer to work alone. As I read it, I found that it moved quickly, but seemed to lack the multiple layers of meaning that Neil's work usually has.

Ironic since it's about multidimensional universes and the travels therein.

I've read Michael's work before, and enjoyed it, but it didn't leave a lasting impression. However, what I find extremely interesting about this collaboration is that, like many excellent authors, Neil seems to have problems writing believable children (Coraline was excellent, but she didn't seem like a child to me) but it seemed to work here. In some ways, it feels like Neil and Michael had this idea of a multidimensional multiverse, in which there is an arc of probabilities in which different Earths exist, which vary increasingly as they deviate from "normal". Then (and I'm guessing here), Michael wrote the plot (feels more like a Reaves plot than a Gaiman plot), and Neil sparked up the dialog a bit. There are definite lines that sit on the page and say "Hi, by the way, you're reading a Neil Gaiman book. Now, on with the story.".

With the exception of the over-used dichotomy (why would a multidimensional universe divide itself into only two opposing forces?), the concept worked and was written well. It ended before a resolution, and feels much like "Books of Magic" did, and it would not surprise me to see other authors pick up the idea and turn it into a series that is good for a while before it spirals into mediocrity.

Pretty par for the course for a book that was written because they couldn't make it work as a TV pilot. Which is the case (per the afterward). It's a good read and a fun world. But it's no Anansi Boys.