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Here's my review of the Book of the New Sun. Contains spoilers and opinions that will be wildly unpopular. ****** Review: Shadow and Claw There is a good story screaming to be let out of the foggy murk of Gene Wolf's Book of the New Sun. It is a conventional story that should be familiar to fans of the fantasy genre--a boy apprentice with mysterious roots, coming of age and taking his rightful place in the world. Sometimes this story creeps up to the surface, like a drowning child desperate for breath, only to have author grab it by the ankle and drag it back under. Severian tortures his victims because it is his job; Gene Wolfe tortures his readers because he wants to. The Book of the New Sun is a book that hates itself. Every chance to obfuscate the simple nature of the story is taken. The first person memoir that threads in-and-out of the story is problematic, especially in the earlier parts with Severian as a boy growing up in the Torturer's Guild; it does little other than slow whatever action there is to a crawl and remind us for the millionth time that Severian has a perfect memory. Little regard is given to pacing. In fact, the book goes out of its way to sidetrack the main storyline on several occasions. The worst offenses occur when Severian reads his cyborg buddy a long myth about rescuing princesses, and the Doctor's long, meaningless play near the end of the book (even Severian claims it is meaningless) which has all cast acting out different parts. And if the pacing isn't enough to make readers turn away, the plot is designed to offend. Here's a basic summary of the most important relationship in the book: Boy meets girl. Boy tortures girl. Boy assists in girl's murder. Boy...eats girl. Rarely have I ever felt physically ill while reading something. Perhaps it was because I was eating a bowl of Stag chili when Severian and friends decided to dig in to Thecla's corpse, but still, I was disgusted and angered. Its a work of fiction that I was reading of my own volition, so I knew I shouldn't be angry, but I was. Maybe that's where Gene Wolfe's genius lies. He creates unforgettable, shocking scenes. There are layers and layers of meaning to the proceedings and secrets to be found. If you don't have the time or care to put forth the effort, let me ruin them for you: Everyone Severian sleeps with is closely related to him in some way. Still, as much as the Book of the New Sun makes you despise it, there are scenes that are unforgettable. But they are unforgettable in the way that being raped in a gas station bathroom is unforgettable.
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Sep 11, 2011 18:19
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 17:14 |
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Shadow and Claw and Sword and Citadel are sold as separate books these days, so I feel justified in reviewing the first as a stand alone book. I wasn't shooting for smug, just trying to honestly convey they feelings the book left with me. I first read Shadow and Claw when I was ten years old, and it stayed with me until I read it again eighteen years later. I honestly feel a little traumatized, going from Wizard of Oz books to Gene Wolfe with no real warning. That's not the authors fault. He wrote something very memorable. But my biggest gripe is that the plot isn't given room to breathe, and it feels like he used obfuscation to hide the fact that the story isn't very well put together, or because he was ashamed that when all the smoke and chaos was cleared away the story was pretty standard for the genre. I don't think it's a bad book--it's just an unlikeable book. In fact, I'm impressed with how little the author cared for making the book accessible, and getting something so weird that gut punches you at every opportunity published. It's kind of amazing, really.
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Sep 12, 2011 21:06
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sebmojo posted:Here is the winner of the Gene Wolfe Memorial Thunderdome. If you're interested in the others I liked Djesers and Crabrocks. That was really good. Could probably sell with some simple name changes.
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May 5, 2019 04:21
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I read the Soldier/Latro series this month and loved it, so I moved on to the only other unread Wolfe in my collection, which happened to be An Evil Guest. I feel like someone in this thread must understand my pain.
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May 7, 2020 05:07
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Chichevache posted:I loving love that book. I would be curious to see your top ten...every scene irked me. The starlet character's dialog and interactions with everyone was like 30s Hollywood but then there's also ftl and cars that run on nuclear fuel rods and werewolves, but let's talk about anchovy toast and my waistline for seven pages. Then the bizarre island setting change at the end, and the Cthulu connection. Sounds interesting when I write it here, but remember, every scene is virtually just dialog.
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May 7, 2020 05:27
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Chichevache posted:Top ten Wolfe books? Just books in general. It was snark. Like, if number 1 Gravity's Rainbow and #2 Infinite Jest, I can put you in a box with a bunch of other people who like bad books this is also snark.
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May 7, 2020 05:55
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 17:14 |
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my bony fealty posted:I've read An Evil Guest once and have a certain love for it, but that's because I read the whole thing on a red eye flight where sleep eluded me and that book was the only thing I had for entertainment. There are points where the book becomes very dreamlike and you don't know what's real and what's the PoV imagining it, and those were the best parts, but mostly they were the best because finally no one was talking.
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May 7, 2020 05:59
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