The Man Who Was Thursday * * * * * * * * (8)Book Reviews: Popular
Fiction
© Copyright 1999-2005, Skylar Hamilton Burris
Reviews are arranged alphabetically by last name of author
Chesterton, G.K.
The Ball and the Cross * * * * * * * (7)
This is serious fiction written in a humorous manner. The Ball and the Cross is a sometimes confusing allegory of the great spiritual duel between belief and unbelief. G.K. Chesterton writes with beauty and frequent wit. He draws comical characters and unusual scenes. The plotline itself could have used some smoothing out, but the book is a good read and contains quite a bit of clever apologetics for the Christian (but more specifically the Catholic) faith. The finale, in which all the people who were involved in any way with the duelists are shut up in an asylum, is a well-leveled blow at the absurdity of the modern scientific tendency to ascribe religious sentiment to psychological imbalance.
The Man Who Was Thursday * * * * * * * * (8)
This short novel is intriguing, humorous, clever, and spotted with stunning descriptions. Ostensibly, it is a tale of an undercover police man (Syme) seeking to infiltrate an organization of anarchists, controlled by the "Council of Seven Days" under the leadership of a man named Sunday. The novel is not as obviously allegorical as The Ball and The Cross, at least not until near the end, when it become entirely symbolic. I struggled with Chesteron's meaning when I concluded the novel, unsure of just what he was saying about God. At the end of my Wordsworth Classic edition, however, I found an excerpt with a note of admonition from the author himself: "I happen to have a very strong objection to that trick of missing the point of a story....I have sometimes had occasion to murmur meekly that those who endure the heavy labour of reading a book might possibly endure that of reading the title page of a book." I had not endured any such labor, and so I quickly thumbed to the title page to read: "The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare." That little, two-word subtitle goes a long way toward explaining Chesterton's tale. But not having read it before launching into the story (I never waste time on test directions, either), I perhaps found the plot more mysterious and suspenseful than I might otherwise have done. Because I was not considering the story to be a nightmarish dream sequence, more possibilities lay open to my mind. Either way, The Man Who Was Thursday is a worthwhile read merely to enjoy Chesterton's play with words, and the beauty of his language.
Quote: Syme to the presumed anarchists--"Do you see this lantern? Do you see the cross carved on it, and the flame inside? You did not make it. You did not light it. Better men than you, men who could believe and obey, twisted the entrails of iron and preserved the legend of fire. There is not a street you walk on, there is not a thread you wear, that was not made as this lantern was, by denying your philosophy of dirt and rats. You can make nothing. You can only destroy."
Diamant, Anita
The Red Tent * * * (3)
The Red Tent is (very) loosely based on the story of Dinah in Genesis. Dinah's tale is one that deserves fleshing out; in the Bible it is an interesting though undeveloped and uncertain chronicle.
Given that the story was written by a Jewish woman who has written books such as Choosing a Jewish Life: A Handbook for People Converting to Judaism, one might expect it to be, if not exactly orthodox, at least positively monotheistic. But The Red Tent is basically an expression of a growingly popular modern neo-paganism, which incorporates the myth of the goddess/Mother, feminist ideology, and a sort of body/self-worship. I don't complain that Anita Diamant made some of the characters pagan; it is clear from the Bible that many early pre-Israelites were, and of course, the Israelites themselves were always sliding back to idol worship. But in The Red Tent, Jacob appears to be the only monotheist in the world (and even his monotheism is on shaky grounds). What is more, polytheism seems to be portrayed as a healthy, feminine alternative to the somewhat deranged "patriarchal" religion of Jacob's fathers, and the author attributes several customs to the matriarchs that seem to come more from a modern romantic notion of some supposedly universal ancient goddess worship than from any actual historical feminine Jewish customs. I suppose Diamant has done her research and found evidence of such customs among the ancient Caananites and then placed a modern feminist interpretive spin on them. Whether the wives of Jacob, who worshiped the God of Abraham and Isaac, would have actually participated in rites with goddess-worshiping connotations without his concern, however, is highly questionable.
Although the author does a fairly decent job of developing--or at least describing--her female characters, her male characters are largely flat, stereotypical, and unnecessarily negative. I especially object to the way Diamant handled her treatment of Joseph and Jacob; in the Bible, their characters are more well-rounded; they are humans with both faults and virtues, moments of greatness and of pettiness. In Diamant’s novel, we largely see only one side to these men--the downside. We never get any sense that they are worth caring about, that there is any emotion within them to which we, as readers, can relate. The narrator states that Jacob was devastated by Joseph's reported death, but we have no reason to believe it, since the author has neither developed nor depicted any love or affection between them. Although Diamant seems to be developing something interesting in the nature of Judah, she quickly drops the matter.
Instead of restricting herself to filling in the missing gaps in the Genesis narrative with her own fiction, the author actually alters some segments of the narrative, and even suggests that the significant, divine naming of Israel (a true milestone in the Jewish story) was nothing more than Jacob's cowardly choice to change his name so as not to be associated with the slaughter in Schechem. When Rachel steals her father's household idol in the novel, Jacob seems both to know and yet not to care (at least for a long time). In the Bible, however, he thinks no one among them has taken it, and he basically says, "If anyone took it, let him die," in effect unknowingly cursing his beloved wife, who does die later in childbirth. Had Diamant not altered this point, it might have made for some wonderful pathos in the novel.
The story is itself interesting at times and written in a way that makes it very easy to read. But nothing stands out about the book in a literary sense; it has no real beauty of language, nor is it particularly complex either in vocabulary or form. Except for the adult subject matter, I might put it down to a sixth grade reading level. It can be an intriguing Midrash, and once I decided to temporarily put aside my theological and aesthetic objections, I was able to read and partially enjoy it.
Fielding, Helen
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason * * * * * * * * (8)
I listened to this sequel to Bridget Jones's Diary--narrated by Barabara Rosenblat and produced by Recorded Books, LLC---on my daily commute to work. Generally, I do not care for books on tape, and I find concentrating on the narration to be difficult. This recording was an exception. Ms. Rosenblat is an actor and singer, and her reading of the book brings the characters alive; her presentation, I believe, captures Bridget's personality perfectly. The book itself is hilarious, with plenty of satire on modern dating practices, self-help spirituality, the media, modern poetry, and politics. I was not thrilled about having all the profanity blasting from my car speakers (and there is plenty of sex to be had as well, though none of it graphic). Despite its depiction of a world of modern libertine values, The Edge of Reason is effectively conservative. The liberal can no doubt find in it support for his or her world view, but from my perspective, the effect of the novel was to ultimately exhibit the superiority of a more traditional outlook. In the end, it is not the philosophical singletons whose advice proves true, but that of the marrieds and the older generation, the "elders of the tribe." Of course, Fielding's satire is broad and finds ample targets on all sides of the question.
Fielding loosely modeled Bridget Jones's Diary on Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice, and The Edge of Reason takes more than a few scenes from Austen's Persuasion (one character is even named Benwick). The two most glaring examples of homage to Austen's original are the scene in which Mark Darcy rescues Bridget from a cloying child and the one in which he appears to be writing something, only to hand Bridget Rudyard Kipling's poem "If." This latter scene will at first prove impenetrable to anyone who is not familiar with Persuasion. The uninformed reader will be as curious and clueless as Bridget, and will have to wait until the conclusion of the novel to have the mystery solved. The Austen fan, on the contrary, will be able to immediately guess what has happened. There are many other parallels between the two novels, and they are well executed. The Edge of Reason is an entertaining read--or, in my case, an entertaining listen. My only criticisms are that the work is too drawn out (too much angst for my taste) and that the diary format can prove limiting at times.
Fforde, Jasper
The Eyre Affair * * * * * * * * (8)
Imagine if Raymond Chandler melded with Douglas Adams to produce a sci-fi hardball detective mystery replete with literary references, and you'd have something like The Eyre Affair. The book takes place in a strange version of 1980's England, where the Crimean war has been going on for over hundred years, where Baconians knock on your door to try to convert you to their view of Shakespearean authorship, where a special operations squad exists explicitly to investigate literary crimes, and where the Chronoguard has the ability to travel through time. The novel follows the adventures of Thursday Next, a LiteraTech who is caught up in the hunt for arch criminal Acheron Hades, who is determined to abduct and ransom fictional characters, notably Jane Eyre. The book is not at all academic in tone; it reads like a fast, enjoyable work of popular fiction, but you have to be well read to appreciate it. If you are familiar with the English classics you will have a good sense of what is transpiring, and you will be able to pick up on various clues and enjoy the "inside" literary jokes.
The author draws both style and content from a wide variety of popular genre literature. You can find elements of Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler, Douglas Adams, comic book heroes and villains, Bridget Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and more. Yet the work is far from unoriginal; it is precisely the author's ability to pull off this diverse combination that makes the book so unique. This is a great volume for the literature major who is so accustomed to analyzing that he or she has lost the ability to read for pleasure. The Eyre Affair will give you a chance to re-learn that beautiful, lost art.
Lost in a Good Book * * * * * * * * (8)
Although some of the novelty of Thursday Next's world has worn off by the time the reader reaches this sequel to The Eyre Affair, Fforde adds enough new treats to keep the book feeling almost as fresh as its prequel. The humour is as sharp as ever; indeed, Lost in a Good Book may be even funnier than Fforde's previous novel. The book is an easy read and is just fun. It narrates every bibliophile's childlike fantasy--the idea of being able to travel through books. There was one flaw in the work, however, and that was the rather enigmatic climax, a world-saving event that did not make much sense to me. All in all, Lost in a Good Book is fantastic pleasure reading.
The Well of Lost Plots * * * * * * (6)
In this third installment of the Thursday Next literary mystery series, our agent finds herself working for Jurisfiction in the Book World, residing in one of the unpublished novels to be found in the Well of Lost Plots. Fforde creates a clever fantasy world and uses numerous literary puns, which make The Well of Lost Plots worth reading. The story itself, however, is not really gripping, and Thursday's character has never seemed well developed or "real" to me. I keep reading this series because of the flashes of humour and the pure pleasure of being "in" on the literary jokes. The storytelling itself, however, leaves something to be desired.
King, Stephen
The Dark Tower Series
Click here for individual reviews of books in the series.
Lewis, C.S.
Out of the Silent Planet * * * * * * (6)
This science fiction tale, the first in Lewis's space trilogy, is full of theology. The hero, Ransom, travels to another planet and learns about the eldi (angels) and the Bent One (Satan), and he has an adventure with the various inhabitants of Mars. I sometimes found Lewis's descriptions to be excessive and, for me, dull, but for many readers, they are the liveliest part of the book, and arguably provide a fine exhibition of Lewis's writing talent. Lewis makes fine use of a popular genre to convey a not so popular message.
Perelandra * * * * * (5)
Perelandra, the second in Lewis's space trilogy, is a virtual retelling of the story of Adam and Eve, except that it occurs on Venus and ends differently. Satan, through Weston, tries to make the Green Lady live on the fixed-lands, as he once tempted Eve to taste the forbidden fruit. This novel attempts to answer some troubling theological questions: Did good come from the Fall? Was it the fall that gave us free-will? Why would God not want us to have the knowledge of good and evil? Only when Lewis lapses into lengthy descriptions of Perelandra is the book boring. Lewis also introduces the idea that Predestination and Freedom are the same thing, but his reasoning is very hard to follow.
Quote: We have learned of evil, though not as the Evil One wished us to learn. We have learned better than that, for it is waking that understands sleep and not sleep that understands waking.
That Hideous Strength * * * * * * * (7)
This is the last and perhaps the best novel in Lewis's space trilogy, and it is particularly interesting because it describes so creatively and profoundly the modern tendency to deify science at the expense of reducing the dignity of human life and the importance of the individual. The novel expresses so many dangerous modern tendencies so well, that it almost seems prophetic. On the downside, I feel that Ransom changes too much in this novel, becoming an almost inhuman Christ figure. Furthermore, I found Lewis's focus on female submission to be lacking in subtlety, and therefore somewhat offsetting, even if some of his rationale was accurate. (His apologetics are not well incorporated into the novel on this point, which strains the literary quality of the book.) At times, the epic battle seems to border on dualism; which makes for good action and good fiction if not for good theology. That Hideous Strength easily stands on its own, though the first two books in the trilogy offer a little background.
Quote: "Theology is talk--eyewash--a smoke screen--a game for rich men. It wasn't in lecture rooms I found the Lord Jesus. It was in the coal pits, and beside the coffin of my daughter. If they think that Theology is a sort of cotton wool which will keep them safe in the great and terrible day, they'll find their mistake."
The Screwtape Letters * * * * * * * * * * (10)
C.S. Lewis's best book, The Screwtape Letters provides uncanny insight into the spiritual struggle of the average Christian. Lewis exposes the seemingly innocuous, everyday temptations that are, in fact, the greatest threat to the individual soul. He does all this in a clever, creative manner. The novel consists of a series of letters written by a devil named Screwtape to his fledgling pupil Wormwood. Screwtape advises his protege as Wormwood seeks to lead a new born Christian down that wide, easy path to damnation. Lewis's perceptiveness, as displayed in this novel, amazes.
Quote: There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel and excessive and unhealthy interest in them.
O'Neil, Caroline Coleman
Loving Sören * * * * * * (6)
This novel, the first from the pen of Caroline Coleman O'Neil, is based on the true story of Regine Olsen's engagement to Christian philosopher S
ören Kierkegaard. However, you need not know much about Kierkegaard to appreciate the novel. Everything is told from the point of view of his fiancé, and if you are interested in Kierkegaard's philosophy, this isn't the way to delve into it. Really, if you are looking for anything very much deeper than a Christian romance novel, look elsewhere. But if you are looking for a Christian romance novel that is not overbearing in its morality or utterly simplistic in its use of language, then Loving Sören is a good choice. It stands out among most novels in the genre because the religious element is somewhat more subdued (though still obvious) and the book is not written on your usual 6th grade reading level; indeed, the language is occasionally beautifully crafted. Loving Sören also dabbles with some serious themes, like what it means to be a Christian (to suffer or to embrace life?), although these themes are not as developed as I would like. The book somewhat satiates the intellect without being at all obtuse. The novel focuses on Regina's process of maturing beyond her obsession with Kierkegaard, which she never fully does by the end of the novel. She does, however, at least come to confess this obsession as a weakness, although her realization of this is rather sudden and slightly unbelievably portrayed (this is the typical "conversion scene" you find in Christian fiction). Overall, I feel I can recommend the book, and it is good to see a work of this quality put out by a Christian publisher.Sapir, Richard Ben
The Far Arena * * * * * * * (7)
The Far Arena was fascinating because of its historical richness and exploration of the ancient Roman culture. It gives the reader a first hand view of the games and the horrors they entailed. Ben Sapir shows the reader how easy it is to accept and cheer on something so vile. The character of Eugeni was raised and trained as a gladiator, and when he is brought into the modern day world, the problems of his transition are telling. There are some touching moments in this novel, but most of its interesting moments involve violence. The most powerful scene in the novel, however, and the one which I believe draws one of the starkest contrasts between Eugeni's time and ours, is when Eugeni sees the crucifix around the neck of a woman. To her, it is a symbol of Christ and of her faith. But to Eugeni, it is a perverted decoration, a sick instrument of the cruelest death. He is enraged by the fact that the woman would wear such an object. He even tries to kill her. Scenes like these draw the reader into the novel, and make him think about the passage of time--about how difficult it would be to adjust to another age. And though it is right that the brutal age of Roman gladiators and crucifixion should pass away, the novel forces the reader to feel great pity for the gladiator who must awake in a world where all he believed in is dead.
Vonnegut, Kurt
Breakfast of Champions * * * * * * (6)
This is one of Kurt Vonnegut's more bizarre books. Forever entertaining, occasionally offensive, and sometimes just plain weird, Breakfast of Champions is quickly read and even more quickly forgotten. Kilgoure Trout makes an appearance, touting some of his best plots ever. Vonnegut does a good job ridiculing abstract art and realistic literature, but he is rather serious in his introduction, where he laments the changing of Armisitce Day to Veteran's Day. This seems to be a very sore point with Vonnegut, as he has mentioned it in at least one other book.
Quote: It was during that minute in nineteen hundred and eighteen, that millions upon millions of human beings stopped butchering one and another. I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind. Armistice Day has become Veterans' Day. Armistice Day was sacred. Veterans' day is not. So I will throw Veterans' Day over my shoulder. Armistice Day I will keep. I don't want to throw away any sacred things.
See the Contemporary Classics section for a review of Slaughterhouse Five.
Waugh, Evelyn
A Handful of Dust * * * * * * * * (8)
Born in Hempstead, England in 1903, Evelyn Waugh published his first book in 1927, a biography of the poet and artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti. He has written fifteen satirical novels attacking an age which he felt had, through its rejection of tradition, squandered all values and substance. Evelyn Waugh takes this book’s title from T.S. Eliot’s long poem "The Waste Land":
. . . I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.
It is appropriate that Waugh should allude to "The Waste Land," since A Handful of Dust is itself a satirical expose of the moral waste land that is modern society, a world drifting without the anchor of religion and tradition. But Waugh’s message is communicated both gradually and subtly, and with great wit. He seems always to select the perfect turn of phrase, and he creates extremely amusing and original situations. Take, for instance, the sad case of Tony Last, who, delirious with fever, wanders in the Brazilian jungle, only to be found and nursed back to health by a madman who then forces him (at gunpoint) to read aloud Dickens's novels. It is interesting to speculate what Waugh’s satirical point is here; his novel is often amusing but cryptic. It is, however, the overall effect created by Waugh’s weaving of characters, language, and situations, that matters most. And the effect is magnificent.
The Loved One * * * * * * * * * * (10)
Waugh is far and away the most unique writer of satire in the 20th century. His bizarre twists of plot never cease to impress and amuse. The Loved One is consistently entertaining, satirical, and comical. Waugh's superb command of the English language--his amazing ability to turn a phrase just so--utterly astonishes me. It is fun to watch for the constant poetical quotes Waugh satirically weaves into this tale. The Loved One mocks Hollywood, America, and the English all at once. I can not put into words how unique and clever this book really is; the scenes Waugh conceives, the wording he employs, the characters he creates, even the names he chooses, all work to create an entirely "different" reading experience.
Scoop * * * * * * * * * (9)
In this diverting comedy of errors, Waugh satirizes African politics, British society, and world journalism. Retired country gentleman William Boot, through a series of misunderstandings, finds himself suddenly bound to Ishmaliea as a foreign correspondent, but he doesn't know quite how to invent the news. Somehow, he manages to bumble his way to journalistic stardom, while falling in love and being played a fool. This short novel is an easy read, and will inspire, if not outright laughter, a number of silent smiles and soft chuckles. (Review added 5/2/04)
Aurora Dawn * * * * * * * * (8)
Although it is perhaps Herman Wouk's most entertaining novel, few have heard of Aurora Dawn. One of the better examples of satire in the 20th century, Aurora Dawn mocks a variety of things from psychologists and advertising to those who think of evil as nothing more than "an absence of being where being should be." For the most part, the novel is a parody on novelists. It is extremely enjoyable and filled with subtle humor as well as some not so subtle laughs.
Quote: "...for reasons of the human spirit which could not be fathomed by ten empiric psychologists running a hundred rats through a thousand mazes for ten days, Andrew felt that this girl was his for the taking."
War and Remembrance * * * * * *(6)
As an insightful and moving look at World War II, War and Remembrance is effective. I found Aaron Jastorw's moving speech on Job to be one of the most impressive scenes in the novel, indeed, one of the most impressive scenes in fiction.
As a novel, however, War and Remembrance suffers from a few minor flaws. The historical perspective of the German von Roon, although helpful for describing the war, tends to interrupt the flow of the fictional story. The ending, likewise, draws us out of the story, unnecessarily making a point of the fact that the characters, who seem so real to us, are fictional. Finally, the novel is made less interesting (as a fictional novel, though not as a historical treatise) by its excessive length.
War and Remembrance was even more depressing than Winds of War, and could temporarily devastate an emotional reader. Of course, one must expect war to be depressing, but for me, War and Remembrance had a negative emotional power that went far beyond the effect of any other book I have read, including many on the holocaust. I think this stems from the fact that the characters' personal lives--and not just the war--are steeped in betrayal and tragedy, so that there is no relief from the constant negativity.
You might also want to see:
List
of books by and about Herman Wouk
Quiz on
the works of Herman Wouk
Dispatches from the Tenth Circle * * * * * (5)
This collection of articles from the infamous humorous newspaper The Onion has become a New York Times bestseller. It is often vulgar, coursing with profanity and blatant (often sophomoric) sexual jokes. It also contains a healthy dose of irreverence, the religious mockery being aimed largely at Christians, but with enough openness to include occasionally the Jews. Despite its not infrequent offensiveness, The Onion's articles did often make me laugh. As Al Gore is quoted as saying on the back of the book, "What else could make me laugh--much less laugh uproariously--while being offended week after week after week?" Much of the comic force of the collections comes from the authors' abilities to parody so effectively the style of newswriting found in papers today. But because of this, the humor also grows stale after awhile--the joke is a good one, but by the end of the collection, it has become an old one. Therefore, about half way through, it becomes natural for the reader to enjoy the headlines but merely skim the articles.
Here's a smattering of some of the headlines that struck me as the funniest: "Oprah Viewers Patiently Awaiting Instructions"; "Fanzine Marred by Typo"; "Pope Calls For Greater Understanding Between Catholics, Hellbound"; and "Fun Toy Banned Because of Three Stupid Dead Kids." Probably the funniest article was on the sinister phase two of Starbucks's operation, but the one I could most relate to was entitled: "Aging Gen-Xer Doesn't Find Bad Movies Funny Anymore." Also included are a collection of point counterpoint editorials, which forcefully mock the whole concept of the editorial. The best is the point-counterpoint on Nigeria: "Nigeria May Be A Developing Nation, But It Is Rich In Cultural Resources" vs. "Get Me Out Of This Godforsaken Hellhole." It's easy and entertaining to pass the time with The Onion, but perhaps not very fruitful.
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