In the genre of fantasy that does not involve futuristic machinery and super-duper gizmos there are remarkably few books. Megan Whalen Turner's trilogy (so far) is a stand out in this genre. The three book are
The Thief
The Queen of Attolia
The King of Attolia
The books are meant to be read in sequence and having read all three there is really no way to see them as three different books. It is one, coherent, continuous story that are beautifully written and the new books never try to outdo the previous ones either in scale or heroism and for this reason alone it is a superior read compared to the Harry Potter sequence.
The thief is Eugenides a descendent of other thieves. He is released from the prison of Sounis by the Magus and taken to perform what many others have already failed. The Magus realizes that Eugenides has special gifts. These gifts are not immeidately apparent to the reader or his companions on the trip. What we really see is a petulant kid with a keen sense of observation, some hints to the talents he hides and most of all a very detailed knowledge of the mythology of Eddis, a kingdom in the mountains that separates Sounis from the other powerful kingdom of Attolia. One tends to develop respect for the Magus and love for the thief. He is handled and treated like a thief who might run away at any time until the reach the kingdom of Attolia where being with the Magus turns out to be safer than attempting a run. When it becomes clear that the thief has to steal the stone of Hamiathes, we see him transform into the character that he is known for. Turner lets us feel for the thief by making us constantly aware of his faults, fears as well as determination and cleverness.
In the second book we see the thief coming to terms with a devastating punishment meted out to him by the Queen of Attolia. She is known to be cruel but when Eugenides is recovering from his injury we see him transition from abject self-pity. He becomes more aware of the bigger picture in the politics of the region. He understands (and through him we do too) the intricate political games that are transpiring between the kingdoms. We see the role played by a fourth imperialistic power, the Medes. The thief begins to realize that he can play a significant role in shaping the relationships and securing his own country. The description of this transition is perhaps what makes this book the most engaging of the trilogy. However, it is entirely possible that people find this the most boring book as well.
In the final installment we see Eugenides in exactly the position he wanted to be in. However, it does not turn out to be as comfortable as he thought. After influencing the inter-kingdom politics in The Queen of Attolia, he is now enmeshed in the politics within the kingdom. He is not liked by the people of his own country especially for the position he occupies. He is seen as a thief, a coward and not eligible for his post.
Through out the series, we are presented with the local mythologies and gods. There are magical events where the gods intervene in everyday life. However these situations provide a sense of unpredictability that is entirely welcome. They are like a shot of espresso in the middle of the day. The characters are never taken for granted. We see them in various situations and build up a personal opinion of them. They are like normal human beings with flaws and strengths and when they are in extreme situations they behave with equal doses of grit and foolishness.
In short, it is a fantastic story of very real human beings set in a wonderful time a place that only a very creative mind can bring to life.
Friday, September 15, 2006
A brief history of the dead by Kevin Brockmeier
Imagine a city sustained by memories. Not deliberate, clear and lucid memories. But even a mere sighting from the corner of your eye is enough to connect the person to your list of remembered people. This is the basis of "the city" in Kevin Brockmeier's book. They are the recent dead and are in the city because someone who remembers them is alive on earth. In the city they have clear memories of their life and even their death. They remember the people they knew. It is a simple place not at all like heavens and hells that we think of. It feels like any normal city.
The story in the book happens at a time when a virulent epidemic is wiping out the entire human population on earth. So just as people are entering the city is large numbers, they are also leaving in large numbers for the simple reason that the people who remember them on earth are dying away rapidly.
On earth it is a time when the companies have become powerful enough to get a hold of Antarctica for its mineral wealth. The Coca Cola company has sent some researchers to study the place. And by a strange turn of circumstances, Laura Byrd - one of the scientists - becomes the only person alive on earth for a short period of time. So this creates the curious situation that all the people in the city know Laura Byrd and the is the sole cause of her existence in the city. He survival gives these people a chance to look at their past lives and re-evaluate relationships. Her parents who had grown apart on earth grow closer and their love is renewed. A PR person from the Coca Cola company becomes aware of a certain hideous skeleton in his cupboard. One of her co-workers tries to count how many people's lives he had touched. As he does this computation comes to the humbling conclusion that there could have been well over fifty thousand people.
The book brings to the fore the powerful notion that while we go through the business of our life, we could potentially touch a lot of people and leave behind powerful memories. Our mere existence could give people an opportunity to make their lives a little better.
The story in the book happens at a time when a virulent epidemic is wiping out the entire human population on earth. So just as people are entering the city is large numbers, they are also leaving in large numbers for the simple reason that the people who remember them on earth are dying away rapidly.
On earth it is a time when the companies have become powerful enough to get a hold of Antarctica for its mineral wealth. The Coca Cola company has sent some researchers to study the place. And by a strange turn of circumstances, Laura Byrd - one of the scientists - becomes the only person alive on earth for a short period of time. So this creates the curious situation that all the people in the city know Laura Byrd and the is the sole cause of her existence in the city. He survival gives these people a chance to look at their past lives and re-evaluate relationships. Her parents who had grown apart on earth grow closer and their love is renewed. A PR person from the Coca Cola company becomes aware of a certain hideous skeleton in his cupboard. One of her co-workers tries to count how many people's lives he had touched. As he does this computation comes to the humbling conclusion that there could have been well over fifty thousand people.
The book brings to the fore the powerful notion that while we go through the business of our life, we could potentially touch a lot of people and leave behind powerful memories. Our mere existence could give people an opportunity to make their lives a little better.
Kevin Brockmeier's book recommendations
1. A Death in the Family by James Agee (*)
2. The Complete Short Stories by J.G. Ballard (*)
3. A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle
4. Once in Europa by John Berger
5. Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges
6. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (*)
7. Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
8. The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino (*)
9. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
10. Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton (*)
11. Novelties and Souvenirs: Collected Short Fiction by John Crowley
12. Matilda by Roald Dahl
13. The Latin American Trilogy by Louis de Bernières
14. Tales of Neveryon by Samuel R. Delany
15. The Unexpected Universe by Loren Eiseley
16. A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
17. The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys by Chris Fuhrman
18. Paris Stories by Mavis Gallant
19. The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
20. The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis
21. Collected Stories by Richard Kennedy
22. Otherwise: New and Selected Poems by Jane Kenyon
23. Elegy by Larry Levis
24. Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link
25. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
26. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (*)
27. All the Days and Nights: The Collected Stories by William Maxwell (*)
28. Edwin Mullhouse: The Life and Death of an American Writer,1943-1954 by Steven Millhauser
29. Essays by Michel de Montaigne
30. Complete Works and Other Stories by Augusto Monterroso
31. A Wild Sheep Chase and Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami
32. The Sharpshooter Blues by Lewis Nordan
33. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
34. Esther Stories by Peter Orner
35. A Collection of Essays by George Orwell
36. Metamorphoses by Ovid
37. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
38. Alan Mendelsohn, the Boy from Mars by Daniel Pinkwater (*)
39. My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
40. The His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman (*)
41. Where Bigfoot Walks: Crossing the Dark Divide by Robert Michael Pyle
42. Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson (*)
43. The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by José Saramago
44. Indistinguishable from the Darkness by Charlie Smith
45. The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis
46. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
47. Waiting for God by Simone Weil
48. Essays by E.B. White
49. Stoner by John Williams
50. The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
2. The Complete Short Stories by J.G. Ballard (*)
3. A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle
4. Once in Europa by John Berger
5. Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges
6. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (*)
7. Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
8. The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino (*)
9. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
10. Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton (*)
11. Novelties and Souvenirs: Collected Short Fiction by John Crowley
12. Matilda by Roald Dahl
13. The Latin American Trilogy by Louis de Bernières
14. Tales of Neveryon by Samuel R. Delany
15. The Unexpected Universe by Loren Eiseley
16. A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
17. The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys by Chris Fuhrman
18. Paris Stories by Mavis Gallant
19. The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
20. The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis
21. Collected Stories by Richard Kennedy
22. Otherwise: New and Selected Poems by Jane Kenyon
23. Elegy by Larry Levis
24. Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link
25. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
26. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (*)
27. All the Days and Nights: The Collected Stories by William Maxwell (*)
28. Edwin Mullhouse: The Life and Death of an American Writer,1943-1954 by Steven Millhauser
29. Essays by Michel de Montaigne
30. Complete Works and Other Stories by Augusto Monterroso
31. A Wild Sheep Chase and Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami
32. The Sharpshooter Blues by Lewis Nordan
33. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
34. Esther Stories by Peter Orner
35. A Collection of Essays by George Orwell
36. Metamorphoses by Ovid
37. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
38. Alan Mendelsohn, the Boy from Mars by Daniel Pinkwater (*)
39. My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
40. The His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman (*)
41. Where Bigfoot Walks: Crossing the Dark Divide by Robert Michael Pyle
42. Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson (*)
43. The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by José Saramago
44. Indistinguishable from the Darkness by Charlie Smith
45. The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis
46. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
47. Waiting for God by Simone Weil
48. Essays by E.B. White
49. Stoner by John Williams
50. The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
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