It’s been a long time since I’ve recommended any books on the blog. For that I apologise.
The problem isn’t that I haven’t been reading. I always read. You know how sharks have to keep swimming or they die? I’m like that. If I stop reading, I die.
The problem is this, when I read a book and I like it, I think, “I should mention this on the blog.” Then I wonder what exactly I can say about the book that will be not only enthusiastic, witty, and persuasive, but also informative and true.
It’s the last two that are tricky, you see. Truth is a troublesome motherfucker unless it’s handled properly.
The other problem is the difference between what I say and what people are inclined to hear. If I say “I like this book” people are inclined to believe that what I mean is “You will like this book.” Which isn’t necessarily the case.
So I feel obliged to explain *why* I liked it. That way people can make inteligent choices about whether or not they’d like to buy it. Because that is how we all remain independant, rational human beings as opposed to mindless, soulless, consumerist cogs, right?
Right?
However, writing this sort of blog is, to say it simply, a pain in the ass. Consequently I put off mentioning books on the blog, sometimes for embarrassingly long periods of time.
Like this one:
I’ve been meaning to mention this book for over six months. I’m filled with shame…
The more observant of you might actually recognize the book from a previous appearance on the blog. That’s because the author, Laini Taylor, was nice enough to donate a signed copy to the Heifer Fundraiser we did last year.
When she sent it in, I was curious about the book. Because… well… the truth is I have a bit of a thing for faeries.
I know this might come as something of a shock to some of you. You think that, manly as I am, I could never be into stories about little wingy people flitting about. At the very least, you probably think that if I *did* like such things, I’d have the decency to stay quiet about it, lest people start thinking that I was sissy.
But that’s not actually how it works, you see. Only guys insecure about their manliness worry about looking sissy. They’re afraid that if someone looks too closely people will realize that their machismo is just a thin tissue of lies.
Truth is, you see a guy reading a faerie book in the coffee shop, you know that he has nothing to hide. Dude is confident in his manness. He knows exactly who he is.
Me, I’m so manly that I can read this book in a bus station while wearing a dress and singing “Faith” by George Michael.
I’m not saying I did, mind you. I’m saying I could.
Anyway, about the book. I really enjoyed it. Good characters. Good use of language. Refreshingly new take on Faerie society. Cool world. Cool magic. Good, quick storytelling. Technically it’s a Young Adult book, but if that’s the case then color me young adult, because I enjoyed the hell out of it.
Huh. And I just checked on Amazon. The sequel is coming out in just two weeks. Bonus. That way you don’t even have to wait for your next hit. Unlike some other tardy, lame-ass authors….
*Ahem.*
Secondly, we have something of an entirely different flavor:
I mentioned Lev Grossman a couple weeks back because we were on a panel at ComicCon together. But the truth is, I read his book when I was traveling in Europe earlier this year.
Here’s where things get tricky. You see, I honestly don’t know what I can say about this book.
I really enjoyed this book. But I can’t for the life of me tell you why.
Ordinarily when I like a book, I know why. I can point to things. Language. Character. Pacing. Worldbuilding. When I don’t like it, I can do the same. It’s easy for me. All I do is think about stories.
But I can’t point to any specific reason why I like The Magicians it except that it was clever, and it wasn’t like any sort of book I’ve ever read before.
See the problem with the Truth? As recommendations go, that’s pretty weak tea.
Hopping over to Amazon, I see that reactions to the book have been mixed. And I can’t say as I’m terribly surprised. As I said, this book was different. A lot of people don’t like different. What’s more, it was clever. And a lot of people aren’t terribly smart.
Okay, Okay. That’s not really fair. I take that back. Kinda.
My real guess is that most people will like this book. But there’s a certain type of reader who will enjoy it down to the bottoms of their feet.
That reader will:
1. Be well-read in terms of classic fantasy. They’ll have read Tolkien, Lewis, Rowling, and at least five or six dozen other fantasy novels.
2. Be aware of the standard fantasy cliches, and a little tired of them.
3. Be eager to read something different. Not just in terms of world, but in terms of character, pacing, and the fundamental structure of the story as well.
4. Appreciate cleverness.
Now that sums me up pretty well. And I enjoyed the book on a way that I can’t put into words. Which is why I suck at giving blurbs for books….
But then again, Lev doesn’t need me for that. He’s got George Martin on his cover:
See? That’s how the pros throw down. Why can’t I do that?
That’s all for now, more news soon about the name lottery. Stay tuned.
pat
Who Fears Death?
Since I’ve become a published author, a lot has changed in my life.
Most of these changes have been good things. Money, for example. These days when I go to the grocery store, I don’t have to buy the 33 cent burritos. Now I can buy the 59 cent burritos, which contain, if not food, then at least a texture designed to emulate food.
When I buy ramen, I don’t have to buy the Chicken Maruchen ramen, which you can get for a dime a packet if you buy it in bulk. These days I can buy really fancy ramen. Ramen with three or four little packets of stuff you add to the noodles. These packets contain flecks of material that I suspect are not merely vegetable colored… they might actually *be* vegetables.
True, I usually buy the Chicken Maruchen ramen anyway. But it’s nice to know that if I wanted to, I could splurge a little.
People recognize me in public now. Not just here in Stevens Point (where I live) or in Madison (where I used to live.) Someone recognized me in a train station in Manchester England last year. It was a surreal experience back then, but it’s happened all over the US now, people come up to me on the street or in a coffee shop and say, “Are you…?”
And, usually, I am.
It’s amazing what you can get used to. I never thought I’d get used to seeing my book in bookstores, but I’ve grown accustomed to it. I’m used to fanmail. I’m used to sometimes getting a hundred comments when I post a blog.
But when I was at Wiscon a couple weeks ago, I got another surprise. My friend Nnedi Okorafor was GOH there and I picked up a copy of her newly published book: Who Fears Death.
Some of you might remember Nnedi’s name because of the fun little interview I did with her a couple months ago.
Anyway, when I was standing in line to buy her book, I flipped it over and was surprised at what I saw there.
It was a blurb extolling the virtues the book… from Patrick Rothfuss.
I shouldn’t have been surprised, of course. I had given her the blurb, after all. But still, it’s not something I’m used to yet.
Everything said, my blurb seems kinda weak compared to some of the others. I kinda suck at giving blurbs for a variety of reasons. But that’s a topic for a different post I suppose…
Despite my lack of blurb prowess, if you’re looking for something to read, you should check it out. This is doubly true if you happen to be tired of the same-old done-to-death fantasy crap. You know what I’m talking about: plucky orphans, schools of magic, faeries, dragons, vaguely medieval settings, stew…
Nnedi’s made a different type of world here, and she’s telling a different kind of story. I can honestly say there were scenes in this book that filled me with genuine horror and dread. I mean that as the highest sort of praise. It’s easy to make me laugh, and you don’t have to work too hard to make me cry. But to make me actually terrified on a character’s behalf? That’s rare stuff.
More news soon, stay tuned.
pat