Hello everyone! You may have noticed that, this week, we're actually looking at two week's worth of genres - both fantasy and historical fiction. This is due solely to my lack of understanding dates, figures and statistics. I got myself confused between the July-August break so - sorry! - we're doing double this week. But, no matter, because, on the bright side, we get to do double reading! So, let's start off with fantasy. When I was younger, it was literally my favourite (and perhaps only) genre; my reading went from wizards to dragons to witches to magical beasts then straight back to wizards again.] As I got older, the fantasy-fanatics wore off a little, as I began to explore and appreciate different genres. Naturally, my favourite fantasy book is 'The Lord of the Rings' by Tolkien. I have two things to say when it comes to this book: (1) Read it at the right time and (2) Read it before you watch the films. I know its a bit of a divider-of-opinions, but I'm just going to quote Tolkien himself from the 'Foreword to the Second Edition' of 'The Fellowship of the Ring': 'It is perhaps not possible in a long tale to please everybody at all points, nor to displease everybody at the same points ... some who have read the book, or at any rate have reviewed it, have found it boring, absurd or contemptible; and I have no cause to complain since I have similar opinions of their works, or the kinds of writing that they evidently prefer.' I think that sums everything up nicely. Anyway, back to the point: fantasy books. Considering we've got two genres to look at, I went back to a set of books I had already read a while ago, rather than reading something fresh: The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini. I looked more particularly at the first book - 'Eragon' - which is named after the hero of the books set in the fantasy land of Alagaësia. I remember vividly reading the beginning few chapters of this book in the pouring rain, and the pages at the beginning of the book are crumpled where they were soaked through. The beginning had all the glory of the fantasy genre - legends, dragons, a mysterious world, a tyrannical king and an unlikely hero - with a simple, refreshing narrative voice and engaging language. This was classic fantasy, yes, but this was something modern too, with new excitement and adventure.
As I read further, though, some of the initial excitement wore off, and the book got to the gritty details and wound up to the dramatic ending. I still liked it, and devoured it quickly, but I began to have a premonition of an up-coming cliché...which I found grew through the second and third books and was, in part, justified by the fourth. For, though the books had a new voice and vigour, I thought some fundamental parts were a bit too well-known, too formulaic, and not original enough. However, that similar story of the farm boy to fantasy world leader might be some of the books' collective charm, the thing which gives them their edge - I'm not sure it worked for me entirely, but I still read them right through and enjoyed it. So, overall, a decent book which I liked, though didn't fall in love with completely. Right, that's not it yet - straight on to historical fiction. Okay, so historical fiction hasn't always been a genre I've enjoyed, and its only really something I've come into recently. Historical novels for younger readers are few and far between, though I must say the 'Roman Mysteries' by Caroline Lawrence were a favourite of mine, and, as you get older, it can be hard to slot into that elusive genre. It's not just finding an author, style or tone that you like; you've got to find a period in history which appeals to you, too, and that can be a challenge in itself. A friend of mine told me that she'd found a book that she thought I'd love. I wasn't so sure...our reading tastes differ on most points. She showed it to me anyway, and, just reading the very brief blurb, I knew that I had to read this book. It was set in the 1800s - tick! Naval officers - tick! Scientists - tick! Voyage around the world - tick! Charles Darwin - tick! True story - tick! This book had literally everything I loved in it; it was like it had been written for me. And, even if it sounds like quite a niche market, this book - 'This Thing of Darkness' by Harry Thompson - should not be read just because you are obsessed with Victorian-era navies, explorers and scientists (like me), but because it is a compelling and original book: it is like no other book I've ever read. Well, actually, that's not true. I read a similar book - 'The Dinosaur Hunters' by Deborah Cadbury - but that book was very academic and measured. Thompson's re-telling of the lives of Captain Robert FitzRoy and Charles Darwin as they both reversed between the fates of fortune and disaster was true, honest, witty, fast-paced and endearingly human. The characters, long dead now, were alive again, and the wonder, confusion, tumult and adventure of science, religion and society in Victorian England was captured wonderfully. It was pitched in that soft spot between taking facts and making up something fanciful and the other end of the spectrum with being so inhibited by the facts and realities that the book ceases to be a story and starts to be a critical essay. The book captured the science which I'd been through in biology lessons; it encompassed the geography, both human and physical, of the world at the time; it touched on politics, society, beliefs and prejudices of the era; it discussed colonial, naval and social issues of the time; but most of all it took the reader with the characters from the vivacity of youth through to the reflective contemplation of older years with a stunning yet unsentimental story about the dark things that lurk in both life and history. So, if you haven't guessed already, I really, really, really loved this book! And that's everything! Two weeks' worth of reading done and discussed in one...the most productive mistake I've ever made! Please do comment on either genre, what you like about them and which books from them you've enjoyed - I'd love to hear what you think as well! And next week it's science-fiction - I wonder what we'll all read then...
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AuthorHi, I love reading all kinds of books. Here, we can talk about different types of books we're reading and recommend reads to each other. Maybe share with us your reading 'ideal meal' or one of your favourite books. Archives
August 2020
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