I just finished Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell in the wee hours of the morning. It was a very satisfying read and I considered writing a book review of sorts, but then realizing that today is Thursday and that I hadn’t participated in the Thursday Thirteen last week, I thought I’d do a list of 13 Things about Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell:
1. The book looks a little bit intimidating what with it’s 800+ pages, but you quickly forget how huge it is once you get into it — except for the wrist strain you might experience from holding it up.
2. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell are the two main characters of the book. We’re introduced to Mr. Norrell first, who quickly establishes himself as the only magician in England. Later on, he meets Jonathan Strange who becomes his pupil.
3. We’re repeatedly told that Mr. Norrell has the most comprehensive collection of magic books in all of England, with a library containing some four or five thousand volumes. These books are the only source of existing knowledge for anyone who wants to practice magic. One of the reasons Norrell’s collection is so large is that he’s acquired all the magic books on the market over the years — mainly to ensure that no one else has access to them — and he guards them jealously. He eventually lets Strange read some, but by no means all of them.
4. Norrell & Strange are much like Jekyll & Hyde. Where one is reclusive, insecure and intent on doing things “by the book” (Norrell), the other is gregarious, outgoing, and all too willing to experiment and push the envelope (Strange). They are like two sides of a coin alternatively enjoying each other’s company and openly engaging in feuds.
5. The book takes place in the early 1800's during the time of the Napoleonic Wars. Norrell and Strange are eager to put magic at the service of the British army in order to defeat the French. Though they meet with much resistance at first, eventually the Duke of Wellington makes good use of Jonathan Strange’s growing talent (which is largely attributed to the forty or fifty books he’s managed to wrangle from Norrell as well as his own inventiveness).
6. It quickly becomes quite clear that the kind of magic that is performed by a “real” magician in this book has nothing to do with the kind of lame lounge acts that passes for magic in these parts; there’s not a hint of a playing cards, top hats or bunnies. The author has taken every liberty so that what is called “magic” is in fact more akin to the order of miracles.
7. One of the reviews on the front cover of the book says “Ravishing... superb... combines the dark mythology of fantasy with the delicious social comedy of Jane Austen into a masterpiece of the genre that rivals Tolkien” ~ Time
8. If you want to raise someone from the dead, all you have to do is summon a faerie who will demand as payment half the person’s remaining lifetime and a left pinkie finger.
9. Unlike what I learned from faerie books as a child, faeries can be male and can also be incredibly superficial, vengeful and bloodthirsty creatures who can and will make anyone’s life a living hell... just for the heck of it.
10. You don’t have to be English to appreciate English magic and/or this book. In fact, Susanna Clarke has done a brilliant job at recreating the scenery and settings, the clothes, the sights, the smells, that you are easily transported the 19th England, whether you’ve been there or not.
11. I enjoyed the storytelling, the prose, which read very much like a 19th century book, the overall pacing, the little details such as ancient spelling on some words and the use of “footnotes” which serve to further inform the reader about English magic, yet did find that all this sometimes weighed the story down.
12. The critics part 1: “Clarke's narrative is a studious pastiche of leisurely, discursive 19th-century prose, complete with archaic spellings (...) and a copious use of faux-pedantic footnotes. The result is a sort of Jane Austen Powers. (...) If the book ends up as engaging rather than riveting, cosy rather rather than visceral, that represents a distinguishing mark of its sub-genre as opposed to a flaw in the author's craftsmanship.” ~ Charles Shaar Murray, The Independent
13. The critics part 2: “Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell is at heart a book about the present’s relationship to the past. In its pages Clarke takes the accepted fabric of English culture and inserts just a single new thread: that during the Renaissance, magic actually worked. (...) What makes the novel so impressive, however, is Susanna Clarke's flair for pastiche and her astonishing explanatory footnotes.” ~ Michael Dirda, The Washington Post
To view previous Thursday Thirteens, click here.
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
May 8, 2008
Thirteen Things About Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke [#22]
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
15 gave their feedback:
I've heard that about fairies but don't want to believe it.
You might want to stay away from this book then because there are plenty of examples of fairies misbehaving.
I loved this book. It was brilliant and engaging and many other wonderful things.
As far as fairies go...listening to interviews with Clarke and her friend Neil Gaiman (and watching a few episodes of Torchwood), I've learned that British fairies are often mean, prone to whims and mischief, while American fairies are sweet and grant wishes.
I confess I have never heard of this book, but you do make it seem very interesting.
love the words "lame lounge acts" lame lounge acts lame lounge act lame.. xxx
I will be adding this to my list of books to read. However the size of it puts it on the back burner until my wrist heals.
It's interesting about the fairies as I was bought up with stories of different kinds of fairies including many similar to the ones in the book. Perhaps it was because many of the stories I was drawn to as a child were closer to English folklore?
I'm intrigued by the book now and am going to get it I think. First I think some weight training so i can hold it might be in order! :)
BTW - The quick answer to your question about Depth of field on my photo blog is that you can achieve it quite easily through using aperture priority. A high f number will produce a large DOP and will keep more in sharp focus whereas a low f number will decrease the DOP. So f/5.6 is useful for portraits and will keep the subject sharp while blurring the background while f/22 is better for landscapes as it will keep more in focus. Hope this helps!
marta: I didn't realize fairies had a citizenship, I thought they had their own parallel world to roam through.
nicholas: I love introducing people to new (to them) things and vice versa. One of the advantages of blogging!
Lee: interesting you picked up on that. Now that I see it here, I do find it's a funny sounding expression. Didn't think twice about it when I wrote it.
eve: maybe there's a special technique for holding particularly heavy books that I'm not aware of. Or you could read it by propping it on a table, that would work.
bob-kat: the book really should come with instructions as to how to handle it. I sprained something in my neck which goes down my back and I wouldn't be surprised if the book had something to do with it. I remember learning about all kinds of fairies as a child too, and most (seems to me) were also quite Anglo-centric. But the fact is I can barely remember any of it. Like a hazy dream.
Thanks much for the photo tip, that does make sense to me and I shall experiment once I manage to get outside with my camera.
Well, no I didn't mean they had citizenship...I guess I should've said tradition or perception. Although the next time I see a fairy I'll ask for its passport--probably be too tiny to read though...
marta: I was of course being silly with talk of citizenship, and fairy passports is another silly notion to amuse myself with. For instrance: does that mean they have to go through airport security?
Great. That's all I need--the image of fairies being sent to Gitmo. I think I prefer imagining a gang of teen goth fairies set lose in Dick Cheney's office...
Okay. I'm going to stop now.
marta: I know, when I get started on that sort of thing there's no end to where my imagination can take it. Was fun throwing the ball back and forth for a bit.
I've read this book and really enjoyed it. Especially the footnotes, which take more than a few pages sometimes :).
Post a Comment