[pat5150]

Ngugi wa Thiong'o's Wizard of the Crow is magical realism, not fantasy.

Set in the fictional African republic of Aburiria, in Wizard of the Crow the author "set out to explore human relationships against the backdrop of a rapidly globalizing world." Thiong'o, naturally, as an exiled Kenyan, has a long history of political activism.

Weighin in at 766 pages, Wizard of the Crow is a work of titanic proportions. And its principal shortcoming is that the pace is at times atrociously slow. Which, in the end, killed this novel for me. Too many unnecessary POV characters make for an unbearably sluggish rhythm in several portions of this book. Indeed, I came very close to stop reading on more than one occasions. . . Even though some parts are quite interesting, others bored me out of my mind.

Sections of Wizard of the Crow appear to be undisguised attacks aimed at the dictatorship of Kenya's Daniel arap Moi. Which is not surprising, given the fact that the dictator's regime imprisoned the author in the 70s, banned some of his books, and then forced him into exile, first in Europe and then in the USA. I believe that, in order to fully appreciate/understand Wizard of the Crow, one needs to be familiar with world politics. Leftists will doubtless enjoy it more than their Right-wing counterparts, methinks.

Though Thiong'o is on the money more often than not, I did find some of his political "comments" to be a bit narrow on the ideological side. While I agree that international financial forces can be disruptive with their efforts to engender development (something this continent desperately needs), following decades of economic stagnation in so many African countries I found that the way he depicted market forces more than a little overdone. Given the author's past, tyranny and egomania are themes that Thiong'o explores through the Ruler and his entourage of sycophants.

Wizard of the Crow is an ambitious literary endeavor filled with great ideas. The humor, however, is more intellectual than funny. The political commentary is quite heavy-handed at times, yet that doesn't take too much away from the reading experience. It's the snail-slow pace which makes what could have been an excellent read merely a good one.

Check out the blog for the full review.

Patrick

[Shiara]

Just finished Red Seas Under Red Skies - v. good, loved the way he's gone from straight-up conning to piracy on the high seas - looks like he'll keep the characters on the move too, so looking forward to interesting new stage for the next one

Just started Faded Steel Heat by Glen Cook - one of the mere two or three of his books that are available at the city council library. Somehow I get the feeling that it isn't the first in this sequence, but hell, I've waited on hold and I've got it now, I'm bloody well going to read it

[lokiman]

Just finished YSABEL by GUY GAVRIEL KAY. I wasnt sure if i was going to like this one that much, but i decided to read it, and i liked it. I've read the sarantiam moasaic and the last light of the sun(liked these ones also) what other GGK would any of you recomend reading?

[Astra]

lokiman;207104 said:

Just finished YSABEL by GUY GAVRIEL KAY. I wasnt sure if i was going to like this one that much, but i decided to read it, and i liked it. I've read the sarantiam moasaic and the last light of the sun(liked these ones also) what other GGK would any of you recomend reading?

Tigana


you might try The Lions of Al-Rassan as well. Some people think it is the best by G.G. Kay, though I was not impressed by it.

[ShadowOwl]

I enjoyed GGK's Fionavar Tapestry trilogy the best, The Summer Tree, The Darkest Road and the Wandering Fire. I think there's a thread about GGK's novels.

[lokiman]

Thanks for the info!

[McLovin]

Light by M John Harrison. Really good. Still have no idea what the hell is going on, but really good.

[Tremolo]

Reading the collected stories about the character Von Bek who appears in universe of Michael Moorcock.

[Shiara]

Picked up GotM again for a re-read - ambitiously planning to go through the whole series again

[lokiman]

Couldn't find any other Guy Gavriel Kay at our library here, so I grabbed House of Chains again.

[Astra]

HP1 - done.
I like the book. Finished it in a record time, less than a week!
A bit too easy and the last bit remided me a computer game quest, but overall impression is very good. Quite enjoyable reading experience.


Started HP2

[pat5150]

I just finished reading Pratchett's Making Money.

Following up on Going Postal, Terry Pratchett lets Moist Von Lipwig, he of the golden suit and new Postmaster General, the man notorious for introducing the commemorative cabbage stamp with the cabbage-flavored glue, once again shine in the spotlight. Naturally, familiar faces from various Discworld novels make appearances throughout Making Money.

When Lord Vetinari informs the Postmaster General that he plans to put him in charge of the Royal Mint, Lipwig is acutely aware that this is a man he can't say no to, and thus his life becomes more complicated. As if this predicament wasn't enough, to his dismay he suddenly finds himself running the bank next door. He soon realizes that the mint runs at a loss. He also discovers that a panoply of people want him dead. And, to add to his woes, he must take the Chairman of the bank, a dog named Mr Fusspot, for walks. But Moist Von Lipwig is always up for a challenge, even though he is about to be exposed as a fraud.

Witty humor permeates the narrative and the dialogues, of course. Which is not surprising, for this aspect has become Pratchett's trademark. Like a majority of the Discworld novels, Making Money is, in light of the current market, "light" fantasy fare. Still, after plowing through Thiong'o's Wizard of the Crow and then reading the first half of Donaldson's Fatal Revenant, I found Pratchett's latest to be oh so satisfying! You will find yourself smirking and chuckling in every single chapter, and there is not a boring moment in this one.

Watching Moist Von Lipwig trying to dig himself out of this hole makes for an enjoyable reading experience. In addition, it was interesting to witness Pratchett's introduction of the paper denominations instead of gold, as well as the parallel between the repercussions this causes on Ankh-Morpork's national economy and our own, if only from an historical standpoint. Though the Discworld installments can at times feel a little absurd, there is an underlying intelligence which pervades every page. This, in my humble opinion, is nothing short of brilliant.

Making Money appears to contain all the necessary ingredients to make it yet another memorable Discworld novel!

Check out the blog for the full review.

Patrick

[Falco]

I think Pratchett has picked up his game again after the horror show that was Monstrous Regiment...

[McLovin]

Finished Light a while back. Loved it. Far superior to Viriconium, IMO.

Now reading "Leading at a Higher Level" by Ken Blanchard. Yeah, it's one of those management guru books. Still, I'm enjoying it.

[caladanbrood]

recently read I Am Legend, and now on a reread of GRRM's Fevre Dream. Damn good book

[MrXIII]

Broken Angels- Richard Morgan.

Think I'm just gonna tear through the Kovacs books, they are just fantastic.

[Dagger]

The Kovacs books are just incredible!

Currently jumping back and forth between The Bonehunters and Peter Watts' Blindsight.

[Jebus]

Kevin J Anderson's Metal Swarm - The Saga of Seven Suns has been a very simplistic and easy space opera read over the last year or so and I enjoy it, but it's making me want to read more harder Sci-Fi. Seeing him at Dymocks in Melbourne Collins St next week to get it signed.

Also picked up the first of Glen Cook's Black Company novels yesterday - $17.95 for a 300 page book?!? It better be frickin' good!

[Rich the Great]

I am currently reading Lions, Donkeys and Dinosaurs: Waste and Blundering in the Military. A good read so far, lots of statistics but is written with great wit that you barely seem to notice that.

[Puck]

Finished Perdido Street Station and really enjoyed it.
Now started A hunger like fire by Greg Stolze, the first novel of the World of Darkness 2.0. I'm about 60 pages in and still couldn't warm up for this book. Blood sucking snobbish bastards. I now know why I never played Vampire [both Masquerade and Requiem] like it was supposed to be played and got to the conclusion that the WoD2.0 has nice rules, but nothing else what could get me to change to it, I'm still with WoD1.0..