Author Topic: Solaufein Book Review  (Read 1742 times)

Offline weimer

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Solaufein Book Review
« on: February 03, 2003, 09:05:03 PM »
At APE I had the chance to meet the witty and cute Lisa Jonte in person. While she was busy hawking her wares to the unsuspecting passers-by, I also had the chance to wander through the strange world of alternative press comic books. When I returned, Lisa suggested that I go and post something on topic to keep Tsuru from bouncing off the walls.

Instead, I went home, decided to crack open one of the things I had purchased ... and was quickly enthralled and lost to the world. My usual complaint with all things of graphic novelty (barring, say, Kaze No Tani No Nausicaa) is that they are *too short* -- if only the author had put all that effort into writing a novel. That's certainly my usual complaint with Arcana Jayne :-). Magically, these works did not suffer from that problem (probably because I had multiple "books" collected into a single paperback). Anyway, in order to keep this vaguely on topic I will present W-and-S reviews of the things that I've read recently.


Finder, vol. 1, Carla Speed McNeil.

Weimer: This book has everything from obscure references to a gripping plot to beautiful artistry. The post-apocalypse setting is underplayed perfectly, allowing for a continuous dry commentary on modern society. Class and race issues were also presented with a deft and subtle hand. The protagonist is quite easy on the eyes (most of the time) and his detached intelligence is a joy to watch. For me the defining moments were the verbal battle with the evil family-abuser (excellent dialogue!) and Unix reference (woot!). The main problem with the book was acknowledged by Carla herself: it's a bit confusing in the middle there. For example, I was unable to keep of the three daughters by (variously) name or age. Mysteriously, that didn't detract from things. I know I'll be looking for the remaining volumes.

Solaufein: Verily, the mages in the world of Finder must have been quite powerful to have built such wonders. However, the mechanics of the metropolis (or of the Finder's regeneration) are unimportant when compared with the philosophical themes of the work. What are the benefits of society? Are some people outcasts by nature or by construction? How can the poor and the rich mingle? The humans and the centaurs? Should they? The protagonist's fascination with the beauty of nature and his appreciation for old and unknown gods struck a chord with me. Finally, the "clans" of his world reminded me strongly of the Houses of drow society: specialized roles, prohibited mixing, old arrogance and constant strife. This was actually the most realistic of the four, from my perspective.


Amy Unbounded: Belondweg Blossoming, Rachel Hartman.

Weimer: This book is comparable to Phillip Pullman's Dark Materials series in that it is a masterful work of young adult fiction that pays homage to old forms and does not treat children like idiots. Where Pullman offers a well-founded criticism of organized religion, Hartman offers up a piercing view of gender roles in today's world through the lens of fantasy. Ethno-anthro-spamthropology, as they call it in the book. The book looks like an illuminated manuscript and reads like Below The Root re-pitched to target grad students or like The Deed of Paks without the dark bits. I will shortly be purchasing additional copies of this work and sending them to my mother so that she can distribute them to the strong children we know. There is an unfortunate dearth of books such as these. Most gripping scene: Lalo's momentary bout of anger. Normally I am disappointed with renditions of anger in fiction (cf. S. R. Donaldson, say). Both of these two excell at doing it well and not dwelling on it. My one complaint: a minor amount of "crouching anvil, hidden subplot" with the whole forced marriage deal. The rest of the book is so creative! That particular adventure is handled well but the premise is just not as original as the rest of the things going on.  

Solaufein: Aside from the lack of orcs and goblins, I'm sure I would place the land of Goredd just north of Calimshan and south-east of the Sword Coast. This book offers a wealth of insight into the lives and beliefs of common surfacers. Would that I could take up Lalo's mantle and disguise my true form that I might study the mores and legends of the surface world with freedom. Alas, I fear that most surface farmsteads would not be quite as welcoming as Amy's town. Still, the book and its town offer a wealth of interesting characters. Amy's Rashemen mother, Bran's priestly brother, the Queen ... there are no explicit "enemies" and everyone is multi-dimensional and many-faceted. If drow females were raised to this book and others like it instead of the tentacle rods, in a single generation Lolth would be no stronger than Amaunator. Actually, the second-class role of women portrayed in this book was in some sense the most unbelievable aspect of it. My own experiences with drow society were quite the opposite, and on the surface women are (largely) regarded as the equal of men. Still, it works quite well as a parable.


Vogelein, issue 1, Jane Irwin.

Weimer: The art in this particular volume was a league beyond anything else I encountered. Every page was filled with mood-setting, evocative backdrops. The use of line, color, shading and perspective was superior. Irwin's ability to break out of the traditional "row of boxes" approach is exceptional (although McNeil does it once or twice, etc.). In fact, a large portion of the story is told visually with no words present at all. To that end, this is the only one of the lot that really "had to be" a graphic novel, in my opinion. Finder could easily have been a traditional textual novel. Amy would lose something in the translation to the pure written word, but it would be possible. However, the story is much weaker by comparison. It could well be that I only have "issue 1" instead of a collection of the first five issues or somesuch ... but in general it was just poor by comparison. The motivations of the characters seemed unfounded (why did computer guy want to take care of her? why did she think that one guy barging in meant she was unsafe? why should we care about her at all? why are we reading this?). It could be that I've seen the whole "I must be wound up by someone else using this magical rod and this hole in my back, oh the angst!" before -- Ifurita in El-Hazard, anyone? Or maybe I'm thinking of The Indian in the Cupboard, or maybe ... You get the point. This work is beautiful. Simply beautiful. Eye-candy.

Solaufein: If this Irwin had put her brush to work painting murals of Eilistraee, the Lady Silverhair would have the fairest temples in the realms. The story itself, however, is strangely unfilling. In my eyes the fairy girl who must rely on  the whims of others to stay alive is a sharp metaphor for drow society and life at the hands of the matron mothers. True, Vogelein's masters are apparently never cruel ... but slavery by any other name would still smell as rancid. The issue of having too much power in a relationship, however, is not quite as interesting as that constant bane of elvenkind: the longer life-span. Vogelein's travels among humans force her to constantly outlive her companions. Unfortunately for me, she offers no insight into that difficult dilemma.


Cathedral Child, Lea Hernandez.

Weimer: This book uses a very stylized, almost anime-esque presentation of people. Despite this, the people are often quite well-drawn and lovely with a fine attention to detail and shading. I'll think twice the next time a see a peach. Unfortunately, Glory and Sumner reminded me a little too much of Nadia and Jean from Fushigi no Umi no Nadia. The mysterious giant computer that communicated through song was mysteriously unenthralling. I'd rather read The Difference Engine, The Truth Machine or Cryptonomicon. This book leaves a bit too much unresolved at the end. So does Finder, but Finder's not over. More to the point, the entire atmosphere of that (and of other books, see Neal Stephenson above) allows it to "make sense" and "fit" when things are unresolved. Cathedral Child fails to achieve that, leaving you vaguely unsatisfied with the literal (!) Deux Ex Machina ending and the unexplained wonders of the universe. If I wanted the bizarre and the arabesque, I'd re-read The Mask of the Read Death. If I wanted to hear that "wishes come true, not free" I'd watch Into the Woods again. This book tries at too many genres and only vaguely succeeds at each one. Despite that, it's not all that bad -- just average. It's worth looking at for the ideas and some lovely pictures.

Solaufein: A very practical look at the possible dangers in summoning powers beyond your ken. This work highlights a very real problem: the inability to communicate. Far too often mages rely on magics to understand the languages or the thoughts of mysterious biengs, but even those minor miracles can fall short when confronted with a truly alien mind. What if a powerful creature does not yet know how to think but can still act? It also highlights the importance of words and of breaking a flawed spell. This book should be required reading for apprentices in the Towers of Sorcere ... assuming that they could be made to understand the scenes of love and compassion that surround this cautionary tale. Much remains unexplained at the end, true -- but that is not the point. Wonders beyond the conception of mortal men do exist in our world and often things go unexplained, especially when powerful magic is afoot. The controlling parent who wanted to use the young, love-struck children like objects and then discard them resonated powerfully with my own memories. Would that we might all be as lucky as Sumner and Glory in our attempts at forbidden love. Phaere payed for ours with her personality and finally with her life.


Next week, Solaufein and I will do movies ... :-) Just kidding.                    



[!--EDIT|weimer|Feb 4 2003, 12:52 AM--]

L_Jonté

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Solaufein Book Review
« Reply #1 on: February 03, 2003, 11:15:10 PM »
Wes, you astound me.  (As do you Solafein.)

I encourage you to keep reading.  Both Clockwork Angels and subsequent volumes of Finder improve greatly on their predecessors.

There is more Amy Unbounded in the offing as well.  But damned if I could get a word from Ms. Rachel H. about it.  So I contented myself by giving her nonstop nonsense about the welfare of Bran now that he's been fostered.  I mean really, we know nothing of the people Cullen gave him too.  They could be pirates!

As for the shortness of Arcana Jayne installments, I remind you (Mr. Smarty-britches) that they are installments.  However, the coming year will be (or rather, finally can be) dedicated to increasing the amount of Jayne in the world.                    



[!--EDIT|L_Jonté|Feb 4 2003, 07:15 AM--]

Kiki

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Solaufein Book Review
« Reply #2 on: February 05, 2003, 12:14:28 AM »
Perhaps Solaufein would enjoy Thieves and Kings. It's a good story and comes in multi-issue volumes. I think he'd like Soracia.                    

L_Jonté

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Solaufein Book Review
« Reply #3 on: February 05, 2003, 02:08:47 PM »
Ahhh!  I have many an issue of T&K.  Very involved it is.                    



[!--EDIT|L_Jonté|Feb 5 2003, 11:07 PM--]

 

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