OVERVIEW:
This book is Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. It's an intimidating book at 782 pages and it's not an easy read, either, like the Harry Potter books of similar length. If you like to read good, rich books, then it's WELL worth the time and effort. It's one of the ten best books I've ever read.
This book is a classic. It holds up to the standards of Dickens, Austen, Tolkien, and other fine English writers. In fact, at times, it felt as if I were reading a classic piece of literature from the 19th century, not a modern fantasy written in 2004. Equal parts thoroughly researched historical fiction, enthralling fantasy, and subtle comedy, Clarke weaves a tale that is both thoroughly engrossing and exhiliratingly astonishing. The only book I have ever read that has met these standards is The Count of Monte Christo, although there are a few other books of equal quality and strength for other reasons.
Quick Summary:
In this alternate-reality England, magic, which was once prevalent, is now all but gone. The sole remaining "practical" magician is Mr. Norrell, who doesn't care much for public displays of magic but hopes to see it increase in its prominence, particularly in government. His greatest treasure is his library, filled with nearly every magic book in creation. He eventually takes Jonathan Strange under his wing to train to be a second magician. He quickly becomes Norrell's equal and they spread the love of magic throughout the island nation. However, the Faerie world (often invisible or hard to get to) grows in strength as a result of all of the magic, and a particularly devious faerie makes it his goal to anoint a new magical King to rule over England, and will stop at nothing to achieve this goal. Strange and Norrell are forced to choose to embrace these new changes or oppose them, although no matter their choice, they will fail. Or will they?
That's really REALLY simple. There is so much complexity to this book that it is impossible to sum it up in one paragraph. Honestly, that's a terrible summary. Any summary of less than 10 pages is probably terrible. But you get a taste.
The Good Stuff:
Beyond what I've already stated, this book has a very rich mythology/alternate history. Not quite at the scale of Lord of the Rings or Chronicles of Narnia, but better than Harry Potter. The characters are extremely well-developed and quite real. Humor is interspersed and often hits you by surprise. I laughed out loud on a few occasions, but you have to pay attention to find the jokes. I also like how magic was handled. Unlike many magical fantasies, it does accommodate the Christian faith decently well, and does discern between good, evil, and "neutral" magic, where good "magic" comes from God (see: Moses), "neutral" magic comes from faeries (sort of), and "dark" magic comes from Hell.
The Bad Stuff:
Not much honestly. It's long, deep, richly written, and quite an investment. I could see how some people could have difficulty reading this or might find it boring. If you can handle it, it's an awesome book.
For Fans of: Fantasy in general, Charles Dickens, the Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter (if you're longing for something deeper and richer than that)
Don't read this if: you prefer easy reads; you are a super-fundamentalist Christian who can't stand the word "magic"; you absolutely detest magic and fantasy to the point that you don't like "A Christmas Carol"
In a Sentence: I'm going to have to quote Neil Gaiman: "Unquestionably the finest English novel of the fantastic written in the last 70 years." Although I'd say 50 rather than 70 (Lord of the Rings might be better) and I'd get rid of the word "English"
Rating: CLASSIC (beyond the star system. honestly.)
4 books, 21 days....at this rate I'll read 69 books.
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