More of wot I have read...

I absolutely devoured this book, a present for my birthday recently. The author’s style was interesting and the use of long and seemingly irrelevant footnotes gave the whole book a feeling that it was more of a historical documentary than a work of fiction. A very engaging story, nicely written…

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - by Susanna Clarke

‘Two magicians shall appear in England. The first shall fear me; the second shall long to behold me…

Centuries ago, when magic still existed in England, the greatest magician of them all was the Raven King. A human child brought up by fairies, the Raven King blended fairy wisdom and human reason to create English magic. Now, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, he is barely more than a legend, and England, with its mad King and its dashing poets, no longer believes in practical magic.

Then the reclusive Mr Norrell of Hurtfew Abbey appears and causes the statues of York Cathedral to speak and move. News spreads of the return of magic to England and, persuaded that he must help the government in the war against Napoleon, Mr Norrell goes to London. There he meets a brilliant young magician and takes him as a pupil. Jonathan Strange is charming, rich and arrogant. Together, they dazzle the country with their feats.

But the partnership soon turns to rivalry. Mr Norrell has never conquered his lifelong habits of secrecy, while Strange will always be attracted to the wildest, most perilous magic. He becomes fascinated by the shadowy figure of the Raven King, and his heedless pursuit of long-forgotten magic threatens, not only his partnership with Norrell, but everything that he holds dear.’

***

A very different book is a new one from Stephen King. I had not read any of his before, although I have seen a few of his films, and I didn’t know what to expect. The idea behind the story is interesting and I suspect it is the main motivation for the writing of the book. I was not so keen on the writing style hear which is obviously action pact and visual as horror stories often are. It was also difficult to become emotionally involved in the characters and the situation and the hugely earth shattering implications of the event were difficult to accept. Nevertheless it will give you something to talk about, even if it is not on your cell phone…

Cell - by Stephen King

‘There’s a reason cell rhymes with hell

On October 1, God is in His heaven, the stock market stands at 10,140, most of the planes are on time, and Clayton Riddell, an artist from Maine, is almost bouncing up Boylston Street in Boston. He’s just landed a comic book deal that might finally enable him to support his family by making art instead of teaching it. He’s already picked up a small (but inexpensive!) gift for his long-suffering wife, and he knows just what he’ll get for his boy Johnny. Why not a little treat for himself? Clay’s feeling good about the future.

That changes in a hurry. The cause of the devastation is a phenomenon that will come to be known as The Pulse, and the delivery method is a cell phone. Everyone’s cell phone. Clay and the few desperate survivors who join him suddenly find themselves in the pitch-black night of civilization’s darkest age, surrounded by chaos, carnage, and a human horde that has been reduced to its basest nature…and then begins to evolve.There’s really no escaping this nightmare. But for Clay, an arrow points home to Maine, and as he and his fellow refugees make their harrowing journey north they begin to see crude signs confirming their direction: KASHWAK=NO-FO. A promise, perhaps. Or a threat…’