And that isn’t exactly a compliment, considering 98% of my dreams are confusing, distant, and chock-full of personaThis book read to me like a dream.
And that isn’t exactly a compliment, considering 98% of my dreams are confusing, distant, and chock-full of personal embarrassing moments. Okay, don’t worry— the last part is not applicable to this book… but replace that with an “imaginative world”, “witty writing” and “very, very slow”, and you have my summary of this story. _________
2 STARS • IMAGINATIVE, PHILOSOPHICAL, SLOW-MOTION
An Overview: This book begins when the curious Dr. Ransom arrives at the wrong place at the wrong time, leading to him being abducted by two maniac scientists. He soon finds out they are on a spaceship going toward a new planet called Malacandra (not to be confused with that thing in your body, Mitochondria), and his abductors (the idiotic and intimidating Weston and Divine) plan to use him as a human sacrifice. Ransom quickly flees once they arrive at the planet, delving deep into the mysterious, alluring, and peaceful world alone.
The Pros: The world C.S. Lewis has imagined on the planet Mars is incredibly creative, brilliant, and rich in meaning (though, as you’ll learn if you read the postscript, he actuallydidn’tcreate this world by himself; the entire story is based on the “true story” of Dr. Ransom, who had a vision that this happened to him). Nonetheless, I enjoyed learning about the diverse and interesting alien species, far different than most stereotypes of aliens I’ve encountered.
Lewis’ writing, as always, is savory with candor, wit, and illustrious words. The mystical setting told through his sensible voice is an authentic combination you won’t match anywhere else.
Also, the themes of this book arelayered upon layered.In class, (this was a school assignment) my class had incredibly profound discussions from this book. What is an alien? What is a person? Is it scientifically and/or theologically possible this world actually existed/exists? Is it possible this world is an alternate reality of ours, or there are multiple universes, where humans look differently from ours? Did Lewis view this world as paradise, or a better world than ours, or just different? And I’m not at all suggesting Lewis is telling us intelligent life exists out in space— possibly, but probably not. I don’t know, and I currently don’t see how — at least theologically — this view could be plausible. But it definitely got me thinking and considering ideas, which has high value in itself.
The Cons: Now that I got the nice, pretty things out of the way— I’ll be honest. I found this book incredibly boring the entire way, and especially toward the end.
The fascinating philosophical and theological themes and ideas were bogged down by an un-suspenseful plot, which read like a wildlife documentary of peaceful mammals that do nothing but eat and sleep all day. Thiswouldhave worked, and been interesting, if I cared about the characters.But I didn't(read more on that below.) Ransom was that dry documentary host who is fascinated by the everyday, mundane tasks of these creatures in their culture. And look, if this truly happened, I could see myself wanting to know everything about this new intelligent species, no matter how boring and unrelatable they are. I love learning about new cultures! But the things Ransom and the aliens did and how they engaged with each other felt so uneventful, filler, and lack of connection to the “main plot” whatever that truly was. (This includes Ransom learning their language, which was interesting for some time, but ended up being basic and, again, not brought into the “plot” at the end.)
I didn’t find the end anything revelational, to say the least.(view spoiler)[ Meet the cool ruler of the world! Chill! He’s a little boring too, sweet! Cool ruler chides Ransom for being a coward. Aw, nice! Cool ruler humiliates the “villain” who was stupid and uninteresting from the beginning! How exciting! Ransom chooses to return home, and in the BIGGEST conflict that’s happened the entire time (they’re stuck in the ship! They’re gonna die!!!!), Ransom wakes up… from a dream. (At least that’s what I read. I wasn’t really sure because it was confusing) Wow. What in the nick of time! How utterly convenient!(hide spoiler)]
The characters were truly the worst part of this for me. They all fell flat. (Maybe you might see why)
• RANSOM: naturally curious and philosophical, though not curious enough for it to be contagious. Coward and oblivious idiot, though referred to as “remarkable” because he has enough wit to seem mildly intelligent. But otherwise, a completely perfect uninteresting cracker. • WESTON/DIVINE (they’re practically the same): blockheads, not scary in the least, motivated by greed, control, development, etc. • EVERY ALIEN: peaceful, cordial, polite, etc.; act all the same *but different*
And listen, I get, the point was that these aliens were mostly unflawed, as their world is not as sinful as Earth. Makes sense! But “perfect people/creatures” won’t act like perfectly pleasant and polite little beings. They can still be funny, and loud as well as quiet, and… you get my point, right?? That’s why I was extremely disappointed to find I wasn’t attached to any of the new creatures, who I expected would be instantly lovable and interesting.
Plus… Lewis is doing here was is very difficult to do: write a story in a world where there is next to no conflict. I admire him for trying, but for me it fell flat.
The Conclusion: Complex, rich in themes, discussion, and wit, it is easy to see why this book intrigues many readers. But for me, the dragging and conflict-less plot, bland and cloned characters made this, unfortunately, a tiresome story for me....more
Exactly the book I wanted to read right now, and a marvelous follow-up to Alice In Wonderland.Review to follow.
TW // Fatphobia/sizeism & e4 STARS
Exactly the book I wanted to read right now, and a marvelous follow-up to Alice In Wonderland.Review to follow.
TW // Fatphobia/sizeism & eating disorders (MC likes to eat, but her mother calls her name based on size and stops her from eating multiple times), otherwise mild mental parent abuse. CW // Death (moderate), mentions of "undergarments" (mild)...more
4 STARS •IMAGINATIVE, WITTY, FULL OF CHILD-LIKE CURIOSITY, and most importantly: ABSURD ________________
Also, I would like to put this out there:4 STARS •IMAGINATIVE, WITTY, FULL OF CHILD-LIKE CURIOSITY, and most importantly: ABSURD ________________
Also, I would like to put this out there: I donotlike this book simply because of “nostalgia” — in fact, I had watched the 1985 movie as a kid and despised it, despite watching it so many times that I can still remember how each scene plays out.But I’ve always loved the world of Wonderland (if only for the iconic characters it brought to me), and so I’ll always love this book for that at least. And that’s what makes this book a solid 4 star read for me. ________________
TO THE REVIEW:
This book was absolutely, deliciouslyabsurd;a fast-paced, delightful joy to read.
It made me want to go back in time to theimaginative, make-belief adventuresI embarked in as a child, into a world that made no sense to anyone else but madeperfectsense to me.
Carroll’s writing is soWITTY— AAHH I loved it. It has the perfect timing for the perfect absurdly comedic touch.
'We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.'
'Actually, I am right on time.'
'Curiouser and curiouser!'
'And the moral of that is— "Be what you would seem to be" —or, if you’d like it put more simply— "Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise." '
And then, there were many profoundly true statements:
'Imagination is the only weapon in the war with reality.'
'The best way to explain it is to do it.'
Every character is a household name for a reason — they are all vivid and distinct, and feel sorealthat it’s like they’re standing right in front of you—- though of course, that would beabsurd…right?;)
Thank you,Alice In Wonderlandfor reminding me that sometimesthe most glorious and inspiring things are the one that are absolutely — and yes, I will say it one more time — ABSURD....more
YAY, I LOVED IT JUST AS MUCH AS THE FIRST TIME— IF NOT MORE!!
This book is a brilliant concoction ofHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’s plot (if itYAY, I LOVED IT JUST AS MUCH AS THE FIRST TIME— IF NOT MORE!!
This book is a brilliant concoction ofHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’s plot (if it was lighter hearted),Alice in Wonderland’s world (if it was a little more structured), a little bit ofMary Poppins’curiousness, and a little bit ofStar Wars’magic (The Forcevibes) — with characters blended from each of those — while still being its own fresh and exciting story.If that doesn’t sound like a fantastically fun story to you, I don’t know what is.
I want desperately to be transported to this new, magical city of Nevermoor; to stay at the eccentrically welcoming Hotel Deucalion; to get my own unique knack and be tested in the adventurous Trials to join the Wunder Society. I want to celebrate Christmas for a whole month there, and see Saint Nick and the Yule Queen have a “face off.” And I certainly want to float off a roof with my own magical umbrella (that’s the Mary Poppins part for you).
I want desperately to become friends with Jupiter North — wild, adventurous, sarcastic, and brilliant — who I have to say is myfavoritementor figure I’ve ever encountered (yes. I mean it. More than Dumbledore). I want to ride on Fenestra the sarcastic talking cat’s back, I want adorable Hawthorne to teach me how to ride dragons, and I want to hang out with stubborn and rebellious Morrigan as she discovers this Wunderous world.
I highly recommend this book if you want an absolutely fun and adventurous ride into an engrossing new world, with distinct characters, charming magic, and an exciting plot that unravels a deep secret behind the world… and a notorious villain — all told through Jessica Townsend’s flowing and merry writing style.
This book awakened the childlike side of me and I don’t want it to go away! ON TO THE SEQUEL!!!...more
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