Reviews

Novels by Walter Moers: The 13 1|2 Lives of Captain Bluebear, Rumo and His Miraculous Adventures, the City of Dreaming Books (Zamonia, #1, #3, #4) (Dreaming Books, #1) by Walter Moers

casspro's review against another edition

5.0

I've only read 13 1/2 Lives and Rumo but those are enough to hook me on Moers' writing style and imagination. Reminiscent of "The Neverending Story", the worlds created in the novels are precocious and suck you in. If you want a novel to get lost in and to escape from reality, Moers is a good alternative to real life.

crystal_reading's review against another edition

3.0

I read the novel The 13 1/2 Lives of Cpt. Bluebear. It was a fun romp through a fantastical country.

classiccedar's review

adventurous funny informative inspiring lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

jain's review

2.0

Moers's thesis--books are awesome--is certainly one I agree with, but he lets that message usurp the plot to the point that it takes close to 150 pages before anything really happens. There's plenty of whimsy and literary allusions (some genuinely funny and clever, as with most of Moers's comments regarding critics, and others less so) and a plethora of sentient species from dinosaurs to gnomes to giant grubs. All of which I would adore, if it were only shown-not-told, and if it propelled the plot rather than being a masturbatory exercise.

More tightly-edited, this book would be original and charming. (Especially if it dropped the fat-phobia that makes a surprise appearance in the last quarter of the book; completely nonsensically, given the wide variety of species, including giant grubs, hogs, etc., who populate its pages.) As it is, however, it's a very uneven work, with the action broken up by numerous lengthy and pointless digressions on Zamonian literature.