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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
My 2008 bookcrossing review:
I don´t really know where to start. I just enjoyed this book so much. I loved it. I could honestly sit and read it again, and I think I definately will want to in a couple of years. I feel that there was a lot in it to think about but I never did as I just wanted to keep going with the storyline to find out what would happen. But I won´t keep this copy as much as I want a copy of this book. When a book has been registered by someone else I don´t feel that I should: rather that I should keep it moving, and as it is such a great read, other people do want to read this book.
I also got mildly excited by the fact that she mixed up imaginary Victorian writers with real ones. I did actually recently read Flatland.
I thought Ariel Manto was a great character, one that you feel that you would actually like to know. She was flawed, which makes her more real and likeable.
And the Troposphere... how exciting would it be to travel about in there. Although not a good idea. Eavesdropping taken to the extreme, and it cant really lead to any good.
I love this idea of old books; rumaging around in second hand bookshops and finding these little treasures. This is what I do anyway, although I have never found anything like The End of Mr Y.
SLIGHT SPOILER - I did think when Lura started talking to Ariel about the computer thinking in binary code and creating a binary world that they were going to end up back with Heather and her LUCA programme. But they didn´t.
I would definately recommend this to anyone who is even pondering over reading it.
I don´t really know where to start. I just enjoyed this book so much. I loved it. I could honestly sit and read it again, and I think I definately will want to in a couple of years. I feel that there was a lot in it to think about but I never did as I just wanted to keep going with the storyline to find out what would happen. But I won´t keep this copy as much as I want a copy of this book. When a book has been registered by someone else I don´t feel that I should: rather that I should keep it moving, and as it is such a great read, other people do want to read this book.
I also got mildly excited by the fact that she mixed up imaginary Victorian writers with real ones. I did actually recently read Flatland.
I thought Ariel Manto was a great character, one that you feel that you would actually like to know. She was flawed, which makes her more real and likeable.
And the Troposphere... how exciting would it be to travel about in there. Although not a good idea. Eavesdropping taken to the extreme, and it cant really lead to any good.
I love this idea of old books; rumaging around in second hand bookshops and finding these little treasures. This is what I do anyway, although I have never found anything like The End of Mr Y.
SLIGHT SPOILER - I did think when Lura started talking to Ariel about the computer thinking in binary code and creating a binary world that they were going to end up back with Heather and her LUCA programme. But they didn´t.
I would definately recommend this to anyone who is even pondering over reading it.
Really fun and imaginative. Reminded me of a darker version of the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde.
I feel a little overwhelmed by this novel. It drew me and pulled me along with promises of some sort of grand revelation, but I confess I spent most of the journey feeling like I was sprinting to keep up, and might never actually understand what was going on. Like so many other books about books I've read lately, this one seems to be a platform for the author to showcase her knowledge of a favorite subject and a few pet theories. I feel vaguely suspicious that the bulk of the plot was cooked up in order to support the Epilogue, but I did enjoy the story, so I won't go quite that far.
In the end, this was a surreal adventure laced a bit heavily with metaphysics and philosophy, but which concludes satisfactorily. If it leaves you with dozens of questions about possible plot holes or theoretical inconsistencies, the nature of the book itself serves as an excuse which makes all the problems seem more intentional than accidental.
Recommended by: Christa D.
In the end, this was a surreal adventure laced a bit heavily with metaphysics and philosophy, but which concludes satisfactorily. If it leaves you with dozens of questions about possible plot holes or theoretical inconsistencies, the nature of the book itself serves as an excuse which makes all the problems seem more intentional than accidental.
Recommended by: Christa D.
You have one choice.
You...I can understand why many see this book as pretentious. Ariel Manto is a PhD student who really does seem to be very up herself. She spends a lot of time discussing philosophy and science (in an unscientific way) with those around her and this is... not how people talk. And I'm saying that as a philosophy graduate and teacher, so I do spend an inordinate amount of time talking about the things mentioned in this book.
So why four stars? Well, the way it is written is captivating. The ideas are genuinely interesting and the plot is well conceived. Of course, time travel, the multiverse, going inside the mind of others are not new ideas but Thomas has explored them in a way that I have not encountered before. What I found particularly interesting was her approach to religious stories. Without giving too much away this is really a prequel to The Fall and an explanation for human consciousness... of course entirely fictionalised and probably with a bit too much exegesis. But this is a book that I regularly come back to and always enjoy reading.
If you're a philosophy undergraduate who feels a bit special about being a philosophy undergraduate.. you'll love this.
You...I can understand why many see this book as pretentious. Ariel Manto is a PhD student who really does seem to be very up herself. She spends a lot of time discussing philosophy and science (in an unscientific way) with those around her and this is... not how people talk. And I'm saying that as a philosophy graduate and teacher, so I do spend an inordinate amount of time talking about the things mentioned in this book.
So why four stars? Well, the way it is written is captivating. The ideas are genuinely interesting and the plot is well conceived. Of course, time travel, the multiverse, going inside the mind of others are not new ideas but Thomas has explored them in a way that I have not encountered before. What I found particularly interesting was her approach to religious stories. Without giving too much away this is really a prequel to The Fall and an explanation for human consciousness... of course entirely fictionalised and probably with a bit too much exegesis. But this is a book that I regularly come back to and always enjoy reading.
If you're a philosophy undergraduate who feels a bit special about being a philosophy undergraduate.. you'll love this.
If you are a fan of theoretical physics books by Brian Greene and Michio Kaku then you will enjoy this book. It essentially is a fiction work that intertwines theoretical physics with a fictional story, and is very cleverly done. This was my first book by this author, and looking forward to checking out more.
Absolutely loved this book. An imaginative mix of magical realism and quantum physics. As a result I have a stack of Scarletts other novels on my pile!
Can’t make my mind up about this book. Nearly abandoned it several times in the first quarter but I’m glad I persisted (I think). Some parts deserved at least 4*, others lucky to get 2*.
I read this aloud to my daughter, which highlighted how often Thomas slips into "talking heads" mode, so much so that I was reminded of Ayn Rand's monologue-ing heroes. At least Thomas's characters are talking to figure things out, rather than to lecture the reader. The sections where the MC enters the minds of animals are still my favorite scenes.
I picked up this book at my local bookstore for exactly the following reasons;
1. It had an amazing typographic cover that appealed to my designer sensibilities.
2. The blurb on the back mentioned two key words, Victorian and Novel.
3. The recommendation by Phillip Pullman.
I don't usually buy book for such trivial purposes, by that I mean that I bought this book because I truly 100% judged it by its cover.
Boy was I not disappointed. This wonderfully written novel has everything from wonderful in depth characters, excellent fast paced plot all interwoven between thought provoking thought experiments and theories that will keep your mind spinning for weeks to come.
I highly recommended this to anyone (except people with delicate religious sensibilities who might find some of the thoughts in this book hard to swallow).
1. It had an amazing typographic cover that appealed to my designer sensibilities.
2. The blurb on the back mentioned two key words, Victorian and Novel.
3. The recommendation by Phillip Pullman.
I don't usually buy book for such trivial purposes, by that I mean that I bought this book because I truly 100% judged it by its cover.
Boy was I not disappointed. This wonderfully written novel has everything from wonderful in depth characters, excellent fast paced plot all interwoven between thought provoking thought experiments and theories that will keep your mind spinning for weeks to come.
I highly recommended this to anyone (except people with delicate religious sensibilities who might find some of the thoughts in this book hard to swallow).
This book is a guilty pleasure.
I enjoyed reading it because the voice of the main character drew me in and the author’s inventiveness with plot and setting kept pushing me forward. Also, I’m the kind of nerd who likes the company of characters who talk about postmodernism and refer to Saussure and Derrida (but not the type of pedant who will say “No, no, you’re getting that all wrong!” Now if it were Foucault, or Marx, I might get my back up!)
It’s a guilty pleasure because I’m enjoying the adventures of a very sick young woman.
Ariel has been traumatized by her mother to the point where she cuts herself for relief and submits to brutal sex with men she doesn’t care for, because she feels she deserves it. Read a certain way, this whole book could be an adolescent delusion. It has all the hallmarks: escape into a secret world; pursuit by powerful enemies; discovery of one’s own secret powers; supernatural allies; our heroine saving the world and finding personal redemption and true love just by thinking differently about herself.
In fact, I wonder if the whole story (including the sophomoric discussions of metaphysics) is taking place in Ariel’s head while she’s in the locked ward of some mental hospital. “For that thou wast a spirit too delicate to act her earthy and abhorred commands, refusing her grand hests, she did confine thee…”
It’s a stretch, certainly, but no more than the ostensible meaning of Ariel’s story. And I wonder about the health of the author, too.
I enjoyed reading it because the voice of the main character drew me in and the author’s inventiveness with plot and setting kept pushing me forward. Also, I’m the kind of nerd who likes the company of characters who talk about postmodernism and refer to Saussure and Derrida (but not the type of pedant who will say “No, no, you’re getting that all wrong!” Now if it were Foucault, or Marx, I might get my back up!)
It’s a guilty pleasure because I’m enjoying the adventures of a very sick young woman.
Ariel has been traumatized by her mother to the point where she cuts herself for relief and submits to brutal sex with men she doesn’t care for, because she feels she deserves it. Read a certain way, this whole book could be an adolescent delusion. It has all the hallmarks: escape into a secret world; pursuit by powerful enemies; discovery of one’s own secret powers; supernatural allies; our heroine saving the world and finding personal redemption and true love just by thinking differently about herself.
In fact, I wonder if the whole story (including the sophomoric discussions of metaphysics) is taking place in Ariel’s head while she’s in the locked ward of some mental hospital. “For that thou wast a spirit too delicate to act her earthy and abhorred commands, refusing her grand hests, she did confine thee…”
It’s a stretch, certainly, but no more than the ostensible meaning of Ariel’s story. And I wonder about the health of the author, too.