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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
i really wanted to like this book i swear i really did, but the audiobook was the only thing that got me through it. maybe joseph fink and jeffrey cranor just write for podcasting and audiobooks better than physical novels.
This book is a little strange (as expected). I really like the podcast with all of it's quirks and weirdness; so I thought if there is now a book, I'm surely going to love it! Unfortunately I don't think the authors translated the crazy, spooky town of Night Vale very well onto paper. Don't get me wrong, there are still some great parts of the book, but (although I read this quite some time ago) maybe [a:Fink|21150668|Joseph Fink|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1612366931p2/21150668.jpg] and [a:Cranor|4532873|Jeffrey Cranor|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] haven't fully adapted to the written word yet.
Young Jackie Fierro runs the only pawnshop in Night Vale and has done for a very long time. After pawning a slip of paper from the Man in a Tan Jacket, she finds that she cannot remove the paper from her hand. Her usual days of working in the shop and it being 'almost time to close' are disrupted by this little piece of paper, directing her to somewhere called 'King City'. However, whenever she tries to find the man who gave her it, she can never seem to recall his name, or even what he looks like...
Diane Crayton is like most people. She has her office job, and her shapeshifting son. Upon seeing her son's father around every corner for the first time in many years, she struggles to understand why he's back. While investigating she encounters a strange Man in a Tan Jacket, who gives her a slip of paper that she can't seem to throw away.
The story follows these two as they both investigate the strange(er) happenings in their city of Night Vale. Visiting the ravenous librarians and steering clear of the time-travelling plastic flamingoes, we join them as they struggle to understand what the Man in the Tan Jacket wants, and why they're being directed to the mysterious King City.
There are many reasons to like this book. There are snippets where the true genius of Night Vale shines through. The description of the trip through the library transports you there, with the tense atmosphere and fear of the characters palpable. These sections convey the strangeness and underlying horror of what would be life in Night Vale.
However, the problem with the book is that they didn't convert Night Vale's peculiarities from podcast to the written word. Every other paragraph was trying to be slightly edgy and random, which while it works for the podcast, doesn't translate well into the book. It somewhat hindered the flow of the story, and meant that you never had a clear idea of what weirdness was associated with the plot, and other random stuff that the authors just wanted to include. Sure, this is kind of what you expect from Night Vale, but not what you want in a book.
*Slight spoiler but maybe not* The other thing is that the conclusion was unsatisfying. It was mostly chalked up to 'well this is just the weirdness of Night Vale' without anything being any deeper than that. This was kind of unexpected, and just led me to being slightly disappointed and forgetting what the conclusion was after a few weeks. Again, not really what you expect from a book.
However the characters in the story are great! I really enjoyed following the stories of Diane and Jackie, and felt they developed and grew as the story went on. This might somewhat explain why the plot felt a little lacking, because maybe the authors were going for a more character driven novel. Their interactions and insights on the world were really interesting to read about, and made me continue reading.
Overall I enjoyed the book, as it did include the obscurities that I've come to know and love with Night Vale while also having interesting characters. I would definitely recommend it for fans of Stranger Things or [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg], and also because (as I now know) the second book is much better.
Young Jackie Fierro runs the only pawnshop in Night Vale and has done for a very long time. After pawning a slip of paper from the Man in a Tan Jacket, she finds that she cannot remove the paper from her hand. Her usual days of working in the shop and it being 'almost time to close' are disrupted by this little piece of paper, directing her to somewhere called 'King City'. However, whenever she tries to find the man who gave her it, she can never seem to recall his name, or even what he looks like...
Diane Crayton is like most people. She has her office job, and her shapeshifting son. Upon seeing her son's father around every corner for the first time in many years, she struggles to understand why he's back. While investigating she encounters a strange Man in a Tan Jacket, who gives her a slip of paper that she can't seem to throw away.
The story follows these two as they both investigate the strange(er) happenings in their city of Night Vale. Visiting the ravenous librarians and steering clear of the time-travelling plastic flamingoes, we join them as they struggle to understand what the Man in the Tan Jacket wants, and why they're being directed to the mysterious King City.
There are many reasons to like this book. There are snippets where the true genius of Night Vale shines through. The description of the trip through the library transports you there, with the tense atmosphere and fear of the characters palpable. These sections convey the strangeness and underlying horror of what would be life in Night Vale.
However, the problem with the book is that they didn't convert Night Vale's peculiarities from podcast to the written word. Every other paragraph was trying to be slightly edgy and random, which while it works for the podcast, doesn't translate well into the book. It somewhat hindered the flow of the story, and meant that you never had a clear idea of what weirdness was associated with the plot, and other random stuff that the authors just wanted to include. Sure, this is kind of what you expect from Night Vale, but not what you want in a book.
*Slight spoiler but maybe not* The other thing is that the conclusion was unsatisfying. It was mostly chalked up to 'well this is just the weirdness of Night Vale' without anything being any deeper than that. This was kind of unexpected, and just led me to being slightly disappointed and forgetting what the conclusion was after a few weeks. Again, not really what you expect from a book.
However the characters in the story are great! I really enjoyed following the stories of Diane and Jackie, and felt they developed and grew as the story went on. This might somewhat explain why the plot felt a little lacking, because maybe the authors were going for a more character driven novel. Their interactions and insights on the world were really interesting to read about, and made me continue reading.
Overall I enjoyed the book, as it did include the obscurities that I've come to know and love with Night Vale while also having interesting characters. I would definitely recommend it for fans of Stranger Things or [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg], and also because (as I now know) the second book is much better.
Though initially interesting, the absurdist nature of Welcome to Night Vale quickly becomes stale because of its predictable structure -- weird stuff are always casually mentioned as the third element of an enumeration, the first and second element being "normal" stuff -- and because for most of the book it doesn't really serve any purpose, and it is when its absurdity served purpose, like it did with the forgetfulness of the town's inhabitant or with the fact that one of the character decides not to age, that the book shines.
I really enjoyed the beginning and the ending of Welcome to Night Vale, but I don't think I can say I enjoyed a book I believe should have had about 200 pages cut in the middle.
I really enjoyed the beginning and the ending of Welcome to Night Vale, but I don't think I can say I enjoyed a book I believe should have had about 200 pages cut in the middle.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Very fun and quirky surreal comedy but after a while it begins to be boring.
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to like this. I have been interested in Night Vale for a while, but the writing was repetitive and came across a bit dull at times. It wanted to stress how weird and utterly nonsensical Night Vale was, but the writing style and the length made it just become boring to me. Additionally, I feel that it could've been 100 or so pages shorter. Overall, I struggled to get through it.