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A review by anredman
The Physiognomy by Jeffrey Ford
3.0
Only vaguely, generally spoilery.
Very tough one to review. Despite being a short novel, I read it over more than a week. I think the over-all rating is more like a 2.5 for me, but I rounded up cuz I'm biased - I enjoy the author immensely and I adore his short fiction.
There's a lot not to enjoy about the book. The main character is wholly unlikeable. Extremely so. Despite whimsy and exaggeration woven into The Physiognomy, well, it doesn't off-set or explain why the main character has to be such an extreme shit at the start of the book. The intrusion and violence against women is a turn off.
Most of the side characters are oafs. The MC, Cley, regards everyone as stupid and there's hardly a character that's actually not an oaf. As the story progresses in three very distinct parts, I was bummed out that most of the characters and scenes were destroyed/killed when they passed by. What a waste of paper thin characters that could of been expanded upon later instead of replaced by new paper thin characters to be killed later.
In the middle of the book Cley begins to see the err of his ways, but it never really redeems how he fucking awful he used to be. The end of the book feels rushed in comparison to the rest of it. However, the conclusion of the Well-Built City was satisfying. The following pages depicting fleeing the ruins and establishing a new city were tacked on and horribly rushed. I get that there are two more books about the Well-Built City. Not sure if I want to read those.
Wish I'd found a way to appreciate the novel more. There are some very clever ideas in the book, like the physiognomy and the memory palace that the Well-Built City represents. Very, very clever. But the shabby characters are such a put off.
Will always recommend this author and his short fiction, however. A Natural History of Hell is top notch reading.
Very tough one to review. Despite being a short novel, I read it over more than a week. I think the over-all rating is more like a 2.5 for me, but I rounded up cuz I'm biased - I enjoy the author immensely and I adore his short fiction.
There's a lot not to enjoy about the book. The main character is wholly unlikeable. Extremely so. Despite whimsy and exaggeration woven into The Physiognomy, well, it doesn't off-set or explain why the main character has to be such an extreme shit at the start of the book. The intrusion and violence against women is a turn off.
Most of the side characters are oafs. The MC, Cley, regards everyone as stupid and there's hardly a character that's actually not an oaf. As the story progresses in three very distinct parts, I was bummed out that most of the characters and scenes were destroyed/killed when they passed by. What a waste of paper thin characters that could of been expanded upon later instead of replaced by new paper thin characters to be killed later.
In the middle of the book Cley begins to see the err of his ways, but it never really redeems how he fucking awful he used to be. The end of the book feels rushed in comparison to the rest of it. However, the conclusion of the Well-Built City was satisfying. The following pages depicting fleeing the ruins and establishing a new city were tacked on and horribly rushed. I get that there are two more books about the Well-Built City. Not sure if I want to read those.
Wish I'd found a way to appreciate the novel more. There are some very clever ideas in the book, like the physiognomy and the memory palace that the Well-Built City represents. Very, very clever. But the shabby characters are such a put off.
Will always recommend this author and his short fiction, however. A Natural History of Hell is top notch reading.