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A review by bellatora
The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
1.0
In two words: horrendously tedious.
Mason has no idea how to create compelling characters or provide information in a non-clumsy way. He seriously provides a complete "briefing" on the history of Burma in the story (the character is given this document by the army). If I wanted that, I would read a history book (or go on Wikipedia). The point of historical fiction is to give readers a sense of place/history by bringing the past ALIVE through characters' interactions, not insert several pages of a straight-up history textbook excerpt.
Also, I have already read this story. It is called [b:The Jewel Trader of Pegu|1820304|The Jewel Trader of Pegu|Jeffrey Hantover|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266903091s/1820304.jpg|2926539]. I hated that book, too. But at least it had the decency to be short. In both novels, there is a bland Westerner (in this case Edgar Drake, a middle-aged piano tuner) who is sent to Burma (here it's by the British army, on the demands of an eccentric army officer/surgeon who holds a strategically vital outpost). Westerner falls in love with the Burmese culture but never meets a Burmese person who is actually a three-dimensional character (possibly because the author is incapable of writing characters with any depth or warmth to them, possibly not). Westerner has a weird and boring love affair ("love" is used loosely here). Then at the end. Is this shit seriously the only historical fiction out there set in Burma? Why can't authors find a better story there?
This book is filled with long and pointless lectures on history, etc., told in excruciating detail. Mason explains how to tune a piano. IN DEPTH. Guess what, Mason? I don’t give a fuck. Just because you did all that research does not mean you have to prove it to the class. No one likes a show-off.
Even Dr. Anthony Carroll was only wasted potential. He was the brilliant, possibly mad, army officer/surgeon who first demanded a piano and then a man to tune it. He has won the respect of both his men and the local Burmese and the British higher-ups may think he's eccentric, but they know how important he is. There is a suggestion he has gone native. Or that he is a traitor and spy for a foreign power. He is the kind of character who is supposed to be dangerously charismatic and deviously clever. Instead he is nothing but sound and fury.
Mason just doesn’t know how to use characters in interesting ways. Their only purpose seems to be to meander between info dumps.
You know, I will forgive an entertaining book almost anything but will forgive a boring book almost nothing. It is hard to overlook this book’s many, many flaws when I wanted to fall asleep every time I opened it.
Mason has no idea how to create compelling characters or provide information in a non-clumsy way. He seriously provides a complete "briefing" on the history of Burma in the story (the character is given this document by the army). If I wanted that, I would read a history book (or go on Wikipedia). The point of historical fiction is to give readers a sense of place/history by bringing the past ALIVE through characters' interactions, not insert several pages of a straight-up history textbook excerpt.
Also, I have already read this story. It is called [b:The Jewel Trader of Pegu|1820304|The Jewel Trader of Pegu|Jeffrey Hantover|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266903091s/1820304.jpg|2926539]. I hated that book, too. But at least it had the decency to be short. In both novels, there is a bland Westerner (in this case Edgar Drake, a middle-aged piano tuner) who is sent to Burma (here it's by the British army, on the demands of an eccentric army officer/surgeon who holds a strategically vital outpost). Westerner falls in love with the Burmese culture but never meets a Burmese person who is actually a three-dimensional character (possibly because the author is incapable of writing characters with any depth or warmth to them, possibly not). Westerner has a weird and boring love affair ("love" is used loosely here). Then at the end
Spoiler
he diesThis book is filled with long and pointless lectures on history, etc., told in excruciating detail. Mason explains how to tune a piano. IN DEPTH. Guess what, Mason? I don’t give a fuck. Just because you did all that research does not mean you have to prove it to the class. No one likes a show-off.
Even Dr. Anthony Carroll was only wasted potential. He was the brilliant, possibly mad, army officer/surgeon who first demanded a piano and then a man to tune it. He has won the respect of both his men and the local Burmese and the British higher-ups may think he's eccentric, but they know how important he is. There is a suggestion he has gone native. Or that he is a traitor and spy for a foreign power. He is the kind of character who is supposed to be dangerously charismatic and deviously clever. Instead he is nothing but sound and fury.
Mason just doesn’t know how to use characters in interesting ways. Their only purpose seems to be to meander between info dumps.
You know, I will forgive an entertaining book almost anything but will forgive a boring book almost nothing. It is hard to overlook this book’s many, many flaws when I wanted to fall asleep every time I opened it.