Scan barcode
A review by owenwilsonbaby
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
"This is the strange lesson of living in a pandemic: life can be tranquil in the face of death."
I am in two minds about Sea of Tranquility. I loved this book and I continue to love Mandel's writing. I thought the fractured narrative style served the story really well and all of Olive's narrative sections that potentially reflected some of Mandel's own thoughts on Station Eleven, its public reception and the publishing world were extremely moving. I recently read Mitchell's The Bone Clocks which has a somewhat similar but far less balanced and moving storyline about feeling cynical whilst moving through the writing and publishing world. Mandel's novel took similar concerns and material and elevated it. It deftly handled the pleasures and difficulties of being a public figure who produces art and the range of consequences this has on people's personal lives. Mandel does this in a way that didn't make me feel tired, bored or embarrassed. The overall plot and themes were also really compelling and the prose itself is just beautiful and refined. I've also found this is one of the first pieces of media / fiction I've engaged with in the last two year that addresses the pandemic, and does so in a way that addresses how profound and unjust the ongoing loss of COVID-19 has been, whilst also providing an escapist element that provokes the imagination and encourages the reader to pursue the story.
At the same time, I wish there was more of this book - it sometimes moved far too fast and I wanted to spend more time with the characters, especially Edwin and Mirella. The ending felt a little rushed and Gaspery's story resolved itself too neatly. I wish his story had been weaved throughout from the beginning and that some of the earlier narrative sections were longer. That said, I really enjoyed this and I hope Mandel continues to write sci-fi that is as innovative and moving as this book is.
I am in two minds about Sea of Tranquility. I loved this book and I continue to love Mandel's writing. I thought the fractured narrative style served the story really well and all of Olive's narrative sections that potentially reflected some of Mandel's own thoughts on Station Eleven, its public reception and the publishing world were extremely moving. I recently read Mitchell's The Bone Clocks which has a somewhat similar but far less balanced and moving storyline about feeling cynical whilst moving through the writing and publishing world. Mandel's novel took similar concerns and material and elevated it. It deftly handled the pleasures and difficulties of being a public figure who produces art and the range of consequences this has on people's personal lives. Mandel does this in a way that didn't make me feel tired, bored or embarrassed. The overall plot and themes were also really compelling and the prose itself is just beautiful and refined. I've also found this is one of the first pieces of media / fiction I've engaged with in the last two year that addresses the pandemic, and does so in a way that addresses how profound and unjust the ongoing loss of COVID-19 has been, whilst also providing an escapist element that provokes the imagination and encourages the reader to pursue the story.
At the same time, I wish there was more of this book - it sometimes moved far too fast and I wanted to spend more time with the characters, especially Edwin and Mirella. The ending felt a little rushed and Gaspery's story resolved itself too neatly. I wish his story had been weaved throughout from the beginning and that some of the earlier narrative sections were longer. That said, I really enjoyed this and I hope Mandel continues to write sci-fi that is as innovative and moving as this book is.
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Body horror, Grief, Mental illness, Suicide, and Vomit