After waiting fifteen years for the continuation of this series, I was unsure whether I might read with rose-colored glasses and be too forgiving or iAfter waiting fifteen years for the continuation of this series, I was unsure whether I might read with rose-colored glasses and be too forgiving or if I might be too hard on it, as how could it live up to anticipation? Happily, each inclination seems to have tempered the other, so I can in good conscience note that this was very much a delightful homecoming to this world. Not perfect, as I would reshuffle the weight given to the A, B, and C stories, but other readers may not share that quibble. All in all, the heady mix of entertaining absurdity, clever creativity, and sly social commentary showed up to play, just as I had hoped.
audiobook note: The narrator does a decent job, but unfortunately he suffers by comparison with the original voice actor. The "recording" insets with intentional cassette-quality sound didn't work for me, despite the opportunity to hear the author himself....more
Imaginative. Clever. Fun. Quirky. Wholly original. Yes, the latest by Fforde has everything I expect. I can't ever race through his books because I'm Imaginative. Clever. Fun. Quirky. Wholly original. Yes, the latest by Fforde has everything I expect. I can't ever race through his books because I'm certain I would miss important and/or fun details. The alternate world painted here was so complex that I found myself flipping backwards more than once. I finally gained traction about one-third of the way through the story, but as I neared the end I began intentionally slowing down so that it wouldn't be over just yet. My few nitpicky reservations aren't worth mentioning here, but I do hope the announced books 2 and 3 don't take as long to surface.
First line: "It began with my father's not wanting to see the Last Rabbit, and ended with my being eaten by a carnivorous plant."
A favorite line: "The darkness swirled about me like charcoal maggots in a coal cellar."
