Books 2014 - Among Others by Jo Walton

[byslantedlight]

Well, read_warbler thought I might like this book, and she was right! I'm in fine company, it won a Hugo and the Nebula Award, and on most of the covers I tried to appropriate for my picture above, Ursula Le Guin said nice things about it. I had to take a photo of my own in the end, for the sake of accuracy, because it seems to be the only version in the world which is stamped with the opinion of Jeff Vandermeer, apparently of the New York Times: A wonder and a joy. Whoever he is, I think he's right... *g*

The first thing that won me over was the dedication: This is for all the libraries in the world, and the librarians who sit there day after day lending books to people. It's not a bad start, is it...? *g*

The story is about a fifteen year old girl in 1979, who has had to leave her childhood home in Aberdare and go to live with her father across the border near Shrewsbury. From there she's sent to boarding school (though not far away), and this story is all about how she copes. We find out more and more about her as we go along, from the beginning (which is on the blurb): When Mori discovers her mother is using black magic she decides to intervene. The ensuing clash between mother and daughter leaves Mori bereft of her twin sister, crippled for life and unable to return to the Welsh Valleys that were her own kingdom. Mori finds solace and strength in her beloved books. But her mother is bent on revenge, and nothing and no one - not even Tolkein - can save her from the final reckoning.

That blurb actually makes it sound more of a hardcore adventure story than it is - it's barely that at all, maybe in a couple of places *g* - it's more a story about growing up, and getting to know the world. Mostly it's a story about loving books, and the way they can sweep you, flying, through life, no matter what else is happening. In particular Mori likes science fiction, though Lord of the Rings best of all, and she reads at an incredible pace, even for a fifteen year old at a sporty school who gets to go to the library instead of doing sport (oh, bliss...) Because the story is written as Mori's journal, the events are completely entwined with her thoughts about whatever book she's reading at the time, which is slightly frustrating (when you want to have read the book yesterday so that you can remember why she was thinking like that) and wonderful, because yes - that's how it is! *g*

I liked Mori - she's not some perfect heroine, she's grumpy when she's worried and not sure of all the social graces, and at the same time she's impatient with the ones that she doesn't agree with, and worried about how much it all shows. She's fifteen. *g* But she's brave and strong, and when she isn't she notices it, and she tends to treat people well, albeit with small slips of being human now and then. So I want to know what happens to her.

There's such a difference between the Mori and Maddy in Runemarks that it's stunning. Mori is written not only so that I understand just what she says and does, even when I'm not sure about it, but I feel everything that she feels - the exact opposite of how I felt about Maddy. And I adore the end of Among Others too - it gives us what I described in my Runemarks post as a nicely written morally-thinky bit to wrap it all up, but in the most wonderful natural way that actually does leave you feeling as if you might keep flying alongside Mori throughout everything that is to come. And then there's the last line, which isn't at all moral-ish, but is just about perfect in its own right.

Oh - and Mori really does see fairies, which aren't quite as we might expect them to be from the stories. And magic does exist, and can be done, but it's even trickier than we might expect - all of which adds an extra, wonderful layer to the story - as well as a bit of mystery and the adventure that the blurb offers us.

Oh, and - and - Jo Walton is actually on lj, and she has a list of all the books mentioned in Among Others and I'm rather tempted to set myself a reading challenge to read them all, cos it's been ages since I read any SF, and when I did I too adored Heinlein, like Mori does... *g* Hmmn - according to a Goodreads list there are 168... I'd be slower than Mori... *g* But maybe!

The story fits nicely into my Once Upon A Time challenge, but is it fantasy or fairytale? What is a fairytale, anyway? I'm comforted by the fact that apparently even the experts disagree - after various other attempts at definitions, Wiki includes the following: In his essay "On Fairy-Stories", J.R.R. Tolkien agreed with the exclusion of "fairies" from the definition, defining fairy tales as stories about the adventures of men in Faërie, the land of fairies, fairytale princes and princesses, dwarves, elves, and not only other magical species but many other marvels. However, the same essay excludes tales that are often considered fairy tales, citing as an example The Monkey's Heart, which Andrew Lang included in The Lilac Fairy Book. Steven Swann Jones identified the presence of magic as the feature by which fairy tales can be distinguished from other sorts of folktales. Davidson and Chaudri identify "transformation" as the key feature of the genre. From a psychological point of view, Jean Chiriac argued for the necessity of the fantastic in these narratives. So I reckon Among Others can be classes a "fairytale" rather than "fantasy" on those grounds!


Read at least one book from each of the four categories. In this quest you will be reading 4 books total: one fantasy, one folklore, one fairy tale, and one mythology.
Fantasy
Thirteenth Child by Patricia Wrede
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Folklore
Thursbitch by Alan Garner

Fairy tale
Stardust by Neil Gaiman
Among Others by Jo Walton

Mythology
Runemarks by Joanne Harris

Comments

[caffyolay.livejournal.com]

I just knew this was your kind of book. I thought it was one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read, Jo Walton's an incredibly clever writer to get right inside a 15 year old's head like that. Thanks for the link to the list of books! I didn't know she was on LJ... I wanted a list of the books but didn't think there was one. I think there was an argument for having a list at the end of the book to be honest. I'm slowly working my way through Walton's What Makes this Book so Great - her book of essays on rereading science fiction. It's almost like reading Among Others all over again. I did Carl's Sci-Fi reading experience at the beginning of the year and am trying to carry that on through the year, though I haven't read any since I started OUaT. Got a load lined up on the shelf though... Vernor Vinge, Roger Zelazny, Robert Silverberg, Larry Niven etc. And yes... 'oh' so tempting to have a go at reading Jo Walton's entire list!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It really is rather good, isn't it!

In a way I'm surprised there wasn't a list of the books at the end, but maybe they didn't realise how popular such an idea would be? My original thought was to read through them in the order that Mori mentions them - but I came up a bit stuck for the first one, which is Jane of Lantern Hill, which seems mostly to be available from the US... I shall track it down though - even the library doesn't seem to have it (I must ask about inter-library loan - though I seem to recall you pay for that, these days...)...

...okay, actually I think I am quite determined to have a go at reading all the books - I will find Jane of Lantern Hill, and then I will be off! (I like the idea of an SF challenge, but obviously I've missed Carl's this year - I shall have to have a look around - or else stick with my own Among Others one!

[caffyolay.livejournal.com]

Jane of Lantern Hill... is that L.M. Montgomery?

I'm just coming to the end of Walton's What Makes this Book so Great. Honestly it's been like reading Mori's opinions only in greater depth. Wonderful. It's a library book and will go back but my daughter just asked me what I want for my birthday and I've asked for my own copy of the book. I wondered about starting at the beginning of the book and reading every book she reviews. *g* Not sure I could keep it up to be honest and I have already read some of them. I suppose I could do it over several years. A couple of them, Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers and The Wood Wife by Terri Windling, are on my radar to read very soon anyway. (The latter for Once Upon a Time.) Hmm. Something to cogitate on...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Yes, L.M. Montgomery!

I do like the sound of What Makes this Book so Great - I'm keeping my beady eye out for it to be available in paperback... I had a look at the preview, and Walton really got me with "What do they think about on buses?" (of people who don't read... *g*) Oh, I wonder if our library has it...No. In fact our library has nothing by Jo Walton at all - how is that possible? She's not exactly unheard of... not even Among Others! I think I'd like to live near your library, please! I like the idea of using WMTBSG as a reading list, too (sight unseen of course, but how could it be other than a great idea?) I also wondered about taking a look at the nominations for various SF awards this year, I must look into that...

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Adding this to my reading list right now, it sounds fab. Thanks for the rec!

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

PS if you've not seen them, go have a look at the reviews for this book on www.goodreads.com.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It really was fab - highly recommended! *g*

I hadn't actually looked at any reviews, but I've had a glance now. It's probably inevitable that there's a split, especially with people who are less into SF books themselves, or don't like the style of writing - Mori's definitely got her own voice. I think above I said it was bordering on frustrating now and then when I wanted to have read the book she was talking about then so I could understand her entire reference to it - and my reading was fairly similar to Mori's, and done at around the same time. Well, just a couple of years later, alot of it. But I adored it, I thought it was beautifully done - and as caffyolay says above, Walton did a wonderful job of really getting inside the head of a fifteen year old, and then showing us what it was like... *g* (Actually, that was what made me laugh about one of the reviews, who said that she couldn't believe Mori was supposed to be 15 when she made such a fuss and tantrum about having her hears pierced - she'd clearly never met many fifteen year olds - and must have been very in control of her own hormonal self!)