The Uses of Enchantment by Heidi Julavits
Synopsis: When Mary was 16, she may or may not have been abducted and raped by an older man, whose life was ruined by her accusations.
Tag Archives: Narrative Voice
The Price of Silence by Camilla Trinchieri
Synopsis: After she befriends secretive An-Ling, a menopausal wife and mother’s family collapses under the weight of a lifetime of lies that may have lead to An-Ling’s murder.
The House of Stairs by Barbara Vine
Synopsis: A woman haunted by the uncertain onset of a genetic disease sees a woman from her past, and struggles to fill in the gaps between truth and lies from a time in her life marked by violence and murder. Review: House of Stairs is yet another knockout from Barbara Vine, the British crime writer who pens the Inspector Wexford mysteries as Ruth Rendell. The tease here is that Vine isn’t going to reveal the identity of the murder victim until the final pages, and…
Blindness by Henry Green
Synopsis: A young man on the verge of university is blinded in a freak accident. Review: Henry Green’s later books Loving, Living, and Party Going were referenced quite a bit in Francine Prose’s Reading Like a Writer, but I chose to start with Blindness because it was listed in the infamous 1001 Books to Read Before You Die. It’s a slim volume, and I breezed through it, though Green’s marvelous turns of phrase caused me to pause and relish.
Contemplating Structure, Time and the First-Person
In another incarnation I spent some time teaching screenwriting, which, as you may know, is all about structure. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that there is no screenwriting without structure. Typically, that means three acts highlighting a tightly causal chain of events with linear narration. In films that utilize flashback structure, these flashbacks are usually ordered so that they unfold in a linear fashion. Even Memento, to provide a notable example of a film that plays with time, employs linear temporality…
Winterwood by Patrick McCabe
Synopsis: Entranced by the folk tales of an old mountain man, and repulsed by the same man’s grisly crimes, Redmond Hatch struggles to narrate the events which led him to bring his beloved wife and daughter to winterwood. Review: I was upset by the way Winterwood seduced me. I did not want to be reeled in by Redmond and his elliptical storytelling because I knew that, between the lines, he was telling me stories I didn’t want him to be able to tell. I wanted…
The Keeper by Sarah Langan
Synopsis: In a rotting-down town in nowheresville Maine, a woman with a broken mind haunts the minds of the inhabitants, tormenting their dreams and leading them to make deadly choices. Review: I picked The Keeper up after reading about it on SciFi Wire, but I have to say I was disappointed. The writing is assured, and Langan demonstrates considerable ability in bringing the reader inside the characters’ heads. She’s also not afraid of going for the gore, and some of her imagery will be sticking…
Translator Tiina Nunnally on Kristin Lavransdatter
Amazon.com has an online book club, and they’re currently reading the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy by Sigrid Unset. I read the first one last fall, and am looking forward to books 2 and 3. I fell in love with Kristin, and so did translator Tiina Nunnally, who writes for Amazon:
The Giver Could Become a Movie
Cinematical reported today that The Giver by Lois Lowry has had some action on the adaptation front: For years, the book has floated around in development hell. After it was published, it was picked up by Lancit Media, and then RCN Entertainment, but both businesses tanked. Nicole Silver then grabbed it with Jeff Bridges, holding onto the film for nearly 10 years. House of Sand and Fog scribe/director Vadim Perelman wrote a script, and was to direct The Giver starring Bridges, until Walden Media bowed…
Kazuo Ishiguro
I just discovered this site today, and loved this piece on the appeal of Kazuo Ishiguro.