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I just noticed the three latest books in the series haven't been translated in Finnish or English. God damn it. I feel pretty defeated now and I haven't been as excited about my project as in the beginning, which is a sign that I've overdosed and need to move on. Maybe I'll read the rest someday, but for now this is it for me. My Christmas books will take care of my reading goal anyway, so no harm done.
When I re-read Ambrose Bierce'sAn Inhabitant of Carcosa in February, I decided to finally revisit The King in Yellow after trying to get into it several months back and never managing to gain enough enthusiasm for it. Now the situation was completely different.
The first story, The Repairer of Reputations, is a great introduction to Chambers's universe. It starts as a sci-fi story of sorts, but then it slowly makes you question everything you've read previously. In The Mask, an unusual scientific discovery is able to turn living beings into marble. In the Court of the Dragon leans heavily towards horror with its creepy as hell organist, and The Yellow Sign (my absolute favorite) is an equally sinister story about a man who is disturbed by a worm-like churchyard watchman, who babbles about the Yellow Sign. The Street of the Four Winds has a kitty. Kitties for the win (and people who talk to their cats like they're their friends)!
The rest of the stories, although enjoyable, weren't simply even comparable to the great beginning. While not bad on their own, I'm still struggling to understand why Chambers decided to include them in the collection in the first place, instead of writing more about the yellow king and the play that has the power to drive people mad (what a fantastic concept, by the way!). There are a few connections between the first and the latter half, but they're mostly superficial, and the tone is significantly different in the stories about artists in Paris.
What comes to the mythology, it's definitely interesting enough to warrant a position in literary history. I haven't had much interest toward Lovecraft or cosmic horror in general, but the Yellow Sign (which inspired Lovecraft, by the way) is somehow very intriguing. The more you try to grab hold of it, the further it escapes from your grasp, and that mystery and lack of answers are the keys to Chambers's success.
Apparently, apart from a few names, Bierce's story has nothing in common with Chambers's stories, but the parts True Detective referenced are easy to spot. The starry sky, the mind control aspect, the ear thing with Mr. Wilde and youknowwho etc. Reading The King in Yellow doesn't necessarily help you navigate through the show, but I don't think it's supposed to. The mythology just adds to the mysteries of the show and makes the South a whole lot creepier.
I'll never look at the color yellow the same way again, that's for sure.
The first story, The Repairer of Reputations, is a great introduction to Chambers's universe. It starts as a sci-fi story of sorts, but then it slowly makes you question everything you've read previously. In The Mask, an unusual scientific discovery is able to turn living beings into marble. In the Court of the Dragon leans heavily towards horror with its creepy as hell organist, and The Yellow Sign (my absolute favorite) is an equally sinister story about a man who is disturbed by a worm-like churchyard watchman, who babbles about the Yellow Sign. The Street of the Four Winds has a kitty. Kitties for the win (and people who talk to their cats like they're their friends)!
The rest of the stories, although enjoyable, weren't simply even comparable to the great beginning. While not bad on their own, I'm still struggling to understand why Chambers decided to include them in the collection in the first place, instead of writing more about the yellow king and the play that has the power to drive people mad (what a fantastic concept, by the way!). There are a few connections between the first and the latter half, but they're mostly superficial, and the tone is significantly different in the stories about artists in Paris.
What comes to the mythology, it's definitely interesting enough to warrant a position in literary history. I haven't had much interest toward Lovecraft or cosmic horror in general, but the Yellow Sign (which inspired Lovecraft, by the way) is somehow very intriguing. The more you try to grab hold of it, the further it escapes from your grasp, and that mystery and lack of answers are the keys to Chambers's success.
Apparently, apart from a few names, Bierce's story has nothing in common with Chambers's stories, but the parts True Detective referenced are easy to spot. The starry sky, the mind control aspect, the ear thing with Mr. Wilde and youknowwho etc. Reading The King in Yellow doesn't necessarily help you navigate through the show, but I don't think it's supposed to. The mythology just adds to the mysteries of the show and makes the South a whole lot creepier.
I'll never look at the color yellow the same way again, that's for sure.
Strange is the night where black stars rise,
And strange moons circle through the skies
But stranger still is
Lost Carcosa.
Considering I'm not one to drool after hyped books or chase new releases (especially the lighter sort) in general, it's relatively surprising The Woman in the Window grabbed my attention. But, as I've said before, I'm always on the lookout for harmless mysteries/thrillers with interesting premises to consume as little snacks, and the similarities with one of my favorite Hitchcock movies was what drew me in this time.
Turns out, The Woman in the Window isn't particularly clever or subtle in its retro-minded references. The intertextuality consists mostly of lists of old movies and actors, and some plot aspects have been drawn from movies such as Vertigo (1958), Gaslight (1944), Body Double (1984), and (the most obvious one of them all, of course) Rear Window (1954).
The characterization is fairly good, particularly regarding the way the reader's emotions toward the protagonist may swerve from hate to pity according to what is revealed about her. At first, when the first revelation came, I started to dislike Anna, but then I thought she's suffered enough and most likely learned her lesson. She's not your perfect damsel in distress who quickly figures everything out to make her life all fine and dandy again, and that just makes her more believable and real.
So... Was it worth the hype? I'd say yes and no. The Woman in the Window is a traditional page-turner (yet also strangely overdrawn with occasionally sluggish pace) with twists and turns that will satisfy most people, and that's about all one can expect, since it's not supposed to be a thought-provoking serious literary novel. I enjoyed it for what it is, a light suspense novel pretty decent in its own genre, but I fully expect to forget about it after some time has passed. Some of the effect has clearly worn down, since I changed my rating from 4 stars (3.5 in reality) to solid 2.5 stars. Still, it passed the time and started the year modestly but with promise.
Turns out, The Woman in the Window isn't particularly clever or subtle in its retro-minded references. The intertextuality consists mostly of lists of old movies and actors, and some plot aspects have been drawn from movies such as Vertigo (1958), Gaslight (1944), Body Double (1984), and (the most obvious one of them all, of course) Rear Window (1954).
The characterization is fairly good, particularly regarding the way the reader's emotions toward the protagonist may swerve from hate to pity according to what is revealed about her. At first, when the first revelation came, I started to dislike Anna, but then I thought she's suffered enough and most likely learned her lesson. She's not your perfect damsel in distress who quickly figures everything out to make her life all fine and dandy again, and that just makes her more believable and real.
So... Was it worth the hype? I'd say yes and no. The Woman in the Window is a traditional page-turner (yet also strangely overdrawn with occasionally sluggish pace) with twists and turns that will satisfy most people, and that's about all one can expect, since it's not supposed to be a thought-provoking serious literary novel. I enjoyed it for what it is, a light suspense novel pretty decent in its own genre, but I fully expect to forget about it after some time has passed. Some of the effect has clearly worn down, since I changed my rating from 4 stars (3.5 in reality) to solid 2.5 stars. Still, it passed the time and started the year modestly but with promise.
I may not remember everything about my childhood, but whenever I think about books that cemented my love for reading and fictional realities in general, it's always The Pagemaster that rises above all else. It's impossible for me to figure out how many times I've actually read it.
An old-fashioned adventure where a timid boy finds the courage to cross obstacles, with the help of three books come to life, it now seems that it was tailor-made for the younger me. A magical treasure island, Jekyll's claustrophobic abode, pickled brain next to a monster lying on a slab, ghosts, sea adventures, a dragon... There are so many things that have stayed with me throughout my life and maybe even subconsciously affected my reading choices, and a lot of that magic is conjured by the fantastic illustrations. One of them (an angry dragon) brought about a wave of gasps from the boys in my class when I used this in a book report at the age of 7 or 8.
It's impossible to get rid of that particular nostalgic haze when you think about your old favorites, and with that might come the extra nostalgia points when you revisit them, but I'm happy to say that in the case of The Pagemaster I was able to enjoy it just as much as I did when I read it in secret under a blanket after the whole house had gone to sleep. I'm also happy to report that now, as an almost 30-year-old woman, I spotted something I hadn't before: although Richard learns how to enjoy life and gain self-assurance because of the strange events that start happening when he goes to the library, you don't need to actually get kidnapped by pirates to find a way to fulfillment and adventure in ordinary everyday life. A bit of imaginary fairy dust makes you breathe easier, but overdosing on it will make you forget all the nice things outside the fictional world.
An old-fashioned adventure where a timid boy finds the courage to cross obstacles, with the help of three books come to life, it now seems that it was tailor-made for the younger me. A magical treasure island, Jekyll's claustrophobic abode, pickled brain next to a monster lying on a slab, ghosts, sea adventures, a dragon... There are so many things that have stayed with me throughout my life and maybe even subconsciously affected my reading choices, and a lot of that magic is conjured by the fantastic illustrations. One of them (an angry dragon) brought about a wave of gasps from the boys in my class when I used this in a book report at the age of 7 or 8.
It's impossible to get rid of that particular nostalgic haze when you think about your old favorites, and with that might come the extra nostalgia points when you revisit them, but I'm happy to say that in the case of The Pagemaster I was able to enjoy it just as much as I did when I read it in secret under a blanket after the whole house had gone to sleep. I'm also happy to report that now, as an almost 30-year-old woman, I spotted something I hadn't before: although Richard learns how to enjoy life and gain self-assurance because of the strange events that start happening when he goes to the library, you don't need to actually get kidnapped by pirates to find a way to fulfillment and adventure in ordinary everyday life. A bit of imaginary fairy dust makes you breathe easier, but overdosing on it will make you forget all the nice things outside the fictional world.
In the darkness of the tree house something stirred - the sound of pages rustling. - - - Adventure looked around and took a deep breath. "Do ye smell it? Breathe it in, mates!" He thrust his sword in the air. "Now this be the land of Adventure!"
