Sunday, 19 July 2020 03:53 pm
Book Review: Silverlock
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deckardcanineHaving no connection with Silverwing, this is the one fantasy hit from John Myers Myers. My edition, advertising a $0.75 price, is older than my parents. I must have heard of it from an elder forumite. Anyway, I'm not one to let antiquity stop me from reading a book I've barely heard of.
First-person narrator A. Clarence Shandon, a Chicago man who hates and usually skips his first two names, gets shipwrecked at the start. He meets a castaway from another wreck, Golias, who dubs him Silverlock after his hair pattern and helps him reach Golias' island home, the Commonwealth of Letters. This land is populated primarily by characters out of literature and legend, with a few real historic figures for good measure, along with composite characters. Episodic adventures ensue.
Shandon had actually stopped caring about life when his ship sank, but there's nothing like an extraordinary experience to get one caring again. Not that he cares much about others; he's used to treating women badly, and early on, he betrays Golias (to his own detriment). Fortunately, Golias is one stubborn friend, and Shandon gradually becomes a better person, albeit with a worldview in flux. I find it a mixed blessing that he doesn't get homesick: It allows him more appreciation of his surroundings and more options, but he tends to be awfully aimless.
Golias, for his part, is highly savvy about the Commonwealth, personally acquainted with almost everyone worth knowing. But for all his charm, he's not a saint. In times of need, he has no qualms against stealing anything left by an out-of-sight stranger; in fact, he'd consider it an offense not to. He follows only "Delian law." In a Mark Twain-like moment, he says he's known three men who never deserved to be shot, and he doesn't remember liking any of them.
A good chunk of the fun, of course, lies in the classical allusions. Unlike in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, they don't all hail from nearly the same era. Some go back hundreds or thousands of years; a few debuted in the early 1900s, which is a bit like a modern writer incorporating '70s lit into that hodgepodge. Yes, there can be culture clashes, as when Shandon dresses like one of the Merry Men and later gets laughed at for it. I'm not sure how it works across the Commonwealth.
It's worth noting that not all the sampled works are fantasies, so sometimes there's quite a while between magical moments. Good thing Shandon gets his first taste up front.
At no point does Shandon indicate that he recognizes any references, even to such famous works as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or The Odyssey. His ignorance can cost him dearly. Is he appallingly uneducated or forgetful, or does he come from a parallel world where they never achieved great fame? His only hint of loral knowledge is a fib involving one Paul Bunyan.
Unfortunately, half the time, I didn't get the references either. I kept my phone handy when reading so I could look them up (especially ones from Irish mythology, apparently). Some still elude me. Maybe Myers overestimated the staying power of some relatively recent works. Eh, he had to know that some of them were obscure, such as Emma Watson from an unfinished Jane Austen novel (who seemingly didn't inspire the modern actress's name).
Is it enjoyable? Off and on, I'd say. It's rarely funny, nor do I get the impression it's supposed to be often. The value of adventure is timeless, but we get only so much leading in a given direction. Things arguably improve in the second half, when there are more clearly overarching themes and Shandon has developed stronger and more relatable feelings. Several of the last chapters get quite gloomy, when even Golias proves less than unflappable.
The other strength is in occasional poetry, apparently all original on Myers' part. There's even an alphabetical poem on the back, akin to something I'd write. I kept glancing back at it whenever one of its references appeared in the story.
I wouldn't recommend Silverlock to someone less well read than myself. Unless you love taking breaks for educational searches, it's probably best for older -- shall I say "seasoned" -- readers.
I'm now reading An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. Unusual for a woman to write something that gets compared to A Song of Ice and Fire.
First-person narrator A. Clarence Shandon, a Chicago man who hates and usually skips his first two names, gets shipwrecked at the start. He meets a castaway from another wreck, Golias, who dubs him Silverlock after his hair pattern and helps him reach Golias' island home, the Commonwealth of Letters. This land is populated primarily by characters out of literature and legend, with a few real historic figures for good measure, along with composite characters. Episodic adventures ensue.
Shandon had actually stopped caring about life when his ship sank, but there's nothing like an extraordinary experience to get one caring again. Not that he cares much about others; he's used to treating women badly, and early on, he betrays Golias (to his own detriment). Fortunately, Golias is one stubborn friend, and Shandon gradually becomes a better person, albeit with a worldview in flux. I find it a mixed blessing that he doesn't get homesick: It allows him more appreciation of his surroundings and more options, but he tends to be awfully aimless.
Golias, for his part, is highly savvy about the Commonwealth, personally acquainted with almost everyone worth knowing. But for all his charm, he's not a saint. In times of need, he has no qualms against stealing anything left by an out-of-sight stranger; in fact, he'd consider it an offense not to. He follows only "Delian law." In a Mark Twain-like moment, he says he's known three men who never deserved to be shot, and he doesn't remember liking any of them.
A good chunk of the fun, of course, lies in the classical allusions. Unlike in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, they don't all hail from nearly the same era. Some go back hundreds or thousands of years; a few debuted in the early 1900s, which is a bit like a modern writer incorporating '70s lit into that hodgepodge. Yes, there can be culture clashes, as when Shandon dresses like one of the Merry Men and later gets laughed at for it. I'm not sure how it works across the Commonwealth.
It's worth noting that not all the sampled works are fantasies, so sometimes there's quite a while between magical moments. Good thing Shandon gets his first taste up front.
At no point does Shandon indicate that he recognizes any references, even to such famous works as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or The Odyssey. His ignorance can cost him dearly. Is he appallingly uneducated or forgetful, or does he come from a parallel world where they never achieved great fame? His only hint of loral knowledge is a fib involving one Paul Bunyan.
Unfortunately, half the time, I didn't get the references either. I kept my phone handy when reading so I could look them up (especially ones from Irish mythology, apparently). Some still elude me. Maybe Myers overestimated the staying power of some relatively recent works. Eh, he had to know that some of them were obscure, such as Emma Watson from an unfinished Jane Austen novel (who seemingly didn't inspire the modern actress's name).
Is it enjoyable? Off and on, I'd say. It's rarely funny, nor do I get the impression it's supposed to be often. The value of adventure is timeless, but we get only so much leading in a given direction. Things arguably improve in the second half, when there are more clearly overarching themes and Shandon has developed stronger and more relatable feelings. Several of the last chapters get quite gloomy, when even Golias proves less than unflappable.
The other strength is in occasional poetry, apparently all original on Myers' part. There's even an alphabetical poem on the back, akin to something I'd write. I kept glancing back at it whenever one of its references appeared in the story.
I wouldn't recommend Silverlock to someone less well read than myself. Unless you love taking breaks for educational searches, it's probably best for older -- shall I say "seasoned" -- readers.
I'm now reading An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. Unusual for a woman to write something that gets compared to A Song of Ice and Fire.