Tag: fiction

The Castle of Otranto

The Castle of Otranto is one of my favorites. It is so unyielding strange and gothically fantastical in plot and atmosphere. It is the kind of book that you put down to ask yourself “what the f*** am I reading.” In other words, my favorite kind of book.

The Castle of Otranto follows the strange occurrences of a cursed bloodline. The wicked lord of the castle, Manfred, is struck by his son’s unexpected and crushing death, bringing to life the tragic haunting fear that the family bloodline will end. Manfred then decides to send his own wife to a Covent and marry his son’s intended bride – because creepy old white dudes.

Manfred’s nefarious plans are thwarted by the various omens that manifest throughout the castle in the shape of giant pieces of armor, bleeding statues, and old secrets coming to light.

There is an overwhelming concern over heredity in this novel that is stifling for the characters and readers alike. Manfred’s relentless pursuit of the young bride-to-be is all too uncomfortable, terrifying, and oddly beautiful. But that is the gothic genre for you! Horace Walpole’s Castle of Otranto is arguably the first gothic fiction novel ever written, which might excite some readers, then upon finally reading this novel you may find yourself confused and disoriented by the relative insanity of the plot. You’d be right to feel odd about this classic because it is bloody strange! A weird tale in both its historical context and by our own modern standards.

Horace Walpole claimed that the whole book came to him in a dream and it certainly feels that way. This is a must-read if you are even remotely interested in horror, psychological thrillers, the gothic genre, or simply originality. This book blows the senses in a direction that few authors go and as a reader, I found it incredibly exciting. So many books now are tawdry and predictable – not that those books don’t have a special place in my heart – but the Castle of Otranto had me guessing in non-sensical ways from beginning to end.

“But alas! my Lord, what is blood! what is nobility! We are all reptiles, miserable, sinful creatures. It is piety alone that can distinguish us from the dust whence we sprung, and whither we must return.”

I feel that I must warn – this book is not for the narrow-minded. You must open yourself up to the gothic for it to fill you with dreaded sensual beauty. The dark psychological passages and locked doors of this short tale feel strikingly Freudian and tickle a part of the mind that only the gothic genre can reach.

“He was persuaded he could know no happiness but in the society of one with whom he could for ever indulge the melancholy that had taken possession of his soul.”

The drama is real in the Castle of Otranto, completely over the top indulgent drama. Upon finishing this novel you will understand the beginnings of a long tradition of gothic horror. Books like Jane Eyre, Haunting of Hill House, and Dracula would hardly exist if not for the gothic foundations laid down by the immensely influential Castle of Otranto.

A Visit from the Goon Squad

So I need to start by pointing out that this must have been an extremely challenging and fun book to write. Jennifer Egan is clearly an excellent writer given the quality of narrative, voice, and style.  It is a unique story that won’t be for everyone, but if you can get on board you’re in for a wild ride.

“It was the hat. He looked sweet in the hat. How could a man in a fuzzy blue hat have used human bones to pave his roads?”

A Visit from the Goon Squad is a multi-perspective interlocking narrative that focuses on the grungy and glamorous lives of those in the entertainment industry, from a kleptomaniac record executive’s assistant to a shamed public relations agent representing a notorious dictator – there seems to be a little something for everyone. The drama is unending and comedy uproarious. Very few authors can accomplish such intellectual wit with stupid jokes that make the reader feel they’ve been on a disorienting punk-rock trip. 

There were moments in this novel that I absolutely loved and were so original and bizarre that I can’t imagine experiencing anything like them again. It was a unique mind that imagined this goon squad and I won’t forget it.

“The answers were maddeningly absent—it was like trying to remember a song that you knew made you feel a certain way, without a title, artist, or even a few bars to bring it back.”

However, the parts greatly outmatched the sum in this one. Each individual section of this novel seemed great, but it wasn’t until the end that one realizes each part drops sharply off a cliff to nowhere in particular. Perhaps that’s what Egan was going for, but I couldn’t help feeling a lack of completion and catharsis as I read the last pages of the novel.

Now I am not typically one to be fussy over endings, but I do feel like books should have them. This book does not so much end, as just stops. It felt as though Egan simply just stopped writing and sent the manuscript off to the publisher.

That might sound harsh but I honestly loved this book.  It was so startlingly entrenched in a topsy-turvy punk rock culture that pulls you in and just doesn’t let go. I completely understand why this novel won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize and I also understand everyone who didn’t end up liking it. 

“th blu nyt

th stRs u can’t c

th hum tht nevr gOs awy”

Reading the back cover I never would have picked this book up. It was upon insistent recommendation that I finally sat down to read it, and I am so happy I did. Intellectual humor is – in my personal opinion – one of the most difficult feats for an author. To make people laugh without cheap tricks and tropes is downright Shakespearian. 

There, I said it and I meant it. 

Read this book. If nothing else it is unlike any other.