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Lost Boys
Bekenn
Sinclair's Duck
in Zocalo v2.0
I finished reading this book a few weeks ago. It's by Orson Scott Card, same guy who did Ender's Game and many, many other great stories. This one's not sci-fi, though; in fact, in a lot of ways, it's autobiographical. The family that the book centers on is based on his family; it takes place in Steuben, NC (instead of Greensboro, where OSC lives), and the Mormon church features heavily (OSC is Mormon).
What makes the book work is the family dynamics. The family feels like a real family, doing its best but still making mistakes. It's very much a character piece, with the plot hardly coming in at all until the second- or third-to-last chapter. And, though these characters are religious and the book therefore spends a lot of time on their religion, it's not preachy; it simply shows that religious people care about religion.
Whatever you do, do [i]not[/i] read the back of the book -- whoever wrote the back should be hanged. Imagine reading an Agatha Christie novel where the back gave away who the murderer was, but lied about everything else. The back of [i]Lost Boys[/i] is much the same: in some places it's correct, in some places it isn't, and where it [i]is[/i] correct, it's unforgivable.
What makes the book work is the family dynamics. The family feels like a real family, doing its best but still making mistakes. It's very much a character piece, with the plot hardly coming in at all until the second- or third-to-last chapter. And, though these characters are religious and the book therefore spends a lot of time on their religion, it's not preachy; it simply shows that religious people care about religion.
Whatever you do, do [i]not[/i] read the back of the book -- whoever wrote the back should be hanged. Imagine reading an Agatha Christie novel where the back gave away who the murderer was, but lied about everything else. The back of [i]Lost Boys[/i] is much the same: in some places it's correct, in some places it isn't, and where it [i]is[/i] correct, it's unforgivable.
Comments
Orson Scott Card gives me respect for Mormons...I don't agree with everything he says, but I can't help respect him.
Heck, I think I'd even talk to him if it was him who came knocking at the door :)
-Φ
Actually, I recently went through the entire short story anthology (Maps in a Mirror). There's a lot of good stuff in there, and a lot of not-so-good stuff, as well, but still well worth the read.
I'm rather used to all the Mormon stuff, mainly because two close friends of mine are Mormon (both currently attending BYU), so I guess that's less of a barrier for me than it might be for other people; certainly, I had no trouble getting through [i]Folk of the Fringe[/i].