So I have to admit...I wanted more from that last post, I wanted amazement, I wanted defiance, I wanted discussion, I wanted people to be as excited as I am...I wanted...well, more than Matt's plea for cheaper goods. Speaking of which Matt...I'll pick that bone later...
For Tommy's sake I'll say that I finally read "Jennifer Government" and seriously, I was not amazed...it struck me as a modern 1984...commentary on society...not quite as eloquent, but that's all. I do give thanks for the recommendation though AND I laughed out loud more than once :) To save myself from a rant, I will say that Tommy's last recommendation "His Dark Materials" was amazing and I recommend it ALL the time to lots of people.
6 comments:
First off, a rule about blogging. Expect nothing. Posts that you think are amazing and will get a string of responses often die out quickly while one word blogs will start off a string of 16 comments. Don't ask me why this happens, I haven't figured it out yet.
Secondly, since you want some comments, you have picked a good topic. I figured I would get in there on this one, seeing as I am well versed on debating these books (and yes, my comments will be longer than your original post).
I think it is great that you compared Jennifer Government (one of my favorite books) to 1984 because I consider 1984 to be probably the best 20th century novel. It was brilliantly written and downright freaky if you have read it since the Bush administration. I think social commentaries are great, and, with the possible exception of Charles Dickens, there was never a better Western social historian than Orwell. While I don't put Jennifer Government on quite the same page, it was a fun read and made some not so subtle shots at our consumer driven society (read his other, and better book, Syrup for a slightly less subtle take). Also, read Lizabeth Cohen's A Consumer's Republic if you want a historical account of just how consumer driven society has been for the last 50 years in the United States.
That aside, I still need someone to explain His Dark Materials to me (Tom doesn't count because he has yet to sway me to his way of thinking), because I just don't get what all the fuss is about. First off, from a simple format sense the books were awful. Unlike Harry Potter which is readable by both young and old, these books were readable by neither. They were too quasi-deep for kids and way too young-adult for adults. There was no happy coexistance. Secondly, Pullman had a terrible writing style where he decided to tell you what was going to happen paragraphs before it actually did. Like when (spoiler alert) they kill off Lee, he tells you that "little did Lee know, but those would be his final words...so Lee kept on fighting..." Two paragraphs later he actually died. Hey Mr. Pullman, way to take the drama out of the scene! Those textual issues aside, however, the books were not interesting at all. They went from being this kinda weird, dopey kids books to a massive religious commentary between books two and three. Where the hell did that come from? And what was the point really? Oh yeah, to piss of old C.S. Lewis (who is dead mind you). It just went off on this strange tangent that really seemed to jump the shark if you ask me.
Anyway, I have probably scared off enough people now (other than Tom who will most assuredly respond back telling me I am a dumb ass) so I will stop there.
It isn't a built up hatred, I just don't get the hype about them. I think I was the first person after Tom to read the books and I found them completely disinteresting from the start. I actually had to struggle to get through the series and I was not entertained. But since Tom had built up the last book as this amazing theological epiphane, I figured I would read through. Major disappointment at the end if you ask me.
What really made me attached to the books was the concept of the daemon.
Hmmm...strange. Did you like the idea of the Daemon? Because it's a really old concept associated in history mainly with witchcraft. Hence you have many accounts of witches being burned along side animals, generally cats. Or was it simply his spin on that element?
Sorry - This is like the first time I've looked at blogs all week. I love nerdy green shit. and I have like 6 daemons running in the background.
I like his fictional use of the daemon.
Let me just make clear, that I enjoy these books purely in a sci-fi fantasy sense, I would not hail them as great literature.
I also had a hard time getting into the books (being a fan of authors like Tolkien, who offer much clearer descriptions etc etc), however, by the end of the second book I was emotionally attached because of the daemons.
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