A reaction to IGJ

Jacob G Corbin · 05 Dec 2000, 03:22 · from whorl-v0012.mbox · original

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From: Jacob G Corbin <webmaster at afriendlysbooks.com>
Subject: (whorl) A reaction to IGJ
Date: Tue, 05 Dec 2000 03:22:17
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Some discombobulated thoughts mere hours after plowing through IGJ:

-- I'm glad I went ahead and purchased the hardcover instead of waiting for=
 the TPB.  Notwithstanding my junkie-like desperation for the next SHORT SU=
N installment, the fact that I could leave the dust jacket at
home averted many potentially-embarrassing situations. I know it's been dis=
cussed before on this list, but it bears repeating: that cover is an abomin=
ation.  I mean, just look at it.  Does it grab you and demand
your attention, saying: "This book is superbly erudite, marvelously witty, =
and worthy of the closest scrutiny.  It is the best its genre has to offer =
and you owe it to yourself to read it"?  I'm afraid not.
Instead, it shouts to unsuspecting passersby: "The person reading this is a=
 socially-maladapted head case and is best given a wide berth!"  Ehhh, I co=
uld go on for hours about SF's image problem, but I'll just stop
here.

-- My only major complaint with the book was the repetitious Horn vs. the D=
espoiling Conquerors stuff.  Now, obviously Wolfe wouldn't keep putting his=
 characters in these situations if he wasn't trying to make a
major point.  And I'll grant that, like the Gaonese war, the Blanko fiasco =
allowed Wolfe to put Horn into a series of situations that would have been =
harder to contrive sans a background conflict.  But why couldn't
this have been allowed to *remain* in the background, like in OBW?  The "cl=
imactic" battle suffered from a major case of deus ex machina.  Wolfe spend=
s large chunks of dialogue describing the relative might of
Soldo's forces to ratchet up the tension and get us wondering what clever t=
actics will be used...but neglects to tell the reader that, oh yeah, Blanko=
 had a bunch of heavy artillery just lying around.  Handy, that.

-- I liked the way OBW dealt, to some extent, with the rearing of sons, and=
 now IGJ has done much the same with daughters...as one would expect, given=
 the dedications.  Does anyone know if Horn's adventures in
parenting bear any resemblance to GW's own?

-- I massively enjoyed almost every other aspect of the book.  I probably g=
ave a girlish squeal of glee when everyone turned up in Nessus.  Unfortunat=
ely, thanks to my utter lack of discipline, I now have a very
long wait for RTTW, and am going to have to spend the morning turning my bo=
okshelves inside out in search of a suitable substitute...the methadone to =
GW's heroin, as it were.  I'm open to suggestions.

Jacob G Corbin


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