My latest reading project finishes with A Stranger in Olondria by Sofia Samatar (2013).

Jevick is the second son of a well-to-do pepper merchant from the village of Tyom on Tinimavet. When it becomes apparent that his big brother isn’t capable of continuing the family business, Jevick gets the training and attention instead, including a private tutor from the northern land of Olondria. Jevick learns to speak and read Olondrian, and falls in love with literature, which is non-existent on his native island.

After his father dies, Jevick takes his place on the yearly pepper selling trip to Olondria. On this journey, his first foray out as a merchant, he attends the Feast of Birds celebration and becomes haunted by the ghost of a sick Tinimavet girl. Seeking a cure for her ailment in the north, Jissavet traveled to Bain on the same boat as Jevick but died some time after reaching Olondria. Unable to sleep due to the ghost’s presence, Jevick turns to Olondrian priests for help, but gets entangled and used as a pawn in a struggle between two religions.

Olondria is an unusual fantasy novel – no dime-a-dozen cookie cutter books here. It’s emphatically not an action- or plot-centered novel. Some dramatic events do take place, but they’re not described in an action-y way.

It’s a story about stories with stories that contain stories and refer to yet other stories. In other words, there are a lot of allusions to world-internal myths, poems, songs, books, etc. I’ve seen Olondria compared to a literary memoir, and the comparison sounds apt. The language is very lyrical, ornate, erudite and a little melancholy or nostalgic at times.

The novel is also about love, travel, encountering the wider world through books, different circumstances of people even within the same ingroup and about growing apart from your family or country through different experiences. It’s not a long book, per se, but a literary and dense one, and a great example of how to tell rather than show.

I’d say that any book’s ability to enthrall readers depends entirely on the kind(s) of reading that they most enjoy, or at the very least the kind of literature they are in the mood for. In the end, Olondria didn’t really fit the particular reading mood that I was in, but I admired the novel and appreciated the skill it took to create.

P.S. Find all posts in the project with the 21 authors tag.

My latest reading project is almost over! Next up is Among Others by Jo Walton (published in 2010).

Among Others is set in Wales and Shropshire, England. We begin in 1975 with twins Morwenna and Morganna near their Welsh home, about to do magic at the behest of local fairies (who cannot touch physical items in our world).

The next chapter has fast forwarded four years. Morwenna is dead from saving the world from their mother’s evil magic; Morganna is crippled and, grieving, has started to use her sister’s name when she isn’t going by her nickname Mori (or Mor, or sometimes Mo).

After regaining some of her mobility, Mori ran away from her mother and sought refuge with her estranged father on the English side of the border. His three sisters sent Mori to a sports-heavy boarding school. Being unable to join in the sports, from an ethnic minority (Welsh) and an enthusiastic SF/F reader, it’s no surprise that Mori doesn’t find a ready acceptance at Arlinghurst academy. She struggles to keep in contact with her relatives in Wales and attempts to find a circle of like-minded friends.

Little by little Mori starts coming to terms with her new life and carving a place for herself. We also learn more of her grief, the crash that took her sister and of magic. Unfortunately, Mori’s magic-use draws the attention of her mother. Eventually the two face each other in a magical battle and settle things for good.

The novel is technically shaped as Mori’s diary, but the entries strongly resemble conventional novels: we get glimpses of both Mori’s everyday life, her thoughts and encounters with the world. One of the strengths of the novel is that we see Mori’s thinking develop from a child-like black & white dichotomy to a more nuanced way of seeing the world.

Walton also made a very interesting choice in designing this world’s magic: it’s very low-key, easy to miss and/or could be explained by normal events or coincidences.

There’s not much plot, and the final climax comes up a bit suddenly. I didn’t think these two features detracted from the experience, however. More than anything else, the novel is a character-driven love letter to libraries and books, especially science fiction and fantasy. Quietly powerful, Among Others grips you and won’t let go. Recommended!

P.S. Find all posts in the project with the 21 authors tag.

Book 17 in my latest reading project is Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (published in 2010), and so far the one I’ve struggled with most.

Content note: references to rape, genital mutilation, slavery and genocide. This is also a very, very, VERY long post.

TL;DR – Who Fears Death is set in a post-apocalyptic, magical future with a melange of cultures, languages, relationships and themes fluently handled. A challenging but rewarding read if you’re not afraid of thought-provoking literature outside Anglo-American dime-a-dozen fantasy.

Book 15 in my latest reading project is Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (published in 2008).

Content note: references to child molestation, abortion, (both female and male) rape and suicide attempt.