Book Review: The Art of Time in Fiction

The Art of Time in Fiction: As Long as it Takes

Written by Joan Silber, 2009

Summary: One of 15 short handbooks in the “Art Of” series for writers, Silber’s installment breaks down several ways of handling the passage of time in stories — from expanding one moment into multiple pages to collapsing centuries into only one.

Review: Craft writing is a cursed genre. The temptation is to make essays both informative and themselves a work of great writing, leading famous authors to create kitschy frameworks they never used themselves, or wax poetic instead of clearly stating their advice. Moreover, unless a craft essay is dissecting one particular story, it quickly becomes a reading list, with all the action and responsibility removed from the words you already paid to read.

Silber thankfully avoids the first pitfall, but she can’t claw her way out of the second. Most of the book highlights the author’s own favorite works, without enough concrete suggestions. The reader is left with extra assigned reading to fully benefit from this book.

What makes the book worthwhile is Silber giving a name to different types of time. With these labels, writers will have an easier time learning from their own favorite books and intentionally deploying specific methods in their own work.

Rating: 12/20 seconds later

Book Review: The Golem and the Jinni

The Golem and the Jinni

Written by Helene Wecker in 2013

Summary: Blending Jewish and Islamic mythology, the titular supernatural characters find themselves lost and alone in New York City—just like countless other immigrants at the end of the 19th century. As the golem tries to fight her nature and the jinni tries to return to his, they affect the lives of the humans around them and draw the attention of an old common enemy.

Review: I’m predisposed to loving this type of biblical fantasy story, but Wecker’s execution is just as smart as her ideas. We follow multiple characters fluidly, in a way that keeps up suspense. The setting also ties in well; New York and the time period feel critical to the story, as opposed to a splashy background chosen after the plot was written.

More than the mythical heroes, I love how the villain was written. The reader is led multiple times to have sympathy for him, only to have that interpretation reversed each time more context is given. Furthermore, the villain commits several good deeds as means to evil ends; watching him forced to save people is fun and believable.

An original, easy-to-pick-up fantasy that will widen your knowledge of the real world.

Strengths:

• Characters’ poor decisions are the believable kind that make you want to scream at them and not the author.
• One ending twist is fascinating and ensures that the Abrahamic religions here aren't made out to be the Truth.

Weaknesses:

• A few chapter beginnings had me momentarily confused about which character I was following. Adding the protagonist’s name in the first sentence would be one simple way to resolve this.

Rating: 19/20 possessed doctors

Ideal Setting: Read this when you catch yourself thinking today’s religions are more logical and less barbaric than pagan ones.