The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August
by Claire North
science fiction
copyright 2014
partly read January 2018
rated 5/10: readable but only if there's nothing else
This book is, "An astonishing reinvention of the time-travel narrative."
The reinvention is unusual... unusual enough that I would count its explanation as a spoiler -- except for this, on the back cover of the book: "when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes."
It's not a spoiler if it's printed on the cover of the book.
More spoiler, with details: "Nothing ever changes." But it does. As far a I can tell (as far as I read) one person is trying to use Harry to change the world -- as it exists in Harry's current life. Harry doesn't say, It can't change. He says, It's all too complex -- and interconnected -- to attempt to make a "directed" change. This despite Harry's own attempts to improve his own interaction with each life, by both study and employment.
It's possible that this book is, indeed, an astonishing reinvention of the time-travel story. There are certainly some interesting ideas.
As far as I read -- page 73 of 400 -- it is definitely extremely boring.
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More interesting:
At the back of the book is this statement: "Claire North is a pseudonym for an acclaimed British author who has previously published several novels. This book is completely different from any of them." I checked Wikipedia for pseudonyms...
I have read one other book by this author. I read Touch -- published a year after Fifteen -- and rated it as nine out of ten.
Was Fifteen an unfortunate aberration? Has this author improved? Or has my taste changed? I may have to re-read Touch, to see if it is as good as I thought at the time.
Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
... Agamedes Consulting / Problems ? Solved
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"You're only young once but you can stay immature forever" … per Ginger Meggs
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1 comment:
Thanks for your comment.
I read this book as it said on the cover, as "An astonishing reinvention of the time-travel narrative." As a "time-travel narrative" -- and for me as a fan of science fiction -- it is extremely boring.
As far as I read -- only 73 pages -- I saw neither friendship nor love. Perhaps in the next few hundred pages? Yet complexity of existence is definitely there. Friendship and love may also make an appearance. I prefer it when key themes are presented near the start. I was also prejudiced because I was expecting science fiction.
My rating is five out of ten. That is *my* rating. I never hedge my bet by reading other reviews. There are clearly alternate -- more positive -- opinions on this book! Read it, form your own opinion, post your comment...
Thank you to the blog reader who provided an alternate view.
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