[book_talk] book review - Jasper Fforde
- From: "Bonnie L. Sherrell" <blslarner@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Science Fiction list" <blind-sf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Blind Chit Chat" <Blind-Chit-Chat@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Books for the Blind" <Books4theblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Blind Book Lovers Cafe" <bblc@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Book Talk" <book_talk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2013 23:16:57 -0800
_First Among Sequels_
by Jasper Fforde
narrated by Emily Grey
fifth book in the Thursday Next series
Life has changed in the alternate Britain in which Thursday Next lives.
No longer is she a member of Special Ops and the Literary Police.
Most of the special corps have been disbanded, in fact, with many of
the old guard who dealt with the undead, reengineered creatures, and
book runners now working for Acme Carpets, where on occasion they
actually sell and install floor covering! But in truth Acme is a cover
for those special ops corps that are supposedly no more but need
coverage anyway. Thursday is one of two agents who focuses on literary
problems, but in secret continues on as the one Outlander or real
person who belongs to the Council of Genres in the Bookworld.
At the moment she is supposed to be evaluating two new candidates for
Jurisfiction agents--Thursday Next One-through-Four and Thursday Next
Five, the leading characters of the books that have been written to
chronicle the real Thursday's adventures. Thursday One-through-Four is
an obnoxious bitch, however, who carries more weapons upon her person
than one can imagine, while Thursday Five is a Flower Child who
believes in group hugs to solve confrontations, which course could end
up getting her killed with some of the characters she faces. With some
of her old enemies resurfacing and her son Friday refusing to join the
ChronoGuard, the real world Thursday doesn't need this kind of
aggravation. No one appreciates why book reading rates have dropped
alarmingly lately, to the point that one of the leading book
superstores has only two shelves of books on their premises. Nor can
anyone appreciate just why the Council of Genres is pushing a move to
make Jane Austin's books into so-called "reality TV" shows, in which
the general public can watch the Bennets make bee costumes and vote on
which family member does the worst impersonation of a bee and thus
deserves to be voted out of the book!
With members of the ChronoGuard seeking to forcefully replace the
slothful sixteen-year-old Friday who lives as son to Thursday and her
husband Lansford Park-Lane with an alternate Friday who joined the
ChronoGuard Scouts three years ago, Thursday is at a loss to figure out
how to avoid the Cheese Police, figure out how Felix Eight could appear
outside her door and then disappear from a secure facility beneath Acme
Carpets, or why Sherlock Holmes and other leading characters in certain
book series have either been reported murdered or are being threatened
with violence. With the added threat of history possibly coming to its
end within a few days, Thursday has more on her plate than she ought to
have to face! And someone has managed to steal her Travel Book,
cutting her off from her position as a leading member of Jurisfiction
and the Council of Genres! What's she to do, particularly as her
younger daughter Jenny hasn't shown up for breakfast all week?
Full of great fun and a lot of playful pokes at current culture. I
found myself liking this one better than I did _Something Rotten_,
although I enjoyed both. The one downside to this one is that the
pauses between sections are longer, and it was harder for me to tell
when the break was one in the narration or was just my SansaClip MP3
player shutting itself down again as it seems to do when I go by people
with particularly strong cell phone signals. Don't know why that turns
my player off, but it seems to do so fairly regularly.
Bonnie L. Sherrell
Teacher at Large
"Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise
cannot see all ends." LOTR
"Don't go where I can't follow."
Other related posts:
