Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
846 pages later, I put down this amazing book and wondered what makes for a good story. I certainly have no investment in the return of practical magic to England in the 19th century, nor do I have an affinity for the history of English magic, yet somehow in Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, a wonderful book by Susanna Clark, I was captured for well over a week in the spell of this tale of two very different magicians.
Mr. Norrell, a bookish little man who has hoarded all the ancient books of magic, wants to see the return of magic to England, and he hopes to see it put to good use in practical ways, be as a means of frustrating the French in the Napoleonic wars or protecting the coastline from both invaders and inclement weather. But he is against all fairy-magic, fearful of it's dark effects, and hopes to keep a firm control over what magic is done. Jonathan Strange, on the other hand, is a bit of a live wire, excited to learn whatever magic there is, and harbors none of the fear of the fairie world that inhibits Mr. Norrell. As they work spells of various kinds, a dark underworld opens up, and both magicians end up facing far more than they'd expected. Ms. Clarke sense of language and story is compelling, and she the fact that she expertly sets her shadowy world in the context of history makes the story especially evocative.
This is a really good--if not great--book. New Line Cinema has decided to film it, and IMDB lists its release date as sometime in 2008. That will be one to look forward to, depending on who they cast and who directs. Let's hope they get it right. (Great visuals throughout.)
Great Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell website, too.
...move over Mr. Potter...
9:47:07 AM 
