Short Fiction Book Reviews: Volume 3
Three translations of a classic, high brow literary fiction, a great book from a friend of and mine then a whole lot of pulp. Also something that might be the beginnings of a book by Neal Stephenson.
Aeneid by: Virgil Translations by: John Dryden, Sarah Ruden, and Robert Fagles
This Inevitable Ruin: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 7 by: Matt Dinniman
Aeneid
By: Virgil
Translated by: John Dryden
Published: 1697
~300 Pages
Translated by: Sarah Ruden
Published: 2008
392 Pages
Translated by: Robert Fagles
Published: 2006
496 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
The escape of Aeneas from the sack of Troy—the travels and travails of the remaining Trojans under his leadership as they flee the relentless wrath of Juno—the odyssey culminates in a dramatic final war as they lay claim to a new homeland in Italy—the first step towards the eventual majesty of Rome.
Who should read this book?
I would say at some point in their life everyone should read the Aeneid, but perhaps that’s expecting too much. I think you should at least have some passing familiarity with it.
Specific thoughts: So which translation would I recommend?
I was going to do an entire piece on reading the Aeneid, with reflections on the book, the various translations, etc. But it’s been months since I finished and it’s time to admit that I’m never going to get around to it. You’ll just have to be content with a couple of notes on the various translations and a few other thoughts.
I started by reading the Dryden translation and the Ruden translation together. The Ruden translation is exactly the same length as the original—each line of Latin is translated into one line of English. Dryden takes more lines than the original, but I found a version which noted which Dryden line corresponds to which line number in the original. This allowed me to read a scene from the Ruden translation and then read the same scene from Dryden. It was time-consuming, but it worked out really well. I really got the work from several different angles.
I was almost done with both translations when I remembered that my daughter had wanted to read the Aeneid along with me. I had forgotten because I’m a bad father. So to make up for that we went through the Fagles translation together.
Of course now you’re going to want to know which translation I liked the best, or which translation I would recommend (which might be different) if you’re only going to read one. My favorite was Dryden. I’ve talked before about the uncanny power of poetry that rhymes, and that’s what Dryden pulls off. I know that in order to pull that off there are lots of places where he had to be a little bit looser on meaning. But even as I was reading both translations at the same time I didn’t notice any egregious differences.
Also, the beauty of the language is unparalleled. Here’s an example. Plucked pretty much at random:
Thus, from the dark recess, the Sibyl spoke,
And the resisting air the thunder broke;
The cave rebellow'd, and the temple shook.
Th' ambiguous god, who rul'd her lab'ring breast,
In these mysterious words his mind express'd;
Some truths reveal'd, in terms involv'd the rest.
At length her fury fell, her foaming ceas'd,
And, ebbing in her soul, the god decreas'd.
Then thus the chief: "No terror to my view,
No frightful face of danger can be new.
Inur'd to suffer, and resolv'd to dare,
The Fates, without my pow't, shall be without my care.
That said I could see where the language is somewhat archaic. So if you just want a readable version that’s easy to understand I would recommend Fagles. Ruden was great, but I think the restriction she placed upon herself of creating one English line for every line in Latin made it harder to understand.
Beyond that I was very interested in the backstory of the Aeneid. As you may or may not know it was written as something of an homage to Augustus. You would expect that this would increase the amount of sycophantic propaganda while reducing the overall literary quality. Which is to say, could one imagine a better version that isn’t as deferential to Augustus? That’s a strange hypothetical, and one I’m unqualified to answer, but it seems that everyone agrees it’s pretty great as is. Which leads me to believe that Virgil prioritized literary excellence over flattery. He did spend over a decade on it. Can anyone imagine something similar happening today? Someone laboriously crafting an epic work that was complimentary of Biden or Trump, but such great literature that people would still read it 2,000 years later? Perhaps it's an apples to oranges comparison that’s ultimately meaningless, but it’s still interesting to contemplate.
Related to the above. Aeneas’ father, Anchises, plays a huge role in the book. I was wondering whether this was a way of connecting Augustus to his adopted father Caesar? I assume so.
Finally, I didn’t realize before reading this book, but when you’re thinking of the story of the Trojan Horse, a significant portion of that story, (say 75%) comes from the Aeneid. And it’s one of the best parts of the book. As an example of why it’s great, Virgil goes to great lengths to illustrate that the Trojans weren’t being as foolish as you might assume…
Concerning the Future of Souls
By: Joy Williams
Published: 2024
176 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
A series of vaguely connected short pieces mostly concerning the angel Azrael and his relationship with the Devil.
Who should read this book?
Joy Williams is one of those authors that gets a lot of attention from the publishing establishment. She writes important books for important people. She’s won lots of awards. You’ve heard a movie described as “Oscar Bait”? There’s not really an equivalent term for books with the same specificity. But if there was, you could use it on this book. That doesn’t mean that it’s bad, on the contrary I quite enjoyed it, but it is pretentious.
Specific thoughts: Short nuggets of something
It’s hard to describe this book beyond what I already have, so perhaps it’s best that I include some of the chapters; they're very short.
Chapter 13- The Devil’s favorite parable concerned the man who came to the marriage feast for the king’s son but was not dressed properly and was thrown out. In general he preferred knowledge vs. understanding teachings and this one, where the pretender was cast weeping into the outer dark, was one of the best. MATTHEW chapter 22 verses two through 14.
Chapter 29- She could picture him as one of those saints of legend, perishing in the desert, the animals he had so tenderly preached to digging his grave with their great claws. THE STRANGE MAN’S BURIAL
Chapter 37- When Azrael was an infant cub colt pup gosling, before tongues and eyes began covering his form and wings commenced to appear, each one more splendid than the one preceding, he had many questions, but after he met God only a few remained. THE MEETING
Obviously one wonders, which questions remained?
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
By: Gabrielle Zevin
Published: 2022
416 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
This is the story of Sam and Sadie: their initial meeting as children, their tumultuous relationship, and their dreams of building great video games that are also works of art.
Who should read this book?
I found this book to be very well written, with fantastic characters, excellent prose and gripping relationships. If that were not enough it’s a great exploration of the art of making video games. If any of that sounds appealing it probably worth checking out.
Specific thoughts: Making you like two characters who hate each other is a very difficult feat.
As I mentioned, Sam and Sadie have a tumultuous relationship. As such, there are many times when they don’t like each other, but it’s best for the story if the reader still likes both of them. This is obviously difficult to pull off. If I have any criticism of the book, it’s that Zevin didn’t quite manage it, particularly near the end. But given the difficulty of pulling it off at all this is a very minor criticism.
I have some other minor criticisms beyond that, but in general this was a great book, with well-rounded characters and an interesting plot.
Red Zone Son
By: Jinny So
Published: 2024
313 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
This is the story of Solomon, a mixed Black and Korean eighteen year old living in the Red Zone who has been conscripted as a soldier into an ongoing American civil war between the “Blues” and the “Reds”.
What's my angle?
In the interest of full disclosure I do know So. I’ve done my best to be unbiased, but I thought it important to note this potential conflict.
Who should read this book?
This is a self-published book on Royal Road, so that might present some difficulties, but if you’re in the habit of reading books on this platform I would definitely check this one out. It’s unusually well written, the characters are lovingly crafted, and it takes an interesting swing at a subject we’re all interested in at the moment: will America eventually descend into a new civil war?
Specific thoughts: Lots of people think there’s going to be another civil war, but very few people are willing to say what it will look like
In April of this year a Marist Poll revealed that 47% of people thought another civil war was likely to happen in their lifetime. But despite this very few people are willing to take a crack at what that war would look like. And how the nation would feel for those who lived in the new fractured republic.
(Yes, I’m familiar with the 2024 movie Civil War but it was compulsively apolitical, and as far as a mechanism, it had California allied with Texas!?!?)
This book dares to go where basically no other author has—it describes the actual, on the ground reality of an America torn apart. Does So get everything right? Does she perfectly describe a civil war almost half of people expect? It would be spooky if she did. I expect that some of the things her characters worry about will feel dated in a few years. But it’s an enormously audacious endeavor, and you can tell she put a huge amount of thought into it.
Add that on top of great characters, a gripping plot, and some truly visceral descriptions and you’ve got a gripping tale of a world that seems so very far away, and yet also, so very close.
Polostan (Bomb Light, #1)
By: Neal Stephenson
Published: 2024
312 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
This is the story of a young girl split between two worlds. In one she’s Dawn, a libertarian leaning cowgirl who was born in Montana. In the other she’s Aurora, the daughter of an idealistic Bolshevik who spent her formative years in Leningrad. All of the attributes she acquired in one world have a tendency to get her in trouble in the other.
Who should read this book?
If you like Stephenson, particularly his Baroque Cycle and don’t mind a book where there’s very little in the way of plot, but quite a bit of polo, then I would pick up this book.
Specific thoughts: Is this peak Stephenson? Bad Stephenson? Or something in between?
Neal Stephenson has written some of my favorite books ever. When I think of books I would re-read just for enjoyment his books are right up there with Tolkien. Unfortunately this mostly applies to his earlier books. Lately he’s been letting me down. Fall; or, Dodge in Hell was pretty weak. Seveneves was weirdly constructed and I mostly didn’t like any of the characters. (This would have been helped if the one character I hated the most had gotten some comeuppance.) Termination Shock felt like something of a return to form after Fall and Seveneves but it hasn’t stuck with me in the way that Diamond Age or Cryptonomicon did.
This long preamble is all to frame the question: Where does Polostan fit? As I mentioned in a previous post I ended up watching a lot of “best books of 2024” lists on YouTube. I was surprised that Polostan didn’t appear on any of them. Having read the book I am no longer surprised. This is not because it’s bad, but more because it’s not really a book.
Especially for Stephenson, the book is incredibly short, and it feels almost like throat clearing. But that can be okay. The central mcguffin of Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle isn’t introduced until the second book, and the first book is nearly 1,000 pages. So I don’t mind setup, but it’s difficult to pass judgement on it until you know what it’s setting up. Having offered all these caveats, I will say I’m cautiously optimistic. But a lot depends on the remaining books in the series. According to Amazon there is only one remaining book. Let’s hope that this is some weirdness in how ongoing series are designated, because, as much as I complain about book length, if this series is going to succeed it’s going to require many more books, particularly if they’re as short as Polostan.
Fingers crossed that Stephenson not only returns to form in quality, but also in quantity.
Monster Hunter International Series
By: Larry Correia
Published: 2011
432 Pages
Published: 2013
528 Pages
Published: 2014
368 Pages
Briefly, what is this series about?
Monster Hunter International (MHI), a privately operated group of monster hunters operating on an alternate version of Earth where all of the monsters of myth and legend are real, and the government will pay you to kill them.
Who should read this series?
I recently did a whole post on the difference between the books I should read versus the books I want to read. This series falls firmly in the latter category. The more I read it the more I enjoy it. Paradoxically this enjoyment moves it into the category of books I think people should read, just because they’re so fun.
Specific thoughts: Mixing things up
Over the last couple of years I’ve read lots of these pulpy series: The Expanse, Expeditionary Force, Dungeon Crawler Carl, He Who Fights With Monsters, etc. In most of these series each book is pretty formulaic. Though there is a continuum. He Who Fights With Monsters does a pretty good job of mixing up the plot, but it’s so laser focused on the main character that it’s difficult to think of a single scene where the main character isn’t the focus. The Expanse mixes it up a fair amount, but even then all of the events happening everywhere were so unrealistically focused on the four main characters that I thought it made more sense to read it as the chronicle of a role-playing campaign than a realistic series of events. I could go on, but I think you get the picture.
While I complained about this tendency, I also recognized that it was understandable. Fiction is not reality. However, imagine my delight when book three and five of the Monster Hunter series decided to go in a completely different direction from the first two books. The first two books were exclusively focused on Owen Zastava Pitt, and I expected that this was just how it was going to be. But then Alpha, book three, was entirely focused on a secondary character, Earl Harbinger, and book five was entirely focused on Agent Franks. These are important secondary characters, but previously they were still entirely secondary.
I can’t tell you how refreshing these pivots were. Not only was it a refreshing change, but both of these characters are just really enjoyable to read about. This pivot was so interesting that I’m amazed authors don’t do it more often. I get that there are many novels with multiple point of view characters, and that this functions similarly. But I think dedicating an entire book to things, with a dedicated story, is a superior way to accomplish the number one goal of any fiction book: delivering an engaging story.
This Inevitable Ruin: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 7
By: Matt Dinniman
Published: 2024
724 Pages
Briefly, what is this book about?
The continuing adventures of Carl and his sapient cat Princess Donut. In this book they go to war with some of the people from the larger galactic civilization, the ones responsible for ravaging the earth and imprisoning humanity in the dungeon. It’s payback time!
Who should read this book?
I’ve mentioned before that this is a pretty pulpy book. And LitRPG is ubiquitous and can often be very low quality. Dungeon Crawler Carl is the exception. When I was trapped in the realm of booktube and viewing end of year top 10 lists, Dungeon Crawler Carl ended up on a lot of them.
Specific thoughts: How to make pulp great?
Any book can be graded in multiple areas. Plot, characters, subject matter, setting, genre, etc. And of course for science fiction and fantasy books there’s world building. There are some low-class genres, and if you were to make a list certainly LitRPG would have to be on it—there are somewhat juvenile elements that are hard to get away from. First it’s really nerdy, and draws heavily on the language of tabletop and computer RPGs. Some of the humor is also the sort that would play really well with junior high boys.
Given all of this it would be reasonable to grade Dungeon Crawler Carl kind of low on some of these areas, but in so many other areas it’s quite high. The characters are great. The plot is excellent, and, the thing I appreciate the most, the world-building is absolutely first rate. Dinniman is particularly good at playing with some of the tropes of the genre.
So perhaps you have previously avoided this series based on the genre reputation. Perhaps I even contributed to that, but I’m here to tell you now, if you have ever thought about reading this series, you should. It’s the best of a bad genre. Or at least a genre with a lot of crap. But within that crap Dungeon Crawler Carl is a diamond.
The theme of this post has been books I wanted to read vs. books I should read. Which follows from my recent post. The question is: does wanting to read a book lead to people wanting to read reviews of that book? Does it matter? These reviews are going to keep coming regardless. But I hope my mania translates into something useful for you.