Pratchett, Terry - Nation
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 12:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterMau is going through his nation's ritual to become a man, but when he sails back from Boy Island, he discovers that the entire village and nation have been wiped out by a giant wave. Also there is the shipwrecked Daphne, who finds that all her training to be a British lady has taught her absolutely nothing useful. Soon, more survivors of the tsunami come to the island, and Mau finds himself chief, even though he's not even a man by his nation's standards.
Despite my classification, this is only nominally fantasy, in that it seems to be a slightly alternate version of our world in the 1800s. And there may or may not be dead ancestors and gods talking to Mau. And despite the book being published as YA, it's rather dark at points, given the demise of everyone Mau knows. Pratchett handles it very well; there's a constant reminder of what Mau has lost without dwelling on it too much, and the touches of humor felt like Mau and Daphne trying to make sense of their new world and didn't contrast too much with the darker tone of the book.
The thing about rebuilding/building civilization isn't as much of a draw for me as it is for some others, especially since I was wary about the racial politics. But Pratchett does a good job of not making the nation into something primitive, and he effectively contrasts the more "exotic" practices of the nation with those of white Britain, which look equally impractical and constructed. I do think the rhetoric of colonialism and imperialism wasn't taken apart as much as I wanted, but I'm also unsure of how Pratchett might have done that in a YA book without making it All About Colonialism.
Still, it's uncomfortably there in the background, and it made me very uncomfortable when Mau was doing a lot of things for Daphne (the "native" man/white woman dichotomy). That disappeared pretty quickly, though, and I very much liked that while Daphne poked fun or didn't understand some traditions of the nation, she actually adapted them very well.
I also love the twist that comes near the end.
And I really liked the ending, which felt real to me.
I know other people have read this; send me links if you have write-ups!
Links:
-![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
gwyneira's review
-kate_nepveu's review
ETA: some spoilers in comments, mostly ROT13'ed, but some not!
Despite my classification, this is only nominally fantasy, in that it seems to be a slightly alternate version of our world in the 1800s. And there may or may not be dead ancestors and gods talking to Mau. And despite the book being published as YA, it's rather dark at points, given the demise of everyone Mau knows. Pratchett handles it very well; there's a constant reminder of what Mau has lost without dwelling on it too much, and the touches of humor felt like Mau and Daphne trying to make sense of their new world and didn't contrast too much with the darker tone of the book.
The thing about rebuilding/building civilization isn't as much of a draw for me as it is for some others, especially since I was wary about the racial politics. But Pratchett does a good job of not making the nation into something primitive, and he effectively contrasts the more "exotic" practices of the nation with those of white Britain, which look equally impractical and constructed. I do think the rhetoric of colonialism and imperialism wasn't taken apart as much as I wanted, but I'm also unsure of how Pratchett might have done that in a YA book without making it All About Colonialism.
Still, it's uncomfortably there in the background, and it made me very uncomfortable when Mau was doing a lot of things for Daphne (the "native" man/white woman dichotomy). That disappeared pretty quickly, though, and I very much liked that while Daphne poked fun or didn't understand some traditions of the nation, she actually adapted them very well.
I also love the twist that comes near the end.
And I really liked the ending, which felt real to me.
I know other people have read this; send me links if you have write-ups!
Links:
-
gwyneira's review-
kate_nepveu's reviewETA: some spoilers in comments, mostly ROT13'ed, but some not!
(no subject)
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 07:44 pm (UTC)It completely made me cry, even as I had a quibble about the Epilogue.
(no subject)
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 07:52 pm (UTC)V yvxrq ubj Znh naq Qncuar'f eryngvbafuvc raqrq hc orvat erfbyirq; gung cneg sryg iirel erny gb zr, ovggrefjrrg ohg evtug. V guvax lbh'er evtug nobhg gur ebfl ivrj bs fpvrapr naq Oevgvfu-Angvba eryngvbafuvcf yngre; rira jvgu Qncuar'f sngure nf xvat naq jvgu Qncuar ng uvf fvqr, V nz fbzrjung fxrcgvpny nf gb gur fhqqra qrpvfvba gb abg pbadhre naq pbybavmr, rfcrpvnyyl trarengvbaf nsgre gur snpg.
(no subject)
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 09:12 pm (UTC)"Lbh unir znqr zl jbeyq zber cresrpg" vf abj bar bs zl gbc ebznagvp yvarf.
(no subject)
Sat, Oct. 25th, 2008 03:45 am (UTC)V ybir ubj Cengpurgg unaqyrq gur ragver Znh-Qncuar eryngvbafuvc fb zhpu!
(no subject)
Sun, Oct. 26th, 2008 10:54 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Tue, Oct. 28th, 2008 08:21 am (UTC)(no subject)
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 07:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sat, Oct. 25th, 2008 03:46 am (UTC)(no subject)
Thu, Oct. 23rd, 2008 11:05 pm (UTC)I'm glad Pterry put this aside as a story for a couple of years after the tsunami disaster. I don't know what the story looked like before, but it percolated into something quite thoughtful about people and loss.
I too really liked the ending, with the modern native culture a matter-of-fact blend of traditional and new. And while like most Pterry protagonists Mau and Daphne are far too sensible and busy to pine romantically forever, for me that makes the bittersweetness of their feelings and parting cut more keenly. I did actually cry a bit, with the girl all AND THEN THERE WERE TWO DOLPHINS LAGOON AND THEY SWAM HAPPILY EVER AFTER THE END. Happy sigh.
(no subject)
Sat, Oct. 25th, 2008 03:47 am (UTC)Btw, have you already read Blindspot and Graceling and if so what did you think?
OMG I loved the ending for the way he resolved the Mau and Daphne relationship.
(no subject)
Sat, Oct. 25th, 2008 04:56 am (UTC)I have read everything I sent you and thoroughly enjoyed both books, in particular Graceling for heroine badassery and Blindspot for crossdressing romantic comedy. I would be especially interested in your thoughts on Blindspot in relation to Octavian Nothing, as they touch on eerily similar subjects in markedly different tones. I am now paranoia-convinced that there was a Single Historical Event that inspired both books, and/or the authors copied from each other via CRAZY VULCAN MINDMELD.
THEIRLOVEISSOPRAGMATIC. It's so Casablanca without the cliche of it at all. The talk about whether they'd wish the disasters that introduced them hadn't happened, and "You have made my world more perfect," kill me with love. Of course out in the universe is a Happened Somewhere Else in which the ship doesn't come. But an Anywhere in which Mau/Daphne!=OTP is a Does Not Happen!!)
(no subject)
Tue, Oct. 28th, 2008 08:21 am (UTC)(no subject)
Tue, Oct. 28th, 2008 03:15 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Sun, Oct. 26th, 2008 09:24 pm (UTC)Plus, awesome romance! Which I have not seen Pratchett do often, not seriously and centrally, so I kept thinking it wasn't one, and yet then maybe - and then THAT ENDING AND THAT LINE! MAU/DAPHNE OTP.
(no subject)
Tue, Oct. 28th, 2008 12:26 am (UTC)(no subject)
Tue, Nov. 11th, 2008 09:58 am (UTC)And the idea of British colonialism being essentially benign--all cricket and trousers--just irks me, because a lot of Indians say that too, and its not fucking true.
(no subject)
Mon, Nov. 17th, 2008 02:49 am (UTC)Also, very much second colonialism, and though I think the epilogue is a nice and happy ending to it, I'm not quite sure how much I believe it, even if the monarch is against imperialism. I am just sort of cynical as to monetary incentives and etc. spurring people on.