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Title: The Magician's Wife by Brian Moore ISBN: 0-452-27959-3 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: February, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.34 (35 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Tricks, politics and religion
Comment: 'The Magician's Wife' is my first Brian Moore book, and I can say it is good, but I still have mixed feelings about it. He has a good style, and is a great storyteller, but somewhere in the middle I got lost --but found again in the end. I liked the way he mixed politic and religion -- and I've read he does it in many novels, so I'll probably read another of his books sooner or later.
I liked the first part best than the second. It was very interesting to learn the traditions in that court, but I have the feeling that most characters were human types rather than human beings. Anyway, his attention to details is one of the things that makes the reading interesting. The description of lucheons, parties and huntings are very interesting.
In my view, he lost the command of the narrative in the second part, when the story is set in Algeria. Local people again seem more human types, and the narrative got a bit confusing. Nevertheless, the climax of the novel is something very interesting, and that grabs your attention, and there is one twist in the end, that makes sense.
Emmeline, the magician's wife, is an interesting character --of course, the most well developed one in the novel--, and despite some flaws she is totally believable. So are her husband and Denieu, the two other important characters.
To sum up, this is an interesting book, but not recommended to everyone. And for me, I think I should try anothe Moore novel before deciding where I place him in my taste for books.
Rating: 2
Summary: good idea, but a very boring execution of it
Comment: I had heard high praise of Brian Moore, comparing him to Graham Greene; however, I found that to be very misleading. Although The Magician's Wife does have a moral quandary, I wouldn't liken it in any other way to the writings of Graham Greene. There is one exciting, interesting scene in this novel, which doesn't happen until the near end, and it isn't worth reading the rest of this dull novel. None of the characters are fully developed. The main character is sucn a boring and emotionless woman, it is difficult to read the tale from her point of view. Three quarters of the novel is just filler, meaningless description, not even beautifully detailed description, just padding. I give it two stars instead of one because it was an interesting idea, and it does have the one good scene (the magician truly put to test). I...will give Moore one more chance. Perhaps this isn't representative of his work...
Rating: 3
Summary: a master storyteller falters? (a bit).
Comment: He was a marvelous writer who served up 5-star books like Judith Hearne, The Luck of Ginger Coffey, The Statement, and my favorite of all, An Answer From Limbo... among many others. So, I would not consider The Magician's Wife to be the best introduction to him.
If a reader is maybe terribly interested in the actual story of the subjugation and conquest of Algeria by France in 1857, this book may provide sort of a fictional backdrop to those events, but none of the main characters grabbed me as being admirable (which means nothing as concerning a review) or memorable (which DOES mean something as concerning a review). I will grant the author this: he made me loathe the religious chicanery of the fanatical patriot magician Lambert, and he made me sympathetic towards the Arab Muslims upon whom Lambert was attempting to foist his spiritual supremacy hooey! And since I see this as the author's intention in the story (strengthened by Lambert's wife Emmeline's later disillusionment in the cause) I give it the three stars.
But seriously though, if you only have room for ONE Brian Moore book in your vacation luggage... I say, "pick a book... any other book!"
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Title: The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne by Brian Moore ISBN: 0586087583 Publisher: Acacia Press, Inc. Pub. Date: 1988 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Black Robe: A Novel by Brian Moore ISBN: 0452278651 Publisher: Plume Pub. Date: June, 1997 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The Statement by Brian Moore ISBN: 0452276322 Publisher: Plume Pub. Date: May, 1997 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: The Selected Poems of Federico Garcia Lorca by Federico Garcia Lorca, Donald M. Allen ISBN: 0811200914 Publisher: New Directions Publishing Pub. Date: February, 1988 List Price(USD): $10.95 |
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Title: Walking With God in a Fragile World by James R. Langford, Leroy S. Rouner ISBN: 0742514501 Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield (Non NBN) Pub. Date: December, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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