Mister B. Gone, by Clive Barker

Mister B. Gone
by Clive Barker
248 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Humor

I picked up this book from the library on a whim; demons aren't exactly an original concept, but the voice was interesting. Alas, I can't be bothered to finish reading because voice is pretty much the only virture I can see. Jakabok Botch is a simultaneously devious and pitiful demon apparently trapped in the pages of his memoir; the plot apparently interlaces him talking directly to the reader with tales of his life up to the current point. Neither conceit, again, is particularly original. Jakabok was interesting at first, but his repetition and complaining gets annoying after a while (by which I mean, after 50 pages). The worldbuilding just doesn't feel like it has a lot of thought in it, and the plotting is subpar. Perhaps this is the wrong genre, though--I didn't realize that this was horror at the time, and so found the macabre descriptions needlessly extraneous.

Verdict: voice alone cannot carry a novel. However, the book design is beautiful.

What Life Was Like in the Land of the Dragon: Imperial China AD 960-1368

What Life Was Like in the Land of the Dragon: Imperial China, A.D. 960-1368
by Time-Life Books (Denise Dersin, ed.)
144 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Nonfiction/Historical/China

This covers Song (including the Southern Song) to Tang dynasty, with emphasis on the Song and Mongol (Yuan) rules. A surprisingly helpful source of information on imperial China, especially regarding topics like culture and technology. I've used it well as a jumping-off point, although it is sometimes heavy on generalizations, being aimed at a mainstream rather than scholarly audience. Upper-class is covered in more detail than lower-class; unfortunate but only to be expected. As a plus, it is also excellently illustrated--lots of photographs of Song pottery and Tang painting. The ending is abrupt, lacking any type of conclusion; a full-page painting spread, and then nothing. Still, a good resource and one I would recommend if you happen to be also researching imperial China. I plan on seeking out the other books in the What Life Was Like series as well, for pleasure-reading.