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Aug
02
Gargoyle Lovers Unite!
2008 at 2pm Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky
With the release of Andrew Davidson’s astonishing first novel The Gargoyle just three days away, and as those readers who weren’t lucky enough to get the book as an ARC count the minutes until they run to the closest bookstore to purchase what I believe is unarguably of the best books of the year, I was horrified to learn that Entertainment Weekly has not only blasted the book with a scathing review but did so by taking many quotes out of context and failing to fully explain the concept of the book.
Don’t get me wrong. I understand that reading and reviewing books is a subjective experience; we all have our own preferences and interpretations, and no book is going to please everyone. However, of the dozens of reviews I’ve seen on book blogs, LibraryThing, and from literary critics, I’ve yet to read a negative one. The reading community seems to be in agreement on this one, so if you loved The Gargoyle, head on over to the EW website and give your rating of the book. It is certainly deserving of far better than the D (yes, that’s a D) the reviewer gave it. Ugh. Maybe he should get together with the woman whose review of The Lace Reader in the New York Times contained more anti-feminist, dismissive remarks about women readers and women writers than I can even begin to think about. Again ugh.
In the interest of sharing and promoting a book that is hands-down in my top five of the year and is a favorite in the making, I’ve reposted my original review of The Gargoyle below.
Thanks to Jennifer at The Literate Housewife for calling this to my attention.
Book Review: The Gargoyle
One fantastic perk of working for a bookstore is that I receive ARCs (Advance Reader Copies) of soon-to-be published titles. Sometimes they’re good, and sometimes they’re not so good, but most of the time, they leave me feeling pretty ho-hum. When I received The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson, I really had no idea what to expect. This book has been getting a lot of buzz, and that’s not always a good indicator of its actual quality, so I was hesitant….but I was completely and totally awed by Andrew Davidson’s immense talent.
The book begins when the nameless narrator’s cocaine- and bourbon-induced hallucinations lead to a horrible car crash during which most of his body is burned beyond recognition. Shortly after he begins his long and painful rehabilitation, an intriguing woman (and a sculptress of gargoyles) named Marianne Engel begins visiting him and telling him stories of their past life together in fourteenth-century Europe. She seems to know things about the narrator that no one else knows, and many of the details from her stories about their past life fit in with his personality and physical features in the present day. Marianne claims that she is over 700 years old, and in addition to her stories about their life together, she tells the narrator other stories about people she knew throughout history. These stories are beautifully crafted and could easily stand alone in a collection of short fiction. In the context of the main storyline, they serve to increase tension and suspense, as the narrator, and we, the readers, are touched and intrigued by them but ultimately want Marianne to get back to the main storyline and tell us more about her mysterious life. The ending is pitch-perfect and leaves us with many unanswered questions, though I think it’s best that we are left not knowing. In an early review of the book, Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants, compared the ending to that of Life of Pi, and I think readers who appreciate ambiguity and the opportunity to believe the unbelievable will agree.
This book is easily one of the five best I’ve read in the last few years, and I think it will eventually earn a place in my all-time favorites, but since I just finished reading it last night, I’ll need some more time to reflect on it and see how memorable it proves to be. I will definitely be sharing The Gargoyle with friends, customers, and pretty much anyone who will listen. It seems like the marketing team for this book is attempting to send that message that anyone who has ever read a book will love this book. I disagree.
This is a fabulous book that deserves to garner a great deal of attention and praise, but it is not for everyone (and I don’t think the best books ever really are). The narrator’s descriptions of his lifestyle prior to the accident and his injuries after it are at times gruesome and gritty. He does not shy away from the unpleasant, but he does deliver these details with a wry sense of humor that will make you laugh until you feel a bit guilty about it. Davidson’s multiple storylines are fascinatingly complex; his symbolism is dense and delicious, and his success in leaving us wanting more and wondering if things are not always as they appear is astounding. But some may find it confusing or frustrating.
I am amazed that this is Davidson’s first novel–the strength of his voice, and his confidence, at times verging on bravado, hints at what I hope will become a very prolific and successful career. While this book is entirely unique, features of it reminded me of a few other favorites…fans of The Shadow of the Wind and Gabriel Garcia Marquez should love The Gargoyle, and I look forward to reading it time and time again.
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Oooh … Marquez is one of my favourite authors, so I’ll definitely be looking for this one _ thanks!
I take reviews by critics with a grain of salt. I usually love what they hate and hate what they love. I, for one, can’t wait to read this book.
[...] Here by Readerville [...]
For once I’m glad I didn’t win a contest. I had requested an ARC of The Gargoyle and never heard back so I assumed I wasn’t getting one. UPS delivered a copy this morning! I can’t wait to get into this one.
By the way, Davidson is doing a LIVE CHAT today, August 5, 2008.
I found your site on technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you down the road!