The Knight

[Falsteed]

I'm on p.462 and I must say, I am in love with Mr. Wolfe's writing.

I had intended to buy Shadow and Claw, but as no one carried it (I had to order it) and I was thirsting for new book, I picked up The Knight. I was alittle worried by the premise, the whole Neverending Story deal (as I have no literature to compare it to) always seems alittle cheap to me. Gladly, I say, this book is wonderful, and I will probably run through all of his work I have been enjoying it so thoroughly.

I love his story, its flow, his characters, their dialogue, their world, his imagery, everything reads so wonderfully. I feel like he took Strunks "Use the active voice." and developed a style around it. I'm afraid to give him too much credit because I'm ignorant of a lot of literature and their inherent styles, but I absolutely love his writing.

I can't wait to finish The Wizard Knight and start The Book of the New Sun, its premise is just so appealing to me I imagine him becoming one of my favorite authors.

 

[GOLLUM]

Not surprised by your appraisal, he's one of the world's great writers IMO. You will find a need to reread Mr Wolfe's work because there is so much in it that you will never cease to pick up additional nuances. He's regarded as a triple A platinum name within the industry and deservedly so.

There's plenty of other good books by him including the Soldier Of Sildon series.

For short stories try his collection Storeys From The Old Hotel.

 

[Rahl Windsong]

Reading a story from Gene Wolfe is one of life's real pleasures and for certain you will not be able to guess at where the story is going until you read it.

 

[Snowdog]

Not surprised by your appraisal, he's one of the world's great writers IMO. You will find a need to reread Mr Wolfe's work because there is so much in it that you will never cease to pick up additional nuances.

That's especially so of Book of the New Sun. Wolfe is one of those writers who doesn't write down to his audience. You don't have to 'get' everything to enjoy the books, but there are many mysteries and puzzles that are not spelt out explicitly. I doubt anyone, no matter how astute, picks up on all of them first time. There's even a book called Solar Labyrinth, just exploring all those mysteries.

 

[Falsteed]

You will find a need to reread Mr Wolfe's work because there is so much in it that you will never cease to pick up additional nuances.

I definitely plan to read the Wizard Knight over once I'm done, there are alot of underlying things going on in the writing. Some I'll recognize for what they are (or what I perceive them to be) immediately, the main focus of the story is near hard to make sense of without continuing on, and I'm sure I have overlooked much.

I find myself laughing out loud at the dialogue between Able and his animal and Aelf companions. I had not heard of him until searching around on the net, and I believe whole-heartedly when you say he is revered.

I start The Wizard tonight, and I will definitely be reading all the work of his I can find.

 

[Woodfoot]

Today I had a huge dilemma about which book to buy at Borders!!

I walked past the Eddings, Pratchetts, Tad Williams, Robert Jordan....well you get the idea (also i have them all)

Anyway I spied The Wizard Knight book which it seems is 2 books in one?

Intrigued i was and after parting with £14.99 of my hard earned money it came home with me and i just wondered if he has a style of his own or is he similar to any other Author?

Should i have read any previous works first?
Looking forward to reading this one!

 

[Stenevor]

I would say that he's pretty unique, at least compared to other authors ive read. To be honest its quite a while since I read The Wizard Knight and dont remember too much, in any case as with most of his books I know that I would probably have to read it a few times more to fully understand what is going on half of the time. He tends not to tell you things directly and instead drops subtle hints in seemingly throwaway lines and leaves you to work things out for yourself. Wizard Knight is also a bit confusing as the main character is a child in a mans body who lacks the ability to explain clearly what is going on. Personally I prefered The Book of the New Sun which has just had a re-release as Severian of the Guild or if you just wanted to to sample a shorter novel Fifth Head of Cerebrus is very good. Hope you enjoy it.

 

[Woodfoot]

Well i may sling the Trudi Canavan i am reading into a corner and concentrate on this.
I read quite a few authors in my time...one very different from another, some i have loved whilst others are just a passing distraction.

I suppose it has given me that detective outlook to reading books where i always try work out the ending before it happens by looking for the subtle references so i may enjoy this one a lot!

Is it just the two books or does it lead to others?
I only ask as I sometimes prefer the shorter epics! I got bored reading Robert Jordans wheel of time even though I managed to get to book 7! (although the Eddings books I finished about 10 times over).

 

[flygin]

Today I had a huge dilemma about which book to buy at Borders!!

They have Gene Wolfe at your Borders? I can't find him, except online.

I do have The Wizard Knight. I was going to read Nova by S. Delany next, but somebody staightened up, and now I can't find it. I think I'll start on this in it's place.

 

[Woodfoot]

They have Gene Wolfe at your Borders? I can't find him, except online.

I do have The Wizard Knight. I was going to read Nova by S. Delany next, but somebody staightened up, and now I can't find it. I think I'll start on this in it's place.

They have a fairly good selection of books and it looks like the full Gene Wolfe series of books.

A fantastic graphic novel section.......but my old second hand supplier has alway had the biggest selection!

 

[Stenevor]

Is it just the two books or does it lead to others?

Its just the two books. You might be in for a bit of a shock though as its nothing like any of the other authors work you've mentioned.

 

[Woodfoot]

Its just the two books. You might be in for a bit of a shock though as its nothing like any of the other authors work you've mentioned.

Its okay i just finished a Patricia Cornwell book and she is nothing like any of them i read allsorts when i run out of Sci-Fantasy

 

[Ofoug]

Its just the two books. You might be in for a bit of a shock though as its nothing like any of the other authors work you've mentioned.

This is certainly true... I've read different styles from many writers over the years but The Wizard Knight series was the first I've read by Gene Wolfe, after hearing so many recommendations about his greatness. I am sad to say I found these two books to be among the worst I've ever bought

Perhaps it was a case of too high expecations, as mentioned in the other thread about this book a bit lower down in this subforum. Seen from word to word or sentence to sentence it's well written since Wolfe's language is very good, it's quite clear he's an experienced writer from that view. The story as a whole is just a shambles in many ways though...

I'm used to the more mythical, less strictly logical approach to storytelling as it's used in for example Manga and Animé but The Wizard Knight books crossed well over the line between mythical and random to me. Myths appear random at times (at least when taken out of their cultural context) but usually seem to have an underlying moral to them, a thing they are trying to teach about life, humanity etc. Same with Manga and Animé (at least the good stuff! ) and similar storytelling.

In these books there are also good ideas and thoughts in several isolated scenes but the story as a whole and most of all the main character Sir Able only seem to be motivated by his own instinctual needs and desires rather than the highly moral knightly honor he claims to be upholding and striving for all the time. He also seems dead set on enforcing the old feudal system where you blindly obey those above you in rank regardless of the outcome. This despite him being a normal, modern american teenager at heart... seemed a bit strange to me

I even found the main character unlikable to the point of being annoying at times, and that also goes for the story and the way it is told. There are many things Sir Able does that at least I felt didn't have much motivation or reason behind them, and what annoyed me was that the story often felt like it just took whatever whim the hero got and adapted everything else around them so that the hero would never have to change or face the consequences of his impulsive choices. In short it sometimes felt like whatever it was Sir Able decided to do was always right, because it was he, the Hero, who decided to do it... then everything else in the story was just wrapped around that so to speak. Circular argumentation sort of, he's always right because, well... he's always right

The world is interesting though, as a review I read pointed out it takes many fantasy conventions and turns them into something rather new. Again it seems to be based on those feudal values of having to respect those above you in rank, but Wolfe has created a very interesting layered fantasy world from that idea.


I guess these two books did stir some interest in me though, since after reading so many recommendations and positive comments about them I've been trying to figure out what it is that people actually like. Judging by user comments in online stores etc. it seems that people either love or hate these two books, not much in between. I'd be very interested to see more of what you guys think of these books too, maybe I've just missed crucial parts of what the story is about or how it is told?

My first post here btw, hello!

 

[Simple Simon]

Hello Ofoug.

I've just finished reading The Knight, I've previously read Book of the Long Sun and Soldier in the Mist by Wolfe.

What I love about Wolfe is that he dosn't need to explain everything to you, somethings in his books are just mystical. The self narrative aspect of The Knight is another thing I love to read but don't seem to find in very many books.

This self narrative is a trait I have seen in all of Wolfes books I've so far read. Maybe reading The Knight first isn't the best Idea since its narrator is a boy though he is in a mans body and his writing and recollection is that of a boys. So when you say he's right only because he's always right this can be explained by the fact that he is a boy, can one not expect that type of outlook from a boy?

Every thing you seem to have a problem with the books about I look at them and see as an intrinsic part of the book, I think your perfectly right in you saying that Able seems to be motivated by his own instinctual needs and I also believe Gene Wolfe believes that too. The thing is though Able dosn't.

There are generally three main components to most books, the writer, the characters and the reader. What Gene Wolfe does though is introduces a fourth, the narrator. Unless you appreciate how the narrator influences the story I don't think The Knight can be fully appreciated.

I have to say I loved this book and plan to read The Wizard as soon as I can get my hands upon it.

 

[Ofoug]

What you say is true, he does use the narrator as an important part of the storytelling. The problem i found with that is that even though the narrator is a boy in a grown man's body, at the time he writes all these things down (after everything in the story happens, i think he said something about not having time to do this before that) he's been that boy-in-mans-body for several decades at least. Yet he shows little sign of having matured or understood his own choices during his younger days.

Ah well, I guess I just feel better with more rational storytelling and characters that act more logically, be they good or evil. I DO have every book David Gemmel has written in my shelf, that is perhaps a sign

 

[T77]

I just finished The Knight last night and I absolutely loved it! I would give it a 9/10, and that could possibly go up on a reread. There was only one point in the book where it tended to drag a bit (when he was in mountains with Beel), but that didn't last too long.

I've only read the first book of the New Sun and The Knight so far, but I am very impressed with Mr. Wolfe and I am looking forward to reading more of his work. As I've seen mentioned before, his prose is superb. The words seem to flow off the page and it always feels approppriate and understandable.

I really liked a lot of the characters, Gylf being my favorite. And I love the way he handles action and battles. It's not overdone or overly dramatic, some of the battles/fights end in a couple of blows.

Some of the images and scenes were almost dream like. Some of the scenes were just so memorable and created fantastic images in my mind. He also has a unique ability to keep things moving along and not boring even though there is not a whole lot of action.

I almost did not read this book when I read the description. Boy gets transported to a fantasy world and goes on a quest for a sword. The last thing I wanted to read was another formulaic, boring quest book. It was anything but, I am so glad I decided to read it. Next up is Latro in the Mist.

 

[GOLLUM]

Glad you liked them T77. I've pretty much got everything Gene has ever had published, he's a particular favourite of mine. There's always many levels or layers when reading a Gene Wolfe book. You can enjoy things on a more superficial level or delve for greater meaning. He's been described by some critics as America's greatest living author and whilst I'm not up enough with American authors I can imagine he would easily fit into the loftiest of company. He's definitely an improtant voice in speculative fiction but also the broader community.

I will be fascinated on your take of Latro In The Mist. Many consider it to be his finest work alongside Fifth Head Of Cerberus and the Sun books. I can promise you, you are in for an interesting time; a great concept revolving around the idea of self and memory.

If you like I could also recommend to you:

Peace - Awesome early novel and an award winner.

Fifth Head Of Cerberus - One of his early novels and one of his best. This will have your head spinning for days after and you will defintely want to read this a second and third time.

There Are Doors - Alternate world story. Not as highly conisdered as his other works but one of my favourites.

Best short story collection is probably Storeys From The Old Hotel, which features many of Gene's own favourites.

 

[T77]

Glad you liked them T77. I've pretty much got everything Gene has ever had published, he's a particular favourite of mine. There's always many levels or layers when reading a Gene Wolfe book. You can enjoy things on a more superficial level or delve for greater meaning. He's been described by some critics as America's greatest living author and whilst I'm not up enough with American authors I can imagine he would easily fit into the loftiest of company. He's definitely an improtant voice in speculative fiction but also the broader community.

I will be fascinated on your take of Latro In The Mist. Many consider it to be his finest work alongside Fifth Head Of Cerberus and the Sun books. I can promise you, you are in for an interesting time; a great concept revolving around the idea of self and memory.

If you like I could also recommend to you:

Peace - Awesome early novel and an award winner.

Fifth Head Of Cerberus - One of his early novels and one of his best. This will have your head spinning for days after and you will defintely want to read this a second and third time.

There Are Doors - Alternate world story. Not as highly conisdered as his other works but one of my favourites.

Best short story collection is probably Storeys From The Old Hotel, which features many of Gene's own favourites.

Gollum, thank you very much for the suggestions. I started Latro this weekend, I'm only on chapter 5 or 6 or so, but I really like it so far. I see a lot of similarities between the Knight, Latro and the first book of the New Sun (only one I've read so far). This is a good thing as I really like his style. I'll post more impressions in the Latro thread once I read some more.

I've already purchased Cerberus, I think I'll read the second book of the New Sun before I start it. Peace and There are Doors are on my purchase list, I'm more into Fantasy/SciFi, so I thought I would read those first.

I saw a lot of short story collections and wasn't sure which one to get, thanks for the suggestion. I will eventually get the Long Sun and Short Sun novels too as well as The Soldier of Sidon. I'm looking forward to a lot of good reading.

I recently took up reading as a hobby, my girlfriend got me into it, and I almost gave it up until I read Wolfe. I'm really surprised he is not more popular. He seems to have a core group of fans, but I don't think he's experienced the commercial success of some of the top SciFi fantasy authors. It's one of the reasons that I posted my impresions here. I should add some reviews at Amazon too. Any way to spread the word.

 

[GOLLUM]

I recently took up reading as a hobby, my girlfriend got me into it, and I almost gave it up until I read Wolfe. I'm really surprised he is not more popular. He seems to have a core group of fans, but I don't think he's experienced the commercial success of some of the top SciFi fantasy authors. It's one of the reasons that I posted my impresions here. I should add some reviews at Amazon too. Any way to spread the word.

Well he's probably not mainstream enough, so therefore doesn't have that mass appeal that some authors seem to have. I guess you're right, he has a niche but loyal band of fans and he's certainly recognized as A grade by those in the industry and across wider litrarary circles.

I hope you enjoy those books and let us know your thoughts by posting here and don't forget Soldiers Of Sildon (latest in the soldier series) won the World Fantasy Award for 2007.

BTW if you like Wolfe then you may like authors such as Umberto Eco, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Haruki Murakami, Italo Clavino, M John Harrison, Jose Saramago etc...Not all of these are SFF in the traditionaL sense but they do have fantastical elements in their writing and all are recoginzed as excellent wirters.

What type of books do you like w.r.t SF and Fantasy? I take it thought-provoking for starters? Any particular perference eg EPIC, Sword and Sorcery/Military, Steampunk, Surrealist, Time-travel, Horror etc... and stand-alones vs. series etc...?

BTW: there's a more recent series of purely fantasy stories he released that is called Innocents Abroad. I'm yet to read it but it might be worth a look. His more recent novel was Pirate Freedom, which is quite enjoyable.

Here's a useful link to wikipedia on Gene listing his work...

Gene Wolfe - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[T77]

I hope you enjoy those books and let us know your thoughts by posting here and don't forget Soldiers Of Sildon (latest in the soldier series) won the World Fantasy Award for 2007.

I will definitely pick up Soldier of Sidon, especially since I'm enoying Latro.

BTW if you like Wolfe then you may like authors such as Umberto Eco, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Haruki Murakami, Italo Clavino, M John Harrison, Jose Saramago etc...Not all of these are SFF in the traditionaL sense but they do have fantastical elements in their writing and all are recoginzed as excellent wirters.

Thanks for the suggestions! I am always on the look out for a new author. I saw Wolfe mention Patrick O'Leary in one of his interviews and was going to check him out. I believe he mentioned Gaiman as someone he likes, so I wil check him out too.

What type of books do you like w.r.t SF and Fantasy? I take it thought-provoking for starters? Any particular perference eg EPIC, Sword and Sorcery/Military, Steampunk, Surrealist, Time-travel, Horror etc... and stand-alones vs. series etc...?

That's a good question. Since I've only been reading for a year or two, I'm a slow reader and my reading time is limited, I haven't read enough to say. I love fantasy strategy video games (Dominions, Warcraft, etc.), so that is why I started with fantasy. I can give my opinions of who I've read thus far. GRRM, made it half way threw A Game of Thrones and put it down, it was too boring and soap operaish. Steven Erikson, I liked Gardens of the Moon and am struggling to get through Deadhouse Gates. Glen Cook, I liked The Black Company and like what I've read of Shadows Linger. So, being that I like Erikson and Cook I like military fantasy, but I like Wolfe the best thus far and I don't know how to classify him, ScFi/Fantasy? I want to focus on fantasy now and then maybe branch into SciFi. I'm not much into horror.

BTW: there's a more recent series of purely fantasy stories he released that is called Innocents Abroad. I'm yet to read it but it might be worth a look. His more recent novel was Pirate Freedom, which is quite enjoyable.

Thanks, added to my Amazon list.

Here's a useful link to wikipedia on Gene listing his work...

Thanks, I've already worn out the page.

And I forgot to mention before I've already purchased The Wizard, but will read a few more of his books before I read it for varieties sake.