An Odyssey

As with many novels Little, Big is an odyssey. I expected it to be a journey for the characters. What kind of surprised me at first is that it's also very definitely an odyssey for the reader. There's more: Little, Big is definitely unusual (grammar, layout, language, events -- and certainly the characters). As the odyssey progresses I'm getting used to it.

As a case in point vis-a-vis the dual odyssey (characters and readers) I was definitely confused at first but so was Smoky. He seemed to deal with the strange events which made me realize that I could as well. As I think I said previously I don't mind being confused. There are certain things I'm willing to take on faith. Either the author will resolve them or he won't.

I was waiting to see how Crowley was going to pull off the wedding. I was not disappointed. I loved the way he described the vows. He may not have been the first person to mimic what people hear or how people talk. But he was definitely successful. And highly original.

I think his originality is what I'm dealing with. So far there is almost nothing in this book that I've expected. The names, the places (esp the house), the people. . . they are all cut from a different cloth. But that's not a bad thing. It's just, well, different.

I'm reminded of The Time Traveler's Wife where I don't think I got it for about the first 100 pp. This isn't taking me as long.

This is definitely not the usual kind of book I would read so that's a very good thing. I've also never been in a book club so I'm enjoying discussing different points.

So now I want to get into the gist of what I have to say.

Other authors would have included a bit more passion -- or sex -- leading up to a wedding. Crowley doesn't do that. (He may do it afterwards but I haven't gotten there yet.) I'll assume that Smoky and Daily Alice will get together so I'm willing to wait. What surprised me a bit was that Sophie (Daily's sister) seemed to have a bit of a "thing" for her sister. I wonder where this is going.

Character development. I think it's in the details. Daily's great aunt is a honey. As the first person Smoky meets when he gets to Edgewood it's fitting that she should accompany him to his wedding. BTW I personally think that someone from his extended family should be there with Smoky. But again, I'm willing to accept that there's a reason that he gets married alone. I also found it somewhat quirky that Daily's mother was berry picking the day before the wedding. Again, that's my reality sneaking into what I'm reading.

That's leading me to one of my conclusions. This is a novel. Crowley sets the rules. He doesn't have to be bogged down by "annoying" details like chronology, accepted behavior and missing pieces of the puzzle.

We've already discussed language. And I'm certain we'll continue. I want to add that I'm also enjoying the names.

I think that's about it for now. It's mid-morning here and I'm playing hooky from my appointed tasks for the day. I'll try to get back to this later today.

Does that mean I'm hooked? Yep.

Ed