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The Ring of Solomon (Bartimaeus) by Jonathan Stroud (view source)
Revision as of 12:06, 8 October 2010
, 12:06, 8 October 2010no edit summary
Cue unlikely alliance!
You can't help but love Bartimaeus. He's absolutely hilarious. Most of his jokes are told as asides in footnotes sprinkled throughout the novel. I think I'm the only person in the world who doesn't like this device - it disrupts my flow of reading - and Son Number One, a big fan, says I should put them into my review as a compliment, not a nitpick. So, I will say this: they are screamingly funny and I have been known to cry with laughter when reading them, but-I-would-still-prefer-them-in-the-main-narrative. Son Number One will say this: the footnotes are brilliant and my mother talks rubbish. You decide!
The plot has more twists and turns than you can shake a stick at, and a great many surprises. It's easy to read and exciting with a huge cast of colourful characters. And it's light of heart, even in the midst of murder and mayhem - Stroud's tongue is never far from his cheek, and I love this about his books. Underneath, there are some more serious themes to think about, such as the corruption of power and the evils of slavery, but what ''The Ring of Solomon'' really gives you is pure pleasure of reading. In spades.