Book Review: Black Ships by Jo Graham
Jul. 26th, 2008 06:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaTitle: Black Ships
Author: Jo Graham
Published: New York: Orbit Books, 2008
Rating: 5 of 5
Page Count: 402
Total Page Count: 57,975
Text Number: 167
Read For: personal enjoyment, checked out from the library
Short review: The daughter of a slave taken from fallen Troy, Gull is an oracle, the voice for the Lady of the Dead. When nine black ships appear, captained by Aeneas, the last Trojan prince, Gull joins her mother's people on their flight from Greek enemies and their attempt to find a new land to call home. Black Ships follows the journey of the Aeneid, but revised: with careful historical revisions, a cast of incredibly real characters, and skillfully interwoven religion, it is the personal story about the founding of an empire. There are a few little quibbles—who am I kidding? This novel is brilliantly conceived and executed, bringing history to life with the utmost care and skill. Black Ships is a stunning debut novel, and it deserves an unqualified recommendation.
Not unlike Mary Renault's novels or Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon, Graham's Black Ships takes a part historical, part mythological, part religious story—here, Virgil's Aeneid—and brings it to life via realistic characters, historical integration, and religious overtones. Gull, the protagonist and narrator, becomes close adviser to Aeneas and fast friends with one of the ships's captains, and these relationships and characters—as well as the dozens of others that populate the book—feel real, pulling the story to a local level where every character has meaning. Gull joins Aeneas's fleeing fleet of ships as they journey across the Mediterranean sea, looking for safety and for a place to call home, and here the journey in the Aeneid is revised—ahistorical Dido, for example, is replaced by an Egyptian princess. These changes create a story which is all the more meaningful and impressive for its realistic rendering. Gull is also an oracle for the Lady of the Dead, bringing faith and gods to the story—and Graham handles both with aplomb, creating a divinity with real impact but realistic presence and a religion that feels authentic. Local and universal, personal and divine, Graham reaches to both ends of the spectrum. The book is historical fiction, but with careful research, skillful integration, and the author's palpable love for her story and setting, Black Ships feels wholly real.
The book isn't perfect, but the imperfections are no detraction. The climax and conclusion moves at a faster pace than the rest of the book, stripping away desirable detail. Graham's writing style is more than competent but neither is it exceptional, which renders it almost invisible—I remember characters, plot, scenes, but little about the writing style. A longer author's note or more exposition may help explain the historical setting—which was never confusing but made me wish I knew more about this era. While there are such quibbles and faults, they mean next to nothing. It may not be perfect, but the imperfections don't distract. Black Ships is a triumph—intelligently conceived, brilliantly executed, and a true delight to read. Nothing should deter the interested reader from picking up this book. Captivating and impressive, it is a realistic, human story set on a history-altering stage. It is an astounding debut novel, and I look forward to more from Graham. All told, Black Ships is amazing, and I recommend it to all readers. Renault or Bradley fans will find a literary cousin in Graham. Greco-Roman enthusiasts should love it, and even if you're unfamiliar with or uninterested in this time period you may find that at Graham's hands it comes alive.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
Author: Jo Graham
Published: New York: Orbit Books, 2008
Rating: 5 of 5
Page Count: 402
Total Page Count: 57,975
Text Number: 167
Read For: personal enjoyment, checked out from the library
Short review: The daughter of a slave taken from fallen Troy, Gull is an oracle, the voice for the Lady of the Dead. When nine black ships appear, captained by Aeneas, the last Trojan prince, Gull joins her mother's people on their flight from Greek enemies and their attempt to find a new land to call home. Black Ships follows the journey of the Aeneid, but revised: with careful historical revisions, a cast of incredibly real characters, and skillfully interwoven religion, it is the personal story about the founding of an empire. There are a few little quibbles—who am I kidding? This novel is brilliantly conceived and executed, bringing history to life with the utmost care and skill. Black Ships is a stunning debut novel, and it deserves an unqualified recommendation.
Not unlike Mary Renault's novels or Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon, Graham's Black Ships takes a part historical, part mythological, part religious story—here, Virgil's Aeneid—and brings it to life via realistic characters, historical integration, and religious overtones. Gull, the protagonist and narrator, becomes close adviser to Aeneas and fast friends with one of the ships's captains, and these relationships and characters—as well as the dozens of others that populate the book—feel real, pulling the story to a local level where every character has meaning. Gull joins Aeneas's fleeing fleet of ships as they journey across the Mediterranean sea, looking for safety and for a place to call home, and here the journey in the Aeneid is revised—ahistorical Dido, for example, is replaced by an Egyptian princess. These changes create a story which is all the more meaningful and impressive for its realistic rendering. Gull is also an oracle for the Lady of the Dead, bringing faith and gods to the story—and Graham handles both with aplomb, creating a divinity with real impact but realistic presence and a religion that feels authentic. Local and universal, personal and divine, Graham reaches to both ends of the spectrum. The book is historical fiction, but with careful research, skillful integration, and the author's palpable love for her story and setting, Black Ships feels wholly real.
The book isn't perfect, but the imperfections are no detraction. The climax and conclusion moves at a faster pace than the rest of the book, stripping away desirable detail. Graham's writing style is more than competent but neither is it exceptional, which renders it almost invisible—I remember characters, plot, scenes, but little about the writing style. A longer author's note or more exposition may help explain the historical setting—which was never confusing but made me wish I knew more about this era. While there are such quibbles and faults, they mean next to nothing. It may not be perfect, but the imperfections don't distract. Black Ships is a triumph—intelligently conceived, brilliantly executed, and a true delight to read. Nothing should deter the interested reader from picking up this book. Captivating and impressive, it is a realistic, human story set on a history-altering stage. It is an astounding debut novel, and I look forward to more from Graham. All told, Black Ships is amazing, and I recommend it to all readers. Renault or Bradley fans will find a literary cousin in Graham. Greco-Roman enthusiasts should love it, and even if you're unfamiliar with or uninterested in this time period you may find that at Graham's hands it comes alive.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
