Lapvona

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh
Published by Penguin on June 21, 2022
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Historical, Horror, Literary, Magical Realism
Pages: 320
three-half-stars

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh is disturbing and wild. The dark and twisted events in Moshfegh’s latest work were right up my alley. The novel gave me A24 horror movie vibes, specifically Robert Eggers’ The Witch. Nearly every character in Lapvona is unlikeable. I did not leave the story feeling good about humanity. The novel is a wonderful hodgepodge of genres: horror, magical realism, fantasy, and historical fiction.

Lapvona takes place in a medieval village where life is extremely rough. Marek is the motherless son of Jude, a shepherd. Jude is abusive to Marek and has an intense attachment to his sheep. In the forest lives a witchy, blind woman named Ina (my favorite character), who has nursed many of the village’s children, including Marek. The lord of the village, Villiam, is deranged and supported by the problematic village priest, Father Barnabas. Marek goes to live in Villiam’s wealthy home after an unexpected tragedy. Meanwhile the villagers suffer from the effects of a harsh drought.

I realize the above synopsis is vague, but I do not want to spoil all the shocking WTF moments in the story. This book is not for everyone, but fans of horror will be pleased. Nothing is off limits in this highly irreverent book. I really enjoyed Moshfegh’s writing. Her word choice is clear and direct without superfluous phrases, making Lapvona a fast read. I struggled to find significant themes or the point of this novel. But I do think the story works as a criticism of the United States government. I found the buffoonery of Villiam to be very reminiscent of President number 45. Villiam has no concern for the well being of his people and spends his free time doing outrageous stunts. The contrast between the those living in Villiam’s manor and the starving villagers reminded me of the disconnect between the US government and the people it serves. Ina is an amazing character. Her arc is fantastic, and I wish more of the book had been told from her perspective.

Overall, I enjoyed the shocking moments of Lapvona and its overall vibe. I wish the book was more focused or had clearer themes. I felt like much of Moshfegh’s message went over my head. Or perhaps she just wanted to write a book with loads of shock value? Nonetheless, I certainly plan on checking out more of Ottessa Moshfegh’s books soon.

three-half-stars

The Night Watchman

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich
Published by Hachette UK on March 5, 2020
Genres: Fiction, Indigenous, Literary, Magical Realism
Pages: 464

Like many people I’ve been frustrated with the US government’s inability to pass common-sense gun control laws. I was in desperate need of an uplifting story where characters successfully take on Washington. In Louise Erdrich’s The Night Watchman the Chippewa tribe works to stop a bill that would take away their land and identity in the 1950s. This is an excellent piece of historical fiction told from multiple perspectives.

This story is fictional, but in the preface Erdrich explains that the character of Thomas Wazhashk is based her grandfather. The Chippewa live on the Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota.  In 1953 Congress is about to pass a “termination” bill that would result in the US claiming Native American land and forcing the occupants to relocate to the cities. The bill not only steals Native American land but also attempts to whitewash the Native Americans, essentially eradicating them. Thomas Wazhashk is a council member of the Chippewa that works as a night watchman at the local jewel-bearing plant near the reservation. During the long nights working alone at the plant Thomas writes correspondence to politicians in hopes of stopping the passing of the termination bill. Erdrich’s story has chapters told from perspectives of many people living on the reservation. Pixie Paranteau (she prefers Patrice) is a young woman working at the jewel bearing plant.  Patrice makes a trip to Minneapolis to search for her missing sister Vera. The antagonist of the story is Senator Arthur V Watkins (who interrogated Erdrich’s grandfather in real life) who is the strongest supporter of the termination bill. Erdrich also weaves supernatural elements into the plot (who doesn’t love some magical realism).

My favorite part of the novel were the loveable characters. I think it’s always refreshing to read a book with characters that I’m invested in and that are believable. One theme I picked up on was the younger Chippewa embraced their heritage to varying degrees. Pixie learned the Chippewa language and many of the skills passed down from elder family members.  While her sister Vera wanted to escape the reservation and go to the city dressing to pass as a white woman. Even though Pixie shows interest in learning about her heritage she insists everyone call her Patrice, a more American name. Erdrich succeeds in educating the reader about the time period and the politics of the termination effort. For me, the best historical fiction strikes a balance between engaging story with dynamic characters and educating the reader about the time. In this respect Louise Erdrich knocks it out of the park!

In the spirit of Louise Erdrich’s grandfather’s tenacity for change I’d like to challenge you to take action to advocate for a political issue you’re passionate about. I’ve added some helpful links below for organizations that are working to prevent gun violence (the issue I’m currently fired up about). 

https://www.everytown.org/      The largest gun violence prevention organization in America

https://www.sandyhookpromise.org/      A non-profit organization whose mission is to end school and create a culture that prevents violence

https://www.commoncause.org/              A helpful website that helps you determine which politicians represent your geographic region at every level of government

The City We Became

The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin
Published by Orbit on March 24, 2020
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Magical Realism, LGBTQ
Pages: 448
three-half-stars

My favorite fantasy series to this day is the Broken Earth Trilogy, by the prolific N. K. Jemisin. I was eager to read Jemisin’s newest book The City We Became, but perhaps my expectations were set too high. In this urban fantasy, cities are living beings and are represented by human avatars. After New York City’s primary avatar falls into a coma, five new avatars, one for each New York City borough, are awakened. The novel contains plenty of social commentary, highlighting each of the boroughs and including Lovecraftian references. Jemisin’s story is a tribute to New York, which she clearly loves.

Jemisin is the queen of worldbuilding, and here she has crafted an interesting world where cities are living beings. Each city is defended by an avatar, a human embodiment of the city. Some cities reach a point in their growth where they begin to awaken. The time of awakening is crucial, and the city will either come alive or fail (like Atlantis). Once a city dies, so does its avatar. A sinister outside force is threatening New York City because it is close to waking up. This enemy appears in multiple pale, white-colored forms, including Lovecraftian inspired monsters.  At the start of the novel, the avatar of New York City, assisted by the avatar of San Paulo bests the enemy in a fight. But the primary avatar overexerts himself in the battle and goes into a coma in an unknown location. Once he goes missing five new avatars come into power, one representing each of New York’s boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island (Jemisin is clearly not a Staten Island fan). The novel focuses on the avatars finding each other and working together to battle the enemy. This is the first book in a planned trilogy by Jemisin.

There were many things I loved in The City We Became. Jemisin’s writing is exceptionally vivid. The action scenes played out clearly in my mind.  I also appreciated the diversity of the characters, with plenty characters of color and from the LGBTQ+ community.  For me, the best and most developed character was the Lenape lesbian woman, Bronca, AKA the Bronx.  Bronca’s art curating career was fascinating. I could have easily read an entire novel focused on her character. Jemisin includes lots of creative details that made the novel so much fun.  One clever example is that Manhattan fights enemies by throwing money at them, because one of the borough’s biggest industries is Wall Street. I also enjoyed how Jemisin reworked Lovecraftian monsters.  If you are not aware, H.P. Lovecraft has made a huge impact in science fiction and fantasy, but he held largely disgusting racist ideals.  Having the “pale” Lovecraftian monsters empower white racists in NYC was a way of giving a nod to the beloved Lovecraftian monsters, while also pointing out their creator’s flaws.  This reminded me of the excellent HBO show Lovecraft Country (based off the novel I have yet to read).  The ending of The City We Became, was not what I expected.  Without spoiling anything, I feel that Jemisin made a bold statement, clearly defining her own version of New York.  I imagine New Yorkers will be strongly polarized in their reactions to the book’s conclusion.

I really wanted to love The City We Became more than I did. Unfortunately, there are some flaws that prevent me from strongly recommending this to fellow readers. While Bronca was great, most characters were not fully developed. For me, the book almost reads as a movie script, more than a novel. The action scenes are well described and ready for the big screen, but character development is lacking. The New York avatars are like a more diverse version of The Avengers.  The end of the story felt rushed, and some character motivations were not clear. Hopefully Jemisin will provide more explanation in the subsequent books. If you are a fan of Jemisin, or you are looking for a fun, quick-reading fantasy novel, this is worth the read.  If you have yet to read Jemisin’s masterpiece: The Broken Earth trilogy, I strongly suggest you start there instead.

three-half-stars