Enchanted Glass

It's January, and I'm already off my fiction/non-fiction schedule, but it's OK: I have an excuse! I have writing a major grant and I need something warm, comforting and relaxing to support me through and I've been saving Enchanted Glass for just such an occasion. Enchanted Glass is the last book that Diana Wynne Jones wrote before she died, and DWJ is, of course, my favorite.

In the process of reading this, I ended up enumerating all of the DWJ books and plots to one of my friends, which I think helped me appreciate EG – it has several of the key themes of her life's work: Andrew's memories of childhood are fuzzy; many adult authority figures are untrustworthy – not that they don't believe in magic, but that they're straight malevolent; people are embodiments of mythical or fictional characters (in this case, Oberon – cleverly calling himself “O. Brown”, Titania, Mab and Puck.) It's nostalgic and it certainly filled the niche I was looking for.

On the downside, it felt raw to me. Plotlines drop, which I can't remember from any other DWJ book; there are some very jumpy parts and the beginning drags somewhat. Fans of DWJ will overlook it, but objectively, unfortunately, it's not that good.

ES-EN

Me entristece pensar que de alguna manera las historias de Diana Wynne Jones no parecen haber tenido un éxito que haya trascendido en el tiempo más allá de la conocida El castillo ambulante, que además solo lo ha hecho en una versión adulterada de la mano de Studio Ghibli. Y por éxito no me refiero a que fuera o dejara de ser un fenómeno de masas, pero a que tenga un firme hueco en las listas de libros fantásticos de aquí y de allá o que su figura sea vista como elemental entre los amantes de la narrativa fantástica.

La historia que nos ocupa está narrada con una naturalidad encantadora, con personajes peculiares (y a menudo divertidamente irritantes) y con una capacidad que demuestra el buen hacer de la escritora como narradora. Resaltando el tema de la naturalidad, me ha gustado mucho cómo va dando detalles que se revelan más adelante en la historia, no de un modo expositivo, sino de manera orgánica, mostrándolo; lo cuál tiene aún más valor cuando la historia no parece usar modelos en los que apoyarse y tiene sus propios códigos. No obstante, Diana es capaz de hilar dichos códigos y hace que la lectura sea todo un placer y un constante descubrimiento. La autora no se para explicar el porqué, si no el cómo, y tampoco le importa demasiado dotar de innecesario realismo a la historia y se centra en darle lo que necesita para que avance, dentro de su propia lógica, invitando al lector a tomarle la mano en ese paseo sinuoso, desvergonzado y mágico. Al fin y al cabo, la magia está en los ojos del que mira.

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It saddens me to think that somehow Diana Wynne Jones' stories don't seem to have had a success that has transcended beyond the well-known Howl's Moving Castle, which has only done so in an adulterated version from the hands of Studio Ghibli. And by success I don't mean that it was or wasn't a mass phenomenon, but that it has a firm place in the lists of fantastic books here and there or that its figure is seen as elemental among lovers of fantastic narrative.

The story at hand is told with a charming naturalness, with quirky (and often amusingly irritating) characters, and with an ability that demonstrates the writer's skill as a storyteller. Highlighting the theme of naturalness, I really liked the way she gives details that are revealed later in the story, not in an expository way, but in an organic way, showing it; which is all the more valuable when the story doesn't seem to use models to rely on and has its own codes. However, Diana is able to weave those codes together and makes the reading a pleasure and a constant discovery. The author doesn't bother to explain why, but how, and she doesn't care too much about giving the story unnecessary realism and focuses on giving it what it needs to move forward, within its own logic, inviting the reader to take her hand in this winding, shameless and magical ride. After all, magic is in the eye of the beholder.

I really liked this book. Very fun and magical with likable characters and a different kind of fantasy setting. Loved the Midsummer Night's Dream tie-ins.