Despite the incredibly large page count, this book was incredibly intriguing throughout and never seemed to drag as so many novels of this size do.

Mr. Norrell is an old crotchety magician who wants magic in England to once again be respected and widespread, but doesn't think there's a single other person in England that could do magic as wonderfully as him. He spends a great deal of time buying up old magic books and putting magical scholars out of work while forcing "magical societies" to disband because they aren't real magicians.

After moving to London at the behest of his man servant/business manager, Mr. Norrell starts to assist the English parliament with their fight against the French. Everything seems to be going wonderfully until Jonathan Strange shows up, a charming young magician that seems to have a great aptitude for magic as well. Mr. Norrell hesitantly takes on Strange as a pupil, but refuses to allow Strange to actually work magic, only read about it.

There's a fight, their partnership breaks up, and Jonathan Strange goes to Spain to fight hands-on for the British. All the while there's a faerie king kidnapping pretty people at to dance for the rest of time in his magical kingdom. Despite the many different plot lines involved, everything weaves together quite nicely in the end. ( )

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell are two English magicians. Both aim to bring magic back to England and both have very different ideas about how that should be brought about. Though filled with magic and with adventures big and small, this massive book reads as more of a comedy of manners with fantasy mixed in. Those who dislike Jane Austen and other such classic writers of this vein may be put off by the style of writing. It did take me a little while to for me get completely into the story, but once I got there I loved it.

P.S. There are footnotes. I love footnotes in fiction. They amuse me, so that was a bonus. ( )

For centuries, the study of English magic has been entirely theoretical. Spells have not actually worked in three hundred years or more. Enter Mr. Norrell and later his apprentice Jonathan Strange, who work toward the return of practical English magic at the turn of the 19th century, with somewhat unexpected consequences. I loved this book, but I will be the first to admit it's not for everyone. You've got to be in it for the long haul. And I do mean long: almost 800 pages (though there are a fair number of poorly drawn illustrations thrown in for no discernable reason other than to add heft). It's also not the sort of story where you can grasp the gist of the plot from the first couple chapters. Rather, you have to simply enjoy what you are presently reading and trust the basic arc of the story will become clear in time. It does, but there are a lot of seemingly spurious asides that don't appear to have much to do with anything for quite a long time. It's written more like a history, complete with footnotes, with the author writing with the voice of a contemporary of most of the events described. I found this angle charming and quite convincing, to the point where I almost forgot that people like Martin Pale and John Uskglass never really existed. I will definitely be on the look-out for Clarke's future novels. ( )

This book truly got under my skin to the point where I would find myself reflecting on it during the day, anxiously awaiting the time I'd immerse myself in it. Truly a great read, touching, funny, insightful, and actually quite believable. Nearing the end of the book, I found myself intentionally reading slower because I didn't want it to end. Teared up quite a bit!

Yes this is a chunkster! But it isn't a book to speed-read. I loved the imaginativeness of this historical novel-of-sorts which traces the restoration of magic in England. Fascinating characters in the mousy Mr Norrell, the passionate Jonathan Strange, and my favorite servant Mr Childermass.I enjoyed the sub-stories of Lady Pole and Stephan Black's enchantment by a Faerie, of cause-and-consequence in the world of magic. ( )