Jonathan Carroll (1) (1949–)

Vincent Ettrich thinks he's just living his normal life, until he realizes that he's already died. And that the woman he's seeing may be something other than human. Then he finds out his other girlfriend -- the one who really matters to him -- is pregnant. With a baby who talks to her. And from there things get really strange.

Jonathan Carroll's writing has this amazing dream-like sensibility to it, a feeling of being based in dream logic, that is simultaneously fascinating and frustrating. show more It's imaginative, well written, and full of rich symbolism, and yet, I have to admit, halfway through I found myself muttering, "Could you just explain what the heck is going on now, please?" But then, of course, whatever explanations and resolutions we're given are also mystical and dreamlike. I appreciate what Carroll's doing here, I think, but it's hard to say for sure whether it really works for me or not. I think I may be a little too attached to real-world logic to appreciate it completely.

Also complicating matters is the fact that I never could quite decide whether I liked any of the characters or not, particularly the main character. His attitudes towards women range from disgusting to oddly touching, and, disturbingly, it was sometimes difficult for me to decide which was which. Which is not actually a bad thing; it makes for complex and human characterization. But it certainly did not help me feel any less conflicted about the novel as a whole. show less

Jonathan Carroll's intriguing first novel manages to be both magical and prosaic at the same time, blending increasingly dark fantasy with the mundane details of his protagonists' lives. I particularly like how he refused to sentimentalise his characters, ever, and how the mystery was carefully unfolded. The narrative may have lost a little steam in its final third, but the ending was cruel and satisfying at the same time, if a little abrupt, and I think this is probably one of the best show more books about the power of stories and authors that I've read. Voice of our Shadow, another Carroll, is sitting in my 'To Read Very Soon' pile, and I'm looking forward to it! show less

A deliciously poisonous, perfectly paced and constructed story. A fan of a deceased childrens' writer decides to write a biography of his idol, and accompanied by his girlfriend, with whom he has a very weird relationship, or maybe that's just me, to the writer's home town. They're welcomed, even by the writer's daughter, who has a reputation for hostility, but there's more at stake in this unwritten book than he realises. Full of unease and oddness, with characters that aren't so much show more unlikeable as preferably avoided in real life, this turns childhood nostalgia for the fantastical magic of books into something more obsessive and narcissistic, leavened as it is with adult emotions of jealousy and lust, but also dangerous, especially when it seems some of the magic has leaked through. show less

Thomas Abbey (son of the famous actor Stephen Abbey) and his “colleague” Saxony visit the town of Galen, Missouri, to get information for a biography of their late but beloved children’s book author, Marshall Frank. The information about Frank that Thomas gets from publisher David Louis is much different in a bizarre sort of way from the information gleaned from Saxony’s previous research and from what both learn from visiting the author’s surviving daughter Anna.

Carroll’s style show more of writing never ceases to amaze me. This book is intelligent, subtle, and yet easy to read. The author’s sardonic sense of humor makes reading this tale so much fun. I love the sense of intrigue, of not knowing what surprise the next page will bring, since Carroll’s writing often involves surreal situations. Keenly perceptive of how people react to one another, the author displays a good command of general psychology. So many of the author’s thoughts are noteworthy that it’s a must to savor this book slowly. Since I love to read, and this book is about an author and books, my enjoyment of the subject matter was even more enhanced. This one’s a keeper.

SPOILER--> The book becomes weird when the bull terrier Nails talks to Thomas one night and says “The fur. It is. Breathe through the fur.” It turns out that the dogs were all once people and that all of the dogs and people in the town of Galen’s lives were scripted by what Marshall wrote. This starts fading after Marshall dies, but the initial fading of fate reverses when Thomas Abbey begins writing Marshall’s biography. How ingenious! How weird! show less