Jenny Davidson

This is an odd book -- not necessarily all that enjoyable but definitely interesting, so I can understand why it seems to be garnering mixed, love-it-or-hate-it reviews on Amazon. Its three main characters are young academic women in NYC who share an interest in gaming, whether theoretical or playful, and who (when one's brother visits from Sweden) become drawn into a game based on The Bacchae of Euripides. (By the time the game is over, though, I begin to wonder if one real-life show more relationship is entirely Bacchaean or, rather, at least partly Aeschylean or Sophoclean, regarding which, however, I say no more to avoid SPOILER.)

The book's unpopularity with some reviewers may be a result of its slow start. The first section in particular tends to drag, but patience is required because it does lay a groundwork for later developments, beginning with the arrival of Anna's brother, Anders, from Sweden. (And note their ethnicity -- Swedish but of apparently Greek heritage -- a combination of Penthean and Dionysian?)

Even if you don't find the book enjoyable (and I'm not sure that I necessarily did), you should still find it quite interesting for its build to the climax. Do at least a brief Wikipedia check on the Euripidean play of The Bacchae, because you'll particularly want to anticipate (and possibly be surprised at) just which character(s) suffer a Penthean fate and what the ultimate fate of the Dionysian(?) character will prove to be.

And also, even if you don't necessarily find the book "enjoyable," you should at least find Davidson's style interesting, based as it is on varying points-of-view (all at least partly unreliable) expressed both textually and in forms like e-mail, memoir, and dramatic dialogue.

If you do choose to read this one, be prepared for a slow start, especially in the first section, but it does pick up as it moves along. show less

Yay, historical fiction! Were you paying attention in World History class? Because if you weren’t, you might actually find yourself believing Jenny Davidson’s alternate history—it’s that well-written.

I think the best part of The Explosionist is the world it’s set in. The government is completely out of control, spirituality is more of an accepted science, and bombs go off almost every other minute.

To go along with that world (and out-of-control government), Jenny Davidson crafted show more some really creative technology—suicide machines located conveniently in your local library, preservative technology for one’s brain to continue on after death, and some strangely emotionless girls who work for the government. I really enjoyed making sense out of every new invention.

Though I LOVED the setting and creative technology in The Explosionist, I found its pacing to be a tad slow. Getting through the first half of the book was almost excruciating. Sophie wasn’t a very interesting character at first; she struck me as a bit too naïve, considering she was in love with her teacher (student-teacher love always makes me put my head in my hands). But as the book went on, I grew to like Sophie—she developed more confidence, curiosity, and an ability that made me do a double-take.

I would recommend The Explosionist to fans of alternate histories—it’s very, very creative in that aspect. Though it’s a bit of a slow read, it does turn out to be enjoyable in the end. (And there’s a cliffhanger!)
(On a side note, I’d like to complain about the cover—it pictures a girl who is supposed t o be Sophie, but looks nothing like her! The book describes Sophie as having gray eyes, pale skin and short black hair. I wish the publishers had chosen a more appropriate model!)
(Originally posted to 365 Days of Reading) show less

Jenny Davidson taught one of my favorite classes at Columbia, so I was very curious to check out her first young adult novel. The Explosionist tells the story of Sophie, a teen living in 1940s Scotland, which in this book's universe is part of the Hanseatic League. War is looming, but Scotland's superior weapons technology has kept the country out so far. However, domestic terrorists have been waging a bombing campaign that has everyone worried.

Sophie lives with her great-aunt, an show more indomitable older woman who was responsible for starting IRYLNS, a league of highly trained young women who serve as assistant to highly placed men in Scottish society. Sophie initially aspires to be part of IRYLNs, until she discovers the secret truth behind the training process.

When a medium (this world is heavily into mysticism) who had a special message for Sophie turns up dead, Sophie and her friend Mikael are determined to find out what happened to her. Unraveling this mystery takes the pair deep into the intrigue surrounding IRYLNS, highly placed government officials, and even Sophie's school.

The story line for The Explosionist moves quickly and is fairly compelling. However, the alternate history details of this world are complicated and confusing; I spent too much time focused on trying to figure out what was going on with the Hanseatic League, England, and other places. show less

Let’s make this very clear from the start: I LOVE alternate histories. So if you say to me, “Check it out - this is a detailed look at how the world might have changed if Napoleon had defeated Wellington at Waterloo,” I will be on page 15 before you’ve finished your sentence. And if you follow that up with “And it’s got this awesome plot with political intrigue and ghosts and murder,” I will have run off with your book in my hand. (I’ll give it back after I’ve finished. show more Maybe.)

The Explosionist delivers a rip-roaring story, with all of the above elements in spades. Sophie is a schoolgirl in Scotland, which has fully split from England since Napoleon’s victory and is now part of the Hanseatic League. It is a turbulent time in Sophie’s Scotland, with terrorist bombings on the rise, and the country seems to be slowly gearing up for war with Europe. In Sophie’s own life, she is not only negotiating the everyday trials of being a teenager - her roommates’ constant teasing about Sophie’s crush on her science teacher, for instance - but she has also been drawn into investigation of a dangerous plot. While looking for further information from a medium who delivered a strange message to Sophie during one of her Great-aunt’s seances, Sophie and Mikael stumble onto a murder. Not knowing who they can trust, the two friends conduct their own investigation. What they find has implications for the entire world, and puts Sophie in immediate danger.

Davidson’s world-building is extraordinarily well done. It is clear that the history, science, and culture of The Explosionist has been given serious thought, and the world that has been created is both interesting and plausible. The implications of a single change in history ripple through all aspects of the story, from the current political situation to the worldview of teenage girls in Scotland. I was especially curious about two choices that Davidson made, one of which is integral to the story and one of which was mentioned only in passing.

Multiple times in the story, Davidson alludes to great cultural and scientific achievements such as “the theology of Count Tolstoy, the novels of Richard Wagner, the verse of Albert Einstein, or the operas of James Joyce” (page 62). There were just enough of these asides to be distracting, and to make me feel like Davidson was trying to make some point beyond showcasing the subtle differences between this world and ours. Whether her point was that genius will come forward in whatever form is cultivated, or that great achievements like “the Wittenberg Uncertainty Principle” would eventually come to light even without their original creators, I’m not sure. Perhaps this is something that Davidson will address in a sequel.

Much more central to the plot is the genuine spiritualism that is found in Sophie’s world. The spiritualists in the world of The Explosionist have much in common with the spiritualist movement that was popular in certain American and European social circles in the late 1800s and early 1900s, where societies of wealthy women would gather for seances and other communications with the spirit world. There is one major difference - in Davidson’s book, spiritualism is not only widely believed, but is genuine and commonplace, to the point where it can be difficult to tune a radio without interference from spirit voices. In fact, the mysterious plot that Sophie and Mikael investigate cannot be unraveled without significant guidance from spirits, or without Sophie’s unwanted talents as a spirit medium. It is not clear whether this advance in spirit communication also stems somehow from Wellington’s defeat at Waterloo, or whether this is a difference that has always existed in the world of The Explosionist.

Davidson created not only a complete world for her novel, but also a web of well-rounded and complex characters. With one key exception, even characters who are doing wrong believe that they are acting for the good of the country. Sophie’s Great-Aunt Tabitha is especially compelling. Her own faith in the IRYLNS program, a training program for perfect secretaries that she created and still champions, is thrown up against her increasing desire to keep Sophie out of the program. Ultimately, we see a woman who truly believes that people would be better off without any emotions thrown for a loop by her love for her ward. The choices made by Great-aunt Tabitha are the most chilling part of the novel.While I did not see anything on the author’s website, it sure feels like there will be a sequel coming. I hope to enjoy Sophie’s further adventures, and to learn more about Jenny Davidson’s imaginative version of history.

On my blog show less