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seebrandyread's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The King’s Indian pulls from many sources of inspiration, especially from the classical cannon. The first section, "The Midnight Reader," bounces around moralistic themes like the tension between faith and science, the justice or lack thereof of incarceration, and our own complicity in the tragedies of the world. Section two, “Tales of Queen Louise,” is a set of three stories similar to fairy tales largely because of the presence of shapeshifting queens, long lost princesses, and foolish kings. The final section, “The King’s Indian,” is a novella set on the open sea, full of pirates, magicians, and all other manner of swashbuckling hijinx. One can see the influence of Hawthorne, Poe, Coleridge, Melville, Carroll, Baum, and Conrad in theme and style, influence that becomes even more complicated by seemingly unending twists, turns, dupes, and reveals in Gardner's plots and his own maximalism. God is an elusive but ever present figure in Gardner’s stories which often suggest, whether we are simply seeking God or seeking to be God, all we may find in the end is darkness and madness. At times this book reads like the writer was in a crisis of faith. Or maybe he himself, like his characters, is obsessed with control and winning, with playing the role of God.
madwlf's review
5.0
John Gardner is just... a god, to me. Even if this isn't his BEST set of short stories, it is worth five stars just for "John Napper Sailing Through the Universe." Ugh, my heart.
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