Author: Scott Westerfeld
Published: 2009
Pages: 464
Acquired: Local library
Personal Enjoyment Factor: 3.5/5
Author's Blog: Westerblog
Just as parts of this unique story were a labor for me to swallow, I'm having a hard time figuring out how to spit them out again into some sort of a coherent summary. An attempt: Imagine that you've been cramming late into the night for a test on World War I while mindlessly inhaling Cheetos and Coke, and then you fall into a fitful sleep in which you dream that the Allies are flying through the air in a giant whale sending out bats that poop out metal spikes, and the Central Powers are marching around in AT-AT Walkers from The Empire Strikes Back (and yes I am proud to say I had to look up the name of these Star Wars machines). You wake up a little disoriented, but then you go and ace the test. It's a testament to Westerfeld's writing that somehow it all works out into an entertaining and meaningful story.
I'm a fan of the Uglies series by Westerfeld, with my eyes practically dancing across the words to turn the pages faster and faster, but in Leviathan, with a brand-new lexicon to learn and imaginative machines to figure out, it took me a while to pick up the pace. As encouragement to keep going as I processed everything, I met characters that I genuinely liked and cared about, and illustrations by Keith Thompson that are utterly captivating. (The pictures even drew the attention of a few kids in the Peter Pan line at Disneyland who were desperately trying to get a better glimpse.) Eventually, frantic page turning ensued, and I was engaged in a rollicking ride to the finish which was . . . a cliffhanger. See you in October, 2010, Behemoth!
I have to admit that I loved this one from page one. Maybe it's because I'd read 10 of Westerfeld's other books before I went into it, so that it felt like sitting back with an old friend? I don't know. But for some reason I just absolutely loved it. Lvoed the ending too - a little bit of a teaser, but not so much that I was dying.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDeleteI think maybe because I had been reading The Brothers Karamazov almost exclusively for a few weeks I had a hard time switching gears. It was a whole new world to assimilate to, and I'm still grossed out by the idea that they were inside the beasts guts! All in all I liked it though.
I've never read Westerfeld but I do have this on request at the library because I really wasn't sure where to start, so I thought at the beginning of his newest series was as good a place as any.
ReplyDeleteMarg,
ReplyDeleteI hope you like it! It was my first experience with "steampunk" and I think when the next in the series comes out I'll know a little better what to expect. I highly recommend the Uglies series if you get the chance.
I couldn't get past the first few pages of this book. I was so confused, and I just didn't have the patience to press on. I've heard so many good things about LEVIATHAN - I'll probably give it another go at some point.
ReplyDeleteSusan,
ReplyDeleteWhen I first got the book, I read the bookflap about three times and still went "Huh?" So I can see where you're coming from!
I'm always on the lookout for frantic page turning -- thanks for the suggestion!
ReplyDeleteGreat looking blog.
This was my first book by Westerfeld and I loved it. Can't wait for the sequel.
ReplyDeleteThis was my first book by Westerfeld and I loved it. Can't wait for the sequel.
ReplyDeleteI'm always on the lookout for frantic page turning -- thanks for the suggestion!
ReplyDeleteGreat looking blog.