My first book: The Thirteenth Tale
Posted by Alli on January 13, 2008
I decided this weekend to make good on part of my 2008 goals: I read a book. I’m supposed to read one book a month, so I’m on track so far!
For Christmas I purchased some books as gifts and due to a deal I was able to get a third books for a cheap price. I could have purchased something for someone else, but this book caught my eye and I gave it to myself for Christmas. I wrapped it up and put it under the tree with a gift tag “For Alli From Alli.”
The first book of 2008 was The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. And what I knew would happen, happened. I got sucked in and had a really hard time putting the book down until I finished this evening.
Just read this inscription from the front:
All children mythologize their birth. It is a universal trait. You want to know someone? Heart, mind and soul? Ask him to tell you about when he was born. What you get won’t be the truth; it will be a story. And nothing is more telling than a story.
The author weaves the tale in the story within a story within a story format. The transitions from one to another allow clear divisions, which helped me plow through the book with delight. In other books I have read with this storytelling device I have often been confused and irritated, not know exactly whose voice I was reading at the time. Diane Setterfield mastered the story within a story.
I was attracted to several themes within the book: the mysterious world of twins, ghosts, scandal, loneliness, and reading. Yes, reading was theme throughout the book, which at first glance might seem boring, but really, it wasn’t. The author was able to accurately describe exactly what it means to pick up a book, and enter the world the author has created. The various main characters- Margaret and Miss Winter- each have their own ways of swimming in a story and it translates to how the reader is also lost in the sea of the story worlds. It sucks you in and when you are finished, you surface as if from a deep sea dive.
The ending was not what I expected, but was still a pleasant surprise. I recommend the book as a great way to start your literary year.
[tags]Diane Setterfield, The Thirteenth Tale, reading[/tags]
Joy Lynne said,
Ooooo, I loved this book. I read it a few months ago and couldn’t put it down either-it was so good! I like your review of it too.
Add A Comment