The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet Provide a Puzzle

Reif Larsen's debut novel, The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, is a doozy. After reading quite a few reviews and most of the book, I'm sure I'm not the intended audience, but I'm not sure who is. Penguin spent plenty to produce and promote the book - 370+ pages of it - and ultimately, labeled it for middle grade readers.

But is it for middle grade readers? An unfortunately small number of them, I think.

Larsen's wildly imaginative story introduces 12-year-old genius TS Spivet who is, according to his 16-year-old sister, a total spaz. (And I think she's right.) Just pages into the story, TS faces a dilemma: he's won an award from the Smithsonian, but he can't bring himself to share the news with mom, affectionately (or not?) known as Dr. Claire. TS is the kind of kid who diagrams everything, from beetles to books to his sister shucking corn. IMHO, the corn schucking sort of throws the whole setting into a twisted knot; it takes place in the present day. Anyway, the award dilemma serves as framework for the plot, as TS takes off cross-country (from Divide, Montana to Washington, DC) to accept the award, meeting some interesting characters along the way.

The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet is well written enough to make those characters interesting and the very, very quirky main character endearing, and the story - which occupies a gray area between fantasy and reality - entertaining. In short, it's worth reading. But for whom?

TS might appeal to the same middle school students who liked Artemis Fowl, but the fact that TS is only 12 will preclude some older kids from reading the book. And while the book would certainly appeal to smart MG students (3rd-6th grade) the sepia-toned diagrams in the margins of most pages are not exactly eye candy.

And then there's another little problem: parents. By page 36 the word "shit" appears, and it's spoken quite a few times afterward by both TS's older sister and their father. Also in the first chapter, there's a reference to AIDs. So the question remains, who will read The Selected Works?

Well, as usual, I'm late to the party. TSWTSS was published in 2009 and is now available in paperback. I doubt it has performed as well as Penguin had hoped. But TS is quite a character. If Larsen has been dreaming up and writing down others, we'll hear from him (and perhaps TS?) again.

See a more complete review and additional background on the book and author from The New York Times.

It's Time for Another Artemis Book

The Time Paradox is the sixth book in Eoin Colfer’s series about young and ruthless criminal genius Artemis Fowl. Now Artemis is not quite so young - he spent the last three years in Limbo, so he’s effectively 14 although he should be 17 (remember, this is a fantasy) and he’s not quite so ruthless, either. Regular readers know the conniving kid has been mellowing since the first book was published in 2001; his journey toward a kinder, gentler antihero continues in this book. Fans also will be glad to know that Fowl’s haughty brilliance remains intact.

He’ll need it.

Artemis’s mother, Angeline, is dying - and Artemis may or may not be responsible for causing the killer infection. Making the antidote requires brain fluid from a silky sifaka lemur; unfortunately, Artemis killed the very last one a few years earlier.

The average boy would waste a lot of time feeling guilty, but not Arty. He realizes there’s nothing to do except go back in time and save the lemur. Of course, to do so he’ll have to outwit his (younger) self.

The kid has been in tight spots before, but never with his mother’s life hanging in the balance. And never with such human frailty or humility.

Of course “The Time Paradox” isn’t just about time travel, saving the world, a lemur, and mom, and righting old wrongs. That’s a code Fowl fans can understand: it means Artemis is up against more than a few formidable foes, and in this case, he also has to deal with his own failures.

Like previous books in the series, the climax of The Time Paradox is packed with so many near-death experiences and reversals of fortune that the final 50 pages are a bit too jarring; those pages give credence to some of Colfer’s literary detractors.

And I say ignore them. The final product is a high adventure, full of humor – sometimes wry, sometimes slapstick.

Colfer has said he will take a few years off from the Artemis series, and for that reason, series followers may be disappointed that some long-kept secrets remain secrets, including the narrator’s identity and his (or her?) reason for telling Artemis’s story. The author also stops short of allowing Artemis a real romance, although Arty does get kissed in book six...by a fairy, of course. But I've spilled way too much already.

If the Artemis series doesn't continue, will there really be legions of disappointed fans? Only temporarily. Many, I suspect, will pick up other titles by Colfer to fill the void, and they'll be glad. Like Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, So Long And Thanks For All The Fish, etc.) Colfer can tell a great yarn, and string along his readers, through the most fantastic of fantasy worlds.

Of course he glosses over a few details as he goes. Hey, if he really took the time to explain time travel, would you believe it? ;)

Almost missed another boat

I just hoisted myself on this one; the steamship of a runaway series Artemis Fowl nearly cruised by without me on board. And what a ride!

I took the plunge (dangerous mix of metaphors, I know) just last week and am a full convert already. Not that I'm taking sides against the incredible Mr. Potter, mind. But Potter is so...incredible. And Artemis, dear 12-year-old Arty (who apparently really doesn't age, at least in his latest adventure) is more believable. He sort of lives in the "real" world. You know, with real gnomes and fairies and centaurs and trolls and...and, well, you do have to employ that old suspension of disbelief long enough to swallow that he's a 12-year-old who happens to be smarter than all the grownups combined. Um. Well. Ah.

I'll just write myself out of this corner now. 'Bye!