November 7, 2009
EVER TRY FINDING BOOKS A TWEEN BOY WILL READ?:
Whale Riders: a review of LEVIATHAN by Scott Westerfeld Illustrated by Keith Thompson (AUSTIN GROSSMAN, November 5, 2009, NY Times)
Scott Westerfeld’s “Leviathan” is a tightly paced young adult novel set in an alternate version of the First World War and a welcome addition to the steampunk genre: a neo-retro period adventure. Just as cyberpunk reimagined science fiction with computers, steampunk reinvents it through a fantasy of the technological past. Its signature style is a whimsical Jules Verne-ian, 19th-century take on high technology — gadgets, gauges and goggles take the place of circuits and fusion reactors. Its genteel heroes and heroines display both the pluck of idealized Victorian adventurers and their understanding of formal dress. [...]If it poses a big question, that question would be, Wouldn’t it be cool if the First World War had been fought with genetically engineered mutant animals, against steam-powered walking machines like the ones from “The Empire Strikes Back”? And the answer is, Yes, it would.
Now to sneak it onto his Amazon Wish List...