The Noble Prince
I received a unique opportunity to review a novella, The Noble Prince, recently published by my cousin. It is her first major work, but it has received high acclaim, and is being featured on local news in the St. Louis area. She has an interview scheduled for taping on Tuesday.
Personally, I thought there were some significant flaws in the narrative arc, and the characters were extremely formulaic. It's almost as though she took the most common elements of stories she read, and pasted them into a hastily conceived plot lacking any character development. Who is the prince other than the archetypical "Prince"? Sadly, this question was never asked by the author, and if you think I am being harsh, I cringe at the thought of what the poison pens at the New York Times will write about this daring, but flawed first effort.
The medieval battle scenes were the highlight of this novella, and the author's skills as an illustrator shone through the disappointing text. The reoccurring use of purple created a dreamy effect, and the symbolism of the purple dragon matching the dark purple castle was neither too subtle, nor to heavy handed. The "evil dragon" is not always a purple dinosaur, rather, it can sometimes be your own home, in this case, the castle. The purple hue reinforced the Princess' desire to leave her home, and her dark childhood behind her.
***Warning, major plot elements will be revealed in the following paragraph*** I think the author took an unnecessary risk leaving out the climatic scene in which the Noble Prince may, or may not have killed the Ogre-Prince. Clearly, her intention was to embrace an ambiguous ending in which the reader is left to imagine the strategy her noble Prince employed to win the Princess' hand in everlasting happiness, however, this comes across as gimmicky, and I believe most readers will feel cheated that they are not privy to the details. Did the Noble Prince slay the Ogre Prince? Did he set out an a long and arduous journey to find the Princess? Unfortunately, we'll never know.
I hope the author keeps writing, and we as readers can only hope she does not get roped into writing epic fairy tale screenplays which is all the rage in Hollywood. What we readers need is what the author ultimately provides us with - a fresh perspective and stunning visual journey in an epic setting. Assuming the author can clear the hurdle that is her tendency towards the hackneyed, I believe she will have an important place at the table that is modern American literature.
I received a unique opportunity to review a novella, The Noble Prince, recently published by my cousin. It is her first major work, but it has received high acclaim, and is being featured on local news in the St. Louis area. She has an interview scheduled for taping on Tuesday.
Personally, I thought there were some significant flaws in the narrative arc, and the characters were extremely formulaic. It's almost as though she took the most common elements of stories she read, and pasted them into a hastily conceived plot lacking any character development. Who is the prince other than the archetypical "Prince"? Sadly, this question was never asked by the author, and if you think I am being harsh, I cringe at the thought of what the poison pens at the New York Times will write about this daring, but flawed first effort.
The medieval battle scenes were the highlight of this novella, and the author's skills as an illustrator shone through the disappointing text. The reoccurring use of purple created a dreamy effect, and the symbolism of the purple dragon matching the dark purple castle was neither too subtle, nor to heavy handed. The "evil dragon" is not always a purple dinosaur, rather, it can sometimes be your own home, in this case, the castle. The purple hue reinforced the Princess' desire to leave her home, and her dark childhood behind her.
***Warning, major plot elements will be revealed in the following paragraph*** I think the author took an unnecessary risk leaving out the climatic scene in which the Noble Prince may, or may not have killed the Ogre-Prince. Clearly, her intention was to embrace an ambiguous ending in which the reader is left to imagine the strategy her noble Prince employed to win the Princess' hand in everlasting happiness, however, this comes across as gimmicky, and I believe most readers will feel cheated that they are not privy to the details. Did the Noble Prince slay the Ogre Prince? Did he set out an a long and arduous journey to find the Princess? Unfortunately, we'll never know.
I hope the author keeps writing, and we as readers can only hope she does not get roped into writing epic fairy tale screenplays which is all the rage in Hollywood. What we readers need is what the author ultimately provides us with - a fresh perspective and stunning visual journey in an epic setting. Assuming the author can clear the hurdle that is her tendency towards the hackneyed, I believe she will have an important place at the table that is modern American literature.
Labels: The Arts
posted by Mezz0 at 3:33 PM
1 Comments:
Be sure to send this to the parents...at least send it to Our Blood. I don't know if the husband/english teacher would understand what you're doing here.
Also, you use "to" instead of "too"
Grow the fuck up, rookie
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