Well, this was a massive undertaking of a book, but worth pretty much the entire month it took me to read it. Sadly, my thoughts on this book will be a bit scattered since it took me so long to read it and I took a massive break in the middle of the month to go to a wedding.
Here’s more about Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
The year is 1806. England is beleaguered by the long war with Napoleon, and centuries have passed since practical magicians faded into the nation’s past. But scholars of this glorious history discover that one remains: the reclusive Mr Norrell, whose displays of magic send a thrill through the country.
Proceeding to London, he raises a beautiful woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious, fussy Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician: the brilliant novice Jonathan Strange.
Young, handsome and daring, Strange is the very antithesis of Norrell. So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men which overwhelms that between England and France. And their own obsessions and secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine.
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My thoughts
Imagine yourself in the 19th century. Napoleon is on his warpath to conquer Europe. Allies are in short demand in England and there’s a middle-aged gentleman who is trying to revive English magic. Because in this world created by the brilliant Susanna Clarke, magic exists and her alternate history epic, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, we get a glimpse into the deep history of magic and the wildly entertaining shenanigans these two English gentlemen unleash into the public.
The story reads much like a history of the magic. I think the added footnotes bring this sense that this is based on historical evidence and reality when in fact, it’s just made up by Susanna Clarke. It’s the piece that makes this story so incredible –how realistic it feels and how much you wonder how real it could be. I truly found myself believing in the magic, wanting to see if Americans would ever adapt magic for themselves (honestly, is it just me or the best magic stories based in England?).
Strange and Norrell lend themselves as the best examples of the two sides of English magic. One of the theoretical (Mr. Norrell) who prefers to learn his magic through books, careful study, and deep thinking. The other is practical (Mr. Strange) who uses magic in many more ways than Mr. Norrell and finds his level of study requires more action than sedentary study. This dichotomy in their magic is probably one of the biggest cruxes in the book. While they first start off as pupil and teacher, their dynamic changes as their beliefs in magic change. With a volume dedicated to both characters (and a special one for the most famous magician of all, Jonathan Uskglass), the two magicians play against each other in their method and bring readers an argument of morality when it comes to magic.
But both of them together embody how magic can be used. Since this book takes places during the Napoleonic Wars, one of the biggest uses of magic is to protect the English borders from the enemy and actually use magic to fight troops down on the front lines. I loved this part of the book because it’s not just magic for some selfish purpose, but magic for a greater good. These are not some witches in a coven plotting revenge against some enemy, but strategic people who use magic as a skill much like combat training is a skill in war.
Funny enough, this isn’t even the plot! The story also features a mysterious gentleman who ensnares people close to Mr. Norrell and Mr. Strange for some dastardly premise I don’t want to share in case of spoilers. Magic does get used for some more selfish purposes, but not to the benefit of Mr. Norrell nor Mr. Strange. In fact, it’s the misuse of magic that causes the greater plot to slowly unravel and reveal itself in such an incredible end!
But you can tell from those components alone that this is one immersive book and it’s absolutely what I loved most about it. The detailing is like looking at an embroidered tapestry and finding one more extra thing you didn’t see the first time you saw it. It’s a story carefully crafted to incorporate magic into real world events. It’s so immersive that despite the time it took me to read this book, I didn’t ever want to leave it. I found myself laughing at some scenes. I found myself frustrated with others. Each time I picked up this book to read, it felt like I was traveling into the book and experiencing a world where magic existed and there’s two very strange magicians who are quietly fighting each other for recognition and control.
If you’re expecting some highly adventurous plot with outrageous moments, then this might not be the book for you. There will be things to follow along with throughout the story, but like I said earlier, it feels more like a history of English magic than a magical story. It’s the piece that sets it apart from other fantasy books I’ve read recently and what makes it so unique and special.
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