The Ring of Solomon by Jonathan Stroud
Julie: A while ago, I read and loved THE AMULET OF SAMARKAND, the first book in Jonathan Stroud's middle-grade, fantasy trilogy known as THE BARTIMAEUS BOOKS. In THE AMULET OF SAMARKIND, a boy magician-in-training manages to summon a 5,000-year-old djinni (a form of demon) named Bartimaeus to mete out revenge on a fellow magician. Bartimaeus is a gem of a character--sarcastic and irreverent and powerful, but also just a little bit absurd. He's memorable. So when I learned that a prequel to the trilogy, THE RING OF SOLOMON, was out, *and* that it had won the 2011 Battle of the Kids' Books--well! I figured we'd both better read it. I'm glad I did! You?
Marirosa Mia: I'm very glad, Julie. But I wasn't at first. When you suggested reading THE RING OF SOLOMON, my brain went, "Noooooooo! More words. Brain hurts. Big book. Don't do it." It was the end of "reading season" at my publishing job, and I'd read 10-12 full novels in the span of 2 weeks. My brain stopped cooperating towards the end of it. The process of starting THE RING OF SOLOMON went a bit like this:
Me: OK brain, let's do this.
Brain: No.
Me: Braiiin, come on!
Brain: I don't want to. You said no more books!
Me: But-
Brain: And you said that TEN books ago!
Me: I know, but - please? Just fifty pages? And we'll stop if we don't like it.
Brain: Just fifty?
Me: Yep.
Brain: OK, FINE. But this better not be another dystopian novel...
And it wasn't. Of course I kept reading. Fifty pages turned into another fifty, which turned into laughing out loud at Bartimaeus's ridiculous commentary. He truly is an anti-hero to root for. He doesn't really want to save the day. It just happens to be the only way he can free himself! Which is very refreshing. I was also drawn by the character of Asmira--a hereditary guard for the Queen of Sheba, who sets out on a mission to save her country from King Solomon (the famous one, in Jerusalem, 950 B.C.E.). It was wonderful to see such a strong female character, and I loved how she played the straight guy to Bartimaeus's comedic lead.
J: I *love* Asmira. Her evolution as a character, and the relationship that develops between her and Bartimaeus, make this an even better book than THE AMULET OF SAMARKIND in my view. The voice of Bartimaeus is just as strong--and I think he's funnier. I'm delighted that it's a prequel, so I can recommend it without reservation to folks who've never read any of the books in the trilogy. But let's talk a little more about Bartimaeus's voice. Did you mind that the chapters told from his point of view were in first person, while Asmira's were in third?
M: Not that ALL. In fact it would have been a bit of a disservice to the character not to hear him narrate his chapters don't you think? Also part of me thinks that Bartimaeus would never allow anyone else to narrate his chapters.
The only thing that did bother me a *bit* about his chapters was when he switched into third person to describe his current bodily form (dijinnis can change form at will) and the footnotes. I usually love footnotes (and the great majority of his were hilarious) but sometimes they were just too long for my taste, and I was a bit bothered by having to pull my eyes away from whatever paragraph/action I was reading at the moment to read his asides.
J: It's no easy feat to alternate so frequently and fluidly between third and first person over the course of a novel, and I like the novelty of trying footnotes in fiction. I might have to pick up Stroud's HEROES OF THE VALLEY next. Still middle-grade fantasy, but no Bartimaeus. I want to see what else Stroud can come up with!
M: Sounds good, Julie!
Me: I guess we know what we’ll be doing next, Brain!
Brain: Try to take over the world?
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