Tag Archives: metaphysical

Why You Need to Read: “A Spindle Splintered”

Fractured Fables, #1: A Spindle Splintered

By: Alix E. Harrow

Published: October 5, 2021

Genre: Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Folklore

            …I’ve fallen out of my own story and into one that might have a happy ending. Because this is my last chance to have a real adventure, to escape, to do more than play out the clock, (2).

            Fairy tales have existed since oral and literary traditions became embedded in folklore and culture. For example, there is a “Cinderella” story for each region and culture in the world; and, it is one of the “oldest” folktales in human existence. In fact, anyone can recite a few fairy tales orally and include all of the “elements” within it. Disney movies aside, fairy tale retellings continue to exist, and there have been numerous stories released recently, which demonstrates how these tales continue to entertain us. In Alix E. Harrow’s novella, A Spindle Splintered, she fuses traditional variants with modern knowledge. 

            There are 2 things you need to know about the protagonist, Zinnia Gray. First, she is obsessed with the tale of “Sleeping Beauty”; second, Zinnia is dying from a rare genetic disease. In fact, she is not expected to live past her 21st birthday, which is today (in the story), and time is limited as Zinnia starts to process her “last days.” Fairy tales have been a coping mechanism for Zinnia—she earned a Master’s degree in Folk Studies—and, it is the story of “Sleeping Beauty” she finds most relatable to her. And yet, Zinnia’s best friend, Charmaine Baldwin a.k.a. “Charm,” has stood by her since childhood. Furthermore, Charm insists that her best friend attends the “Sleeping Beauty” themed birthday party she put together for her. There’s even a spinning wheel! But, what happens when Zinnia pricks her finger on it? And, who is the young woman claiming to be a princess? Readers learn quickly that Zinnia is more than just a “sick girl.” Her determination and her resilience allows her to view her current predicament as an opportunity to save her life, and another’s as well. 

            The plot of this story is Zinnia dreading her impending death. Her disease means that she won’t live past 21, and there is nothing anyone can do to change it. That is, until a spinning wheel provides a rare chance to change her fate. At the same time, Zinnia might be able to rescue a princess from hers. There is a subplot in this story, and it is fairy tales: their origins, their evolution, and their “lasting appeal.” Remember, every story is a story unless it’s yours; that’s when the story becomes one’s experience. The subplot drives the plot in this narrative, which brings out the reality (and the magic) within the fiction.

            The narrative is in 1st person from Zinnia’s point-of-view, and it is told in the present. Zinnia’s stream-of-consciousness is vital to the narrative because her knowledge of the past helps her with her quest and her phone lets her (and us) know that all of the events within the narrative are happening—Zinnia is NOT under a sleeping spell. A few revelations throughout the quest leads to genuine moments of awe and of shock through Zinnia, which makes her a reliable narrator with a narrative that can be followed easily. 

            The style Alix E. Harrow uses in A Spindle Splintered is different from her novels. Instead of allusions to previous stories, myths, legends and magic, this novella delves into the evolution of fairy tales—also known as Märchen, or “magic tale” by folklorists—many in which, “expresses the escape from reality,” (Dégh 59). In addition, this story is NOT a fairy tale retelling, but a “fractured fairy tale.” A fairy tale is “a story involving the fantastic, usually involving familiar traditional formulas and often ending in eucatastrophe (after which people live happily ever after),” (Mendlesohn and James 253). A fractured fairy tale is the practice of breaking fairy tales (from as small as a split to as large as a chasm) up so that the storyteller can rewrite them to reflect the present world while maintaining key elements from the fractures that get used in them. In other words, new variants of the older variants of fairy tales must have something in it so that the audience can identify the (new) tale being told. The most popular example of this is Disney and how they took older variants of these folktales and retold them in a way in which the audience knows it’s the “Disney variant.” A fractured fairy tale is another way for stories to be “told and retold in many different ways. They are guised and disguised,” (Yolen 4). Another explanation is that the author has taken parts of the tale of “Sleeping Beauty,” kept the parts that would identify it as “Sleeping Beauty,” include the possible origins of the tale within a modern conflict that presents the tale as a new variant. In short, and I repeat, this is NOT a fairy tale retelling (per se), but a modern fairy tale. How many fairy tales have working smartphones in them? The mood in this story is dread. 2 young women are fearful of their impending 21st birthdays. The tone is resilience. Both young women actively seek out ways to change their fate.

            The appeal for A Spindle Splintered will be positive. Fans of the author’s previous works will enjoy this one; however, they should know that this book is closer to a fairy tale than a fantasy story—similar yet different. If you’re not a fan of fairy tales, then this book might not be for you. Fans of Jane Yolen and Robin McKinley will enjoy this book the most. But, fans Naomi Novik, Katherine Arden and Rena Rossner should consider reading this story, too. Anyone who studied folklore—such as myself—will appreciate all of the scholarly references mentioned throughout this tale. And, anyone who enjoys this book will be pleased to know that the follow up—A Mirror Mended—will be released next summer.

            A Spindle Splintered is a tragic yet entertaining story about the lasting affect of fairy tales, and what an individual should do when they find themselves in one. Once again, Alix E. Harrow reminds her audience of the significance of fairy tales and their everlasting impact throughout culture and humanity. This is the “Sleeping Beauty” tale for the 21st century.

My Rating: MUST READ IT NOW (5 out of 5)!!!

                                                                        References 

Dégh, Linda. “Folk Narrative.” Folklore and Folklife: An Introduction, edited by Richard M. Dorson, The University of Chicago Press, 1972, pp. 53-83.

Mendlesohn, Farah, and Edward James. A Short History of Fantasy. Middlesex University Press, 2009.

Yolen, Jane. How to Fracture a Fairy Tale. Tachyon Publications LLC, 2018. 

Why You Need to Read: “Daughter from the Dark”

Daughter from the Dark

By: Marina and Sergey Dyachenko

Published: 2006 in Russian; February 11, 2020 in English

Translated by: Julia Meitov Hersey

Genre: Metaphysical/Speculative Fiction/Psychological

            Aspirin had to admit—he was his own worst enemy. He’d brought it on himself: the first time when he did not leave the girl alone where she was, and the second time when he refused to give her back to his camo-clad guest,(Tuesday).

            As you know, Vita Nostra is one of my favorite books of all-time. This translated book—from Russian and translated to English by Julia Meitov Hersey—introduced some readers and I to the metaphysical fiction genre—that is NOT a graphic novel—and to the creative minds of the authors: Marina and Sergey Dyachenko. Daughter from the Dark is NOT the next book in the Metamorphosis series, but a standalone story about a girl from another dimension, and the man who is assigned to be her guardian. 

            The main protagonist is Alexey Igorevich Grimalsky, who goes by his radio sobriquet—Aspirin, is a radio DJ host and a nightclub DJ who lives his life carefree with small comforts that keep him satisfied. One Sunday evening, he finds a young girl shivering in an alley holding a teddy bear. He asks the girl where her parents are before they are attacked by a group of hoodlums and their Pitbull; but, before anything can happen, a large shadow appears on the wall (the teddy bear?) looms over everyone and attacks the dog in self-defense. Shaken up and confused, Aspirin brings the girl into his apartment as a gesture of goodwill. However, the next morning (Monday), the girl refuses to leave or to say anything about herself or where she came from. Then, a stranger appears at his door with intention to take the girl back with him. When Aspirin refuses to let the girl—Alyona—leave with the man, Aspirin finds himself holding a birth certificate stating that he’s the father, which he is not. In a blink of an eye, Aspirin goes from carefree man to father, and it seems everyone else around him believes Alyona is his daughter from Pervomaysk. At the same time, Alyona has no intention in playing the role of “daughter.” Instead of attending school, she cleans the house and listens to CDs (remember those?). Alyona left her home so that she can find her brother, who is a musician. Alyona not only brought her teddy bear, “Mishutka,” but also “special” music strings. Her plan is to learn how to play the violin so that she can play a song, which will call out to him. That means Aspirin has to register Alyona for music lessons, to buy her a violin, and to put up with her aloofness and her eccentricities: feeding Mishutka, ignoring her pain and illness, making “claims” about other people, etc. Meanwhile, Aspirin sees Alyona as an annoying houseguest who keeps interfering with his life and daily lifestyle: going to work, attending parties, hooking up with women, etc. And, Alyona views Aspirin as a coward who is nice but afraid of commitment and wastes his musical gifts. The two characters become more like college roommates than father and daughter, but that living arrangement seems to work for them. Neither Aspirin nor Alyona develop much as characters, but they do demonstrate growth with help from Whiskas—Aspirin’s friend and colleague—and, Irina—Aspirin’s neighbor. Then again, complex characters (and people) don’t change their behaviors overnight, it takes several months. 

            The plot of Daughter from the Dark is straightforward. Aspirin becomes the guardian for 11-year-old Alyona and must learn how to put her needs before his own. It sounds like something from a movie or a T.V. sitcom, but that’s where the similarities end. This leads to the two subplots. The first one involves Alyona’s music. She learns how to play the violin at a rate in which she’s called a music prodigy, but she quits music school so she can focus on learning to play the song which will call her brother and send him home. The second subplot is Aspirin’s slow maturity during the duration of Alyona’s stay. Aspirin considers his music gifts more and more. He even starts a long-term relationship with Irina instead of hooking up with random women. Yes, Aspirin tries to get Alyona to leave more than once, but he learns how to deal with her and everyone who gets involved with her: their neighbors, her music teacher, etc. These subplots are essential for the plot because they explain the reasons and the reactions to Alyona’s unexpected arrival. It is obvious Aspirin doesn’t have a daughter, so allowing the subplots to become part of the plot is necessary and it allows for it to go at an appropriate rate so that the story seems believable. 

            The narrative is told from Aspirin’s point-of-view and his stream-of-consciousness. So not only do readers experience everything from Aspirin’s perspective, but also his thoughts as everything happens around him in real-time. Given the strange occurrences involving Mishutka, Alyona’s music and birth certificate, and the changes involving Alyona’s identity, Aspirin—for all of his flaws—is a reliable narrator. This is because several moments throughout the narrative leave us asking the same questions Aspirin asks himself: What’s happening? Is this real? Where did Alyona come from? Is Mishutka really a teddy bear? Readers are able to follow the narrative because they understand how confused Aspirin is because they feel the same way. The book is in 3 parts, which presents the length of time both Aspirin and Alyona live together. Part I is in days and Parts II and III are in months. These breakdowns are marked by what happens to both characters during those days and months. This sequence is significant because it illustrates ALL of the changes that occur around Aspirin and Alyona. 

            The style the authors—Marina and Sergey Dyachenko—use follows the rules of metaphysical fiction, but it’s written and presented differently. In Vita Nostra, a handful of individuals possessed talents which could bend reality and defy physical laws. In Daughter from the Dark, there are several moments where the extraordinary occurs, and there are several witnesses who experience those moments, but they react with discomfort and questioning whether or not that event actually happened. At the same time, the longer Alyona remains in Aspirin’s world (our world), her identity alters to match the “cover story” she and Aspirin came up with. So not only does Alyona have a time limit to learning the song and finding her brother, but also there is a time limit concerning Alyona’s connection to her world and when or if she’ll be able to go back there. This type of metaphysical fiction trope is similar to the theory about parallel worlds and alternate dimensions. The novel, and the authors, demonstrate what could happen if one or two “other worldly” beings find their way into another world. The mood in this novel is imperfection. Alyona points out constantly how imperfect our world is, which it is, and how it is inspiration for the creative mind. The tone is how a gifted individual can use creativity to seek perfection in an imperfect world. Aspirin, Alyona, Alyona’s brother and all creative artists seek their art in our imperfect world. Music is the central theme in Daughter from the Dark and the authors do an amazing job incorporating music and its techniques and truths within the story.

            The appeal surrounding Daughter from the Dark will continue to present English readers and fans of speculative fiction what they’ve been missing out on. I will reiterate that this novel is NOT the next book in the Metamorphosis series! This novel is a separate story about characters and metaphysical tropes. In other words, don’t read Daughter from the Dark expecting Vita Nostra! Readers of speculative fiction should know better than to expect identical stories form the same author! Daughter from the Dark is its own example of metaphysical fiction and translated work of speculative fiction. This novel is another great addition for the canon, and we have Julia Meitov Hersey to thank again for taking the time to translate the book. And, she is already translating another book by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko, and I can’t wait to read it! Readers and fans of Vita Nostra and Middlegame by Seanan McGuire will not be disappointed with this novel!       

            Daughter from the Dark is the latest translated work by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko, and the focus is on music instead of a hidden school. The narrative and the plot are more relatable and more action-paced than Vita Nostra, but fans of metaphysical fiction will enjoy this book the most. This novel is the most down-to-Earth mind-bending work by the husband and wife duo so far, and the books keep coming! Anyone who is interested in reading anything by them should start with this book. For everyone else, it’s not at the same level in terms of genre, but the experience is worth reading. Now, all I have to do is wait for the next book to be translated into English!

My Rating: Enjoy It (4.5 out of 5).

Why You Need to Read: “Vita Nostra”

Metamorphosis: #1: Vita Nostra

By: Marina & Sergey Dyachenko

Translated (English) by: Julia Meitov Hersey

Published: 2007 in Russia & Ukrainian; November 13, 2018 in the U.S.

Genre: Metaphysical, Speculative Fiction, Psychological, Bildungsroman 

Winner of the PocKoH 2008

Vita nostra brevis est,                                                 Our life is brief,

Brevi finietur;                                                             Soon it will end;

Venit mors velociter,                                                   Death comes quickly,

Rarit nos atrociter,                                                     Snatches us cruelly,

Nemini parcetur!                                                        No one is spared!

                                                                                                                       (Part One).

            I know I am late in writing this review but it’s here now. This book was my favorite book of 2018 and I’ve been raving about this book to anyone who would listen. I’ve been begging the publisher—Harper Voyager—for the translation of the other books written by this husband and wife duo. Vita Nostra is a novel that serves as a reminder that the speculative fiction genre has no limits and contains a reading experience that will have you question your limitations as to what is possible. 

            Alexandra Samokhina, or Sasha, is on summer vacation with her mother at the beach. She is looking forward to this trip before her senior year in high school in which, she plans to focus on her studies and to attend a university to study philology (the study of language in oral and written historical sources). Yet, before the 1st day of the trip can amount to more than a quick swim, Sasha notices a man in a “dark denim suit” watching her. At first, she shakes it off, but a few days later, Sasha sees him whenever she’s in town. From there Sasha experiences a few bouts of strange activity, but this only gains more unwanted attention. After many run-ins with the man, Sasha is given a task to perform, which she completes. Whenever, she doesn’t complete the task, someone close to her suffers the consequences. After her summer vacation, Sasha is given another task to complete each day throughout the school year. Meanwhile, Sasha’s mother starts seeing a man named Valentin. As expected from any adolescent, Sasha is going through academic pressures and a changing relationship with her mother. By the time she has graduated, Sasha’s grades have dropped, she doesn’t get into the university she wanted to attend, and her mother has married Valentin. However, because kept completing her “tasks,” Sasha is accepted to the Institute of Special Technologies in the town of Torpa, and the man—whose name is Farit Kozhennikov—is to be her advisor. Once at the school, Sasha—and her classmates—attend classes, follow strict rules, and complete their homework or face the consequences. Similar to any university, first year students have to adapt to all of the changes and study methods at the Institute. The difference is failure is not accepted and even the best students falter from time-to-time, even Sasha. Sasha studies and studies, and while she slowly comprehends her lessons and unlocks her mind to a new way of thinking, her punishments are as strange and as brutal as you can imagine. The Institute’s program lasts for 3 years, and then the students take their graduate final in order to “move on” to the graduate program. Sasha and all of the students at the Institute fear what happens if they fail, so they all study and perform as well as they can. Sasha realizes that she is outperforming her classmates to the point where she is not only at the top of her class, but also adapts to the Institute’s expectations. Due to these accomplishments, not only does Sasha becomes isolated from her peers, but also becomes more distant from her mother. Sasha’s mother, stepfather and friends develop in a more casual way. Sasha’s development is as complex as the story, but it is intriguing to read how she deals with life inside and outside the Institute. 

            The plot in Vita Nostra is the type of education being implemented at the Institute of Special Technologies through Sasha. The fact that this is the first book in the Metamorphosis series, should provide some hints, but not enough for readers to guess what will happen. Sasha is university student, which means she is learning how to balance her studies with any free time she has. And, like other university students, Sasha struggles with her classes and even misses a few of them due to exhaustion. Yet, she continues because she doesn’t want her mother to suffer for her failures. Eventually, Sasha not only grasps the meaning and the structure of her classes and her one-on-one sessions, but also exceeds beyond the expectations of her professors to the point where they have to set some rules for her to follow, so she does NOT get carried away with what she’s managed to accomplish so far. Sasha goes from struggling student to one that must be monitored so that she maintains control of herself. Sasha becomes so accomplished she becomes isolated from her peers. The subplot in this novel is the relationships Sasha struggles to maintain throughout her time at the Institute. While she remains friends with some of the other students, Sasha does all she can to hang on to her relationship with her mother. While Sasha is struggling with her studies, her mother is enjoying her new marriage (and later on a new baby). Sasha’s mother asks her constantly about leaving Torpa, but Sasha knows it’s best to remain there for her family’s safety, and to keep learning. The plot and the subplot converge around Sasha and everything she’s learning at the Institute, and its costs. She unlocks skills her professors want from their students. Once Sasha understands her potential and her skills, she cannot stop learning more. This imposes a new level of coercion set on her by her professors and her advisors. 

            The narrative in Vita Nostra is told from Sasha’s point-of-view and follows her growth from a candidate to a third year at the Institute. The book is in 3 parts, but there are no chapters. Instead, there are breaks that indicate when something else is occurring in Sasha’s life. This reflects the continuation of life of the characters and having chapters would disrupt the narrative. These breaks within the narrative allow readers to follow the story easily. This is because the narrative—while told in present time in stream-of-consciousness—there are moments where the sequence changes over to what may seem like a flashback but is actually a “do over” of these events. While this method of narration is objective—for it is essential for the novel—it presents Sasha to be a reliable, yet flawed, narrator because readers realize the extent of Sasha’s studies and accomplishments. Even before Sasha is accepted into the Institute, readers notice the beginnings of her change of her narration throughout the narration. Each part represents each year of Sasha’s time in Torpa, and the narration changes as Sasha changes; and, it is an experience unlike anything read before.  

            The style the authors—Marina and Sergey Dyachenko—use fall under metaphysical fiction. Metaphysical fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which, “things like mind over matter, energy medicine, and places that which is beyond physical measurement, beyond the ordinary, into the very ordinary and mundane world we human beings inhabit,” (Newland, 2013). In other words, characters possess talents, skills, and/or abilities that defy physical laws, but only a small percentage of the world’s population have these talents, so the rest of the world remains ignorant to people like Sasha, the purpose of the Institute of Special Technologies, and the phenomenon everyone there undergoes. Vita Nostra is NOT magic realism! Magic(al) realism is a subgenre of speculative fiction where a story set in a real location and time with ordinary people living ordinary lives experience fantastical or magical elements that are a natural part of the characters’ lives but remain mundane and unexplained (Witte, 2015). For example, in Isabel Allende’s, The House of the Spirits, there are two sisters. One has green hair and the other one is a clairvoyant. No explanation is provided, the other characters are unfazed by these phenomenon, and the story continues. Readers are left to doubt whether or not those fantastic elements are real. In Vita Nostra, Sasha and her classmates possess abilities that are beyond the ordinary, but they are isolated from the rest of the world because it is not considered to be “ordinary.” Instead, Sasha and the other students are left to deal with these metaphysical experiences on their own at the Institute. The tone in Vita Nostra is the cost of learning and the cost of failure at the Institute, a form of terrorism. The mood is the bizarreness of everything the students experience and how Sasha (and readers) are intrigued to learn more. The authors provide a story of what is possible and what is actual in their own words while following the elements of the metaphysical fiction (sub)genre. 

            Vita Nostra is a translated work of fiction. The novel was first published in 2007 in Russian in Ukraine. The novel was very popular at the time of its release in Russia and won the PocKoH in 2008. Vita Nostra has been described as “a cross between Lev Grossman’s The Magicians and Elizabeth Kostova’s The Historian…is the anti-Harry Potter you didn’t know you wanted,” by The Washington Post. I find the description to be very accurate. Other readers, including some authors, enjoyed this book as much as I did. While not everyone will appreciate the elements of dark fantasy and metaphysical fiction, they cannot deny the parallels to other works of Russian speculative fiction such as The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. I’ve been told by other readers that fans of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins will appreciate and enjoy Vita Nostra the most. I believe this novel will have more of a cult following which will transcend to a must read in due time. Meanwhile, the popularity of Vita Nostra will help with the expansion of the metaphysical fiction genre. This novel is the first in the Metamorphosis series. Digital, or Brevis Est was released in 2009 in Russian, and Migrant, or Brevi Finietur was released in 2010 in Russian. Both novels are follow-up standalone novels that follow other students at other Institutes who undergo their own metaphysical experiences. There have not been any news surrounding an upcoming translation of those books, but both The Burned Tower (1998) was released in English in 1999, and The Scar (1997)—the sequel to The Gate-Keeper (1994) and NOT released in English—was released in English in 2012. The next English translated book by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko is titled Daughter from the Dark and it’ll be released in February 2020, and I can’t wait to read it!

            Vita Nostra is a unique read that will introduce readers to new authors and another subgenre of speculative fiction. The combination of breaking reality with this coming-of-age story will remind readers everywhere that no matter the genre, themes such as family dynamics and education are universal. The story alone is enough to capture your attention and decides when and how to answer the questions you and the protagonist want answered. The expectations readers will have from the authors will match the expectations Sasha’s professors have for her. The Institute of Special Technologies is listed alongside Hogwarts, Sinegard Academy, and the Brakebills University for Magical Pedagogy as challenging and excelling educational institutes. I desire and I dread the existence of these academic institutions! 

My Rating: MUST READ IT NOW (5 out of 5)!!!

                                                            List of Works Cited

Newland, Tahlia. “Guest Post: Setting the Stage: Visionary & Metaphysical Fiction.” Tahlia Newland, 23 January 2013, http://www.tahlianewland.com/guest-post-setting-the-stage-visionary-metaphysical-fiction. 

Witte, Michelle. “Elements of Magical Realism.” Michelle Witte: Read Write Edit, 29 September 2015, http://michellewittebooks.com/2015/09/elements-of-magical-realism.