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A review by sergek94
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was the pick of The Fantasy Guild book club for the month of January 2022.
“It is my belief that the World (or, if you will, the House, since the two are for all practical purposes identical) wishes an Inhabitant for Itself to be a witness to its Beauty and the recipient of its Mercies.
If I leave, then the House will have no Inhabitant and how will I bear the thought of it Empty?”
In the silent depths of the House, regularly engulfed by the never-ending waves of the sea, Piranesi wanders through hallowed halls, accompanied by no one other than the occasional birds that fly into the area, the multitudes of statues that grace the halls with their silent and commanding presence, and the bones of the dead that have been there ever since Piranesi can remember. Twice a week, his friend, the Other, pays him a visit, and Piranesi uses his acute powers of observation and memory to aid him in his quest of finding the ultimate knowledge. This story takes us through the journal entries of Piranesi, as we discover this mysterious world with him, and we also attempt to figure out what the actual truth is.
What a magnificent read this was! The writing was spectacular, and the world was crafted in such vivid detail.I went into this book quite blind, not really reading the blurb or knowing what to expect, and I believe this book is best experienced with as little prior information as possible.Piranesi is a kind and gentle soul, and he revers the world he is in. He respects all the little nooks and crannies of the vestibules, and takes care of the dead there, constantly bringing them offerings and making them know that they are never forgotten. He is quite the idealist, having complete faith in the rightness of the world, and his friend, who visits him regularly. He is thankful for all that he has, and has been a loyal guardian of this House he is in for several years now.
“Not everything about the Wind was bad. Sometimes it blew through the little voids and crevices of the Statues and caused them to sing and whistle in surprising ways; I had never known the Statues to have voices before and it made me laugh for sheer delight.”
However, not everything is as it seems. There is a darkness that lingers over the House, not in the form of an evil entity, but at the unspoken feeling that Piranesi might not be who he believes he is, and that those bones he tends to aren't peaceful inhabitants of the House who have been in a peaceful eternal slumber, but are actually the victims of something much more sinister.There is also the looming presence of the mysterious person nicknamed "16", who is wandering the vestibules of the House, putting Piranesi's sanity at stake.
The pace of this book is slow and haunting. We get to feel like very small and insignificant entities in a house that is larger than life, and has an ancientness to it that makes us feel quite irrelevant in comparison. The reader must be patient and endure a relatively slower paced narrative, being receptive to the information that slowly pieces itself together. By the end of it, most of the situation will make sense, though we are still left with many questions; but to me, that was part of the beauty of the story, since it stays true to the atmosphere of grandeur and mystery that the book started off with, and it doesn't take away that atmosphere by revealing everything at the end. Some might find this to be an irritating aspect of the book, however.
“The World feels Complete and Whole, and I, its Child, fit into it seamlessly. Nowhere is there any disjuncture where I ought to remember something but do not, where I ought to understand something but do not.”
Profound themes such as extreme dissociation as a way of coping with trauma are explored. When we are so deeply wounded and traumatized, a possible reaction would be to completely fall asleep to ourselves, and disassociate from the pain we are feeling. This emptiness that is left behind can then be filled with a new identity, a one better equipped to handle the traumatic experience, and a one that is more empathetic and forgiving to others, since when our inner light is dimmed out, we can be more aware of the inner lights of others, and feel more empathy towards them.
I definitely recommend reading this! I don't think it will work for everyone, but it definitely worked for me!
“Several times Waves passed over our heads, but they fell back the next instant. We were drenched, we were numbed, we were blinded, we were deafened; but always we were saved.”
“It is my belief that the World (or, if you will, the House, since the two are for all practical purposes identical) wishes an Inhabitant for Itself to be a witness to its Beauty and the recipient of its Mercies.
If I leave, then the House will have no Inhabitant and how will I bear the thought of it Empty?”
In the silent depths of the House, regularly engulfed by the never-ending waves of the sea, Piranesi wanders through hallowed halls, accompanied by no one other than the occasional birds that fly into the area, the multitudes of statues that grace the halls with their silent and commanding presence, and the bones of the dead that have been there ever since Piranesi can remember. Twice a week, his friend, the Other, pays him a visit, and Piranesi uses his acute powers of observation and memory to aid him in his quest of finding the ultimate knowledge. This story takes us through the journal entries of Piranesi, as we discover this mysterious world with him, and we also attempt to figure out what the actual truth is.
What a magnificent read this was! The writing was spectacular, and the world was crafted in such vivid detail.I went into this book quite blind, not really reading the blurb or knowing what to expect, and I believe this book is best experienced with as little prior information as possible.Piranesi is a kind and gentle soul, and he revers the world he is in. He respects all the little nooks and crannies of the vestibules, and takes care of the dead there, constantly bringing them offerings and making them know that they are never forgotten. He is quite the idealist, having complete faith in the rightness of the world, and his friend, who visits him regularly. He is thankful for all that he has, and has been a loyal guardian of this House he is in for several years now.
“Not everything about the Wind was bad. Sometimes it blew through the little voids and crevices of the Statues and caused them to sing and whistle in surprising ways; I had never known the Statues to have voices before and it made me laugh for sheer delight.”
However, not everything is as it seems. There is a darkness that lingers over the House, not in the form of an evil entity, but at the unspoken feeling that Piranesi might not be who he believes he is, and that those bones he tends to aren't peaceful inhabitants of the House who have been in a peaceful eternal slumber, but are actually the victims of something much more sinister.There is also the looming presence of the mysterious person nicknamed "16", who is wandering the vestibules of the House, putting Piranesi's sanity at stake.
The pace of this book is slow and haunting. We get to feel like very small and insignificant entities in a house that is larger than life, and has an ancientness to it that makes us feel quite irrelevant in comparison. The reader must be patient and endure a relatively slower paced narrative, being receptive to the information that slowly pieces itself together. By the end of it, most of the situation will make sense, though we are still left with many questions; but to me, that was part of the beauty of the story, since it stays true to the atmosphere of grandeur and mystery that the book started off with, and it doesn't take away that atmosphere by revealing everything at the end. Some might find this to be an irritating aspect of the book, however.
“The World feels Complete and Whole, and I, its Child, fit into it seamlessly. Nowhere is there any disjuncture where I ought to remember something but do not, where I ought to understand something but do not.”
Profound themes such as extreme dissociation as a way of coping with trauma are explored. When we are so deeply wounded and traumatized, a possible reaction would be to completely fall asleep to ourselves, and disassociate from the pain we are feeling. This emptiness that is left behind can then be filled with a new identity, a one better equipped to handle the traumatic experience, and a one that is more empathetic and forgiving to others, since when our inner light is dimmed out, we can be more aware of the inner lights of others, and feel more empathy towards them.
I definitely recommend reading this! I don't think it will work for everyone, but it definitely worked for me!
“Several times Waves passed over our heads, but they fell back the next instant. We were drenched, we were numbed, we were blinded, we were deafened; but always we were saved.”