Este sitio utiliza cookies para ofrecer nuestros servicios, mejorar el rendimiento, análisis y (si no estás registrado) publicidad. Al usar LibraryThing reconoces que has leído y comprendido nuestros términos de servicio y política de privacidad. El uso del sitio y de los servicios está sujeto a estas políticas y términos.
Third in the Balumnia Trilogy from the author of The Elfin Ship and The Disappearing Dwarf, "a singular American fabulist" (William Gibson, author of Neuromancer). Jonathan Bing wasn't the first citizen of Twombly Town to have a run-in with Selznak the Dwarf. Meet the young Theophile Escargot, aggrieved former citizen of Twombly Town. Divorced, exiled, and humiliated--all for the crime of eating his own pie--he sets off down the Oriel River in search of a fetching barmaid, only to find himself traveling by submarine into fabled Balumnia, where is he is beset on all sides by an evil dwarf, a piratical elf, a stone giant, and an unlucky bag of marbles. With a little help, Escargot must rescue his true love, save the elves, and--most importantly--redeem his dignity. Revisit the world of The Elfin Ship and The Disappearing Dwarf, and discover where the adventures began. "Blaylock crafted a story of engaging characters, cozy settings, and goofy adventures. Escargot is one of the most likable and ridiculous rogues in fantasy. His evolution from layabout and pie-thief to actual hero is terrific." --Black Gate Praise for the Balumnia Trilogy "A magical world, magically presented . . . Having journeyed there, you will not wish to leave, nor ever to forget." --Philip K. Dick, Hugo Award-winning author of The Man in the High Castle… (más)
This is, for no reason I can fathom, a prequel to the other two Balumnia books, and it's a mark of how much I enjoy Blaylock as a stylist that I managed to finish it. Delightful though his sleepy towns and haunted forests are, this book has no plot, and the main character is almost entirely unlikable to me. Escargot made for a decent supporting cast member, but he's a terrible protagonist. The motivational mechanism of giving him a family is painfully thin (we find out "the wife's" name 4/5 of the way through the book!). He spends the entire story drifting from encounter to encounter by chance and surviving them all the same way, in between being tiresomely self-important. Even more unfortunately, there are hardly any other characters at all, none of them a sustained presence.
Unless you're a completist, I would advise anyone to skip it. ( )
Jeté hors de Havreville par une épouse qui le rendait fou à force de lui refuser ses tartes, estampé par un nain en chapeau mou, et mené en bateau par Léta, un joli minois, Théophile Escargot fait décidément un bien piètre aventurier. Pour oublier ces tourments qui l'accablent, il décide de se mettre en quête de la Balumnie, un pays mythique dont parlent les fables. Découvertes et aventures seront plus que nombreuses dans le périple qui l'attend, même si moult fois il ne pensera être que le spectateur d'une farce qui le dépasse. Voilà pourtant qui est compter sans les ressources aussi magiques qu'inattendues dont Théophile Escargot a le secret...
This was the final book in The Elfin Ship trilogy. It's actually set in time before the first two books, and with a bit more of a mature tone. Blaylock's portrayal of a young Theophile Escargot is certainly different from the other books as well, and you may actually feel some empathy for the guy. Now having finished this book, I am sad to know that there are no more adventures for the beloved characters in this series. ( )
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés.Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
If a man slept by day, he had little time to work. That was a satisfying notion to Escargot.
He liked fishing a little too much, and he believed that work was something a man did when he had to. He had always been able to get along well enough without it, especially for the last couple of years.
Third in the Balumnia Trilogy from the author of The Elfin Ship and The Disappearing Dwarf, "a singular American fabulist" (William Gibson, author of Neuromancer). Jonathan Bing wasn't the first citizen of Twombly Town to have a run-in with Selznak the Dwarf. Meet the young Theophile Escargot, aggrieved former citizen of Twombly Town. Divorced, exiled, and humiliated--all for the crime of eating his own pie--he sets off down the Oriel River in search of a fetching barmaid, only to find himself traveling by submarine into fabled Balumnia, where is he is beset on all sides by an evil dwarf, a piratical elf, a stone giant, and an unlucky bag of marbles. With a little help, Escargot must rescue his true love, save the elves, and--most importantly--redeem his dignity. Revisit the world of The Elfin Ship and The Disappearing Dwarf, and discover where the adventures began. "Blaylock crafted a story of engaging characters, cozy settings, and goofy adventures. Escargot is one of the most likable and ridiculous rogues in fantasy. His evolution from layabout and pie-thief to actual hero is terrific." --Black Gate Praise for the Balumnia Trilogy "A magical world, magically presented . . . Having journeyed there, you will not wish to leave, nor ever to forget." --Philip K. Dick, Hugo Award-winning author of The Man in the High Castle
)
Google Books — Cargando...
4
Unless you're a completist, I would advise anyone to skip it. (