I had heard about Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell some time ago but avoided it because of its length. After watching the first episode of the BBC miniseries I decided to give it a try anyway. And it was well worth the time put into it. Now first off I'll just say that I think it is an either love or hate it type book. I loved it but I could see why it some people might not enjoy it. The plot kind of just meanders and takes a lot of detours and there isn't a genuine conflict until the last couple hundred pages. Oh yeah... did I mention that it is over 1000 pages?The book takes place in the early 1800's in an alternate history England in which magic used to be widely practiced until a few hundred years ago. The current "magicians" don't actually practice magic and just study its history... that is until they find a practicing magician with a vast library of magic books, Mr Norrell. He wants to help England in the war against Napoleon and make magic respectable. After a few years another magician, Jonathan Strange, comes along and becomes Norrell's student but quickly surpasses him in both magical performance and standing in society. A rivalry grows between the two as they have different goals for bringing magic back to England and they have contrasting personalities.
I found the book charming and I liked all the little details about magical history Clarke puts in the many footnotes throughout. It isn't the type of book that you want to read quickly... I enjoyed just reading a chapter or two each day and slowly learning about this world. The ending was satisfying but it still left me with a ton of questions... I need there to be a sequel to this now! I'll give it an A.
It also mentions Emma.
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