Mockingbird

by Sean Stewart

Book Overview

"Stephen King meets Ibsen. Trust me." --Neal Stephenson "Witty, wicked, and wise. Wonderful " --Karen Joy Fowler, The Jane Austen Book Club "A wonderfully vivid and unexpected blend of magic realism... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0441005470
• ISBN13: 9780441005475
• Release Date: August 1998
• Publisher: Ace Books
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.6" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

There are some gifts which may not be refused

Once in a while, I reach a point in a book when I have to stop and realize "Oh, this is going to be GOOD." Sometimes that is early on, sometimes it is not until halfway through. Some books make that promise but don't deliver, and others never even make the promise in the first place. Sean Stewart's "Mockingbird" not only has that moment, but it delivers on it brilliantly. It happens on page three, with the description of Geronimo, the zombie frog. What seems at first like something clever, funny, almost cute in its concept (the idea of a zombie frog) becomes something far more disturbing and real when examined more closely. This simple event, something that happens fairly early in Toni Beauchamp's life, sets the stage for the story and the tone for the rest of the novel. It was my "Oh, this is going to be good" moment...and oh, it was. As the story begins, Toni Beauchamp's mother dies, and she is left to figure out what to do with her debt, both spiritual and financial, as well as what to do with her inheritance -- her mother's gift for magic. Thing is, she doesn't want that gift. Her mother, a famous (in some circles) voodoo practitioner, has kept magic a part of her life and her daughters' lives, and Toni wants to be done with it. She finds, however, that she doesn't have much choice, and her family's gift has a way of creeping back into her life again and again. Sean Stewart is at his best when he dances along the edge of the fantastic, but he always manages to keep his feet in the real world as well. Just as he did in the excellent "Perfect Circle," his story in "Mockingbird" treats magic and mysticism as only a part of his characters' lives, and not even the most significant part. His characters still have jobs, they still have friends, families, and all the little details that make up all of our lives -- and as if that didn't make things complicated enough, they have to add magic into the mix as well. In "Mockingbird," as in the best of Stewart's stories, a real-world sensibility is what grounds the story, even when the story is about magic. It is a difficult feat to pull off, but I have never seen anyone do it better than Stewart does. When you can tell a story about voodoo, family, pregnancy, dating, possession, and even have a zombie frog in there, and make it all work together, you know you've got something good. "Mockingbird" is a novel that gets all of it right, and you'll know it right from somewhere on page three.

Refreshingly different and very readable.

I first discovered Sean Steward in Perfect Circle, which is his best book to date in my not-so-humble opinion. This one comes close though. In this book, like Perfect Circle, Stewart writes in a way that is very readable and occasionally drops in such clever and well-written phrases and sentences that I actually stepped back and appreciated the writing skill as well as the story. That is not to say that you lose your immersion in the story, and it is not to say that he is wordy or pretentious. Just the opposite. It is prose that is a delight to read. The story is interesting, but it is the characters that will drive you to the end. That is Stewart's strength. He writes people you are interested in knowing more about. In a nutshell, I'd recommend Perfect Circle and Mockingbird as a pair - great reading!

It's even funnier if you're pregnant

I really enjoyed this book, zombie frogs, voodoo Riders, and all the perils and tribulations possible while being pregnant when I wasn't pregnant yet. After getting pregnant, though, man, it's *really* funny and it's really obvious that the man did some real research into the problems. Mockingbird is more easy going than some of Stewart's other books, warmer, funnier, and much more involved with the everyday things that go with someone's life with all the complexities, absurdities, and joy that goes with it. It still has that touch of magic he brings to everything, and I highly recommend it.

Another excellent novel from Sean Stewart.

Sean Stewart has produced yet another great fantasy novel that differs from his others in the same way Nobody's Sun was different from Resurrection Man. This time, he's chosen to explore the intersection of voudon, white folk magic, and Mexican folk magic -- and the result is brilliant.

Anne Rice-ish, but funny, funny, funny

Zombie frogs, cursed oilfields, and mouth-watering Mexican recipes abound in this wild tale of one young woman's trip from daughterhood to motherhood. I don't usually read SF, but a friend recommended this book, and I loved it. It reminded me a bit of Like Water for Chocolate, or like one of Anne Rice's witch-books....except this writer has a sense of humor.