Peace Mass Market Paperback – May 5, 1955

Peace is not a book for everyone. It is best left to experienced readers who are eager to look between the lines. Casual readers will be frustrated by this novel, as with much of Wolfe's work.This book is a masterpiece deserving a place next to the works of Dickens, Hemingway, and Melville. Like other fine literature, it is a work which should be savored with multiple readings. Like many of Wolfe's works, Peace is a horror story in disguise. If you're not paying close attention, you may not notice the mystery haunting this book.I can assure you that while much of the book may not seem to make sense at first, everything does add up. What appears random is not. The pieces of the puzzle are scattered across the various unfinished stories in the novel. One story's beginning must serve as another's end. Characters masquerade across different stories. If you give up, as some reviewers apparently have, you can always search the internet for answers to this book's many riddles.

As with any Gene Wolfe novel, read it once and blow your mind. Then read it again, and this time proceed with caution, re-read the same chapter four times, set it down and ponder, take notes, consult your local librarian, and blow your mind again.

Seems many people hail "Peace" as a classic, a hidden gem, and as much as I love Wolfe, I had to put this down 35 pages in. I got it - the book is about an old man engaging on a surreal trip through his own memories, reliving them as if he is conscious within them - but alas, it's boring as hell. Maybe it got better eventually, but I'll probably never know.

First, I don't want to put anyone off this book when they see how everyone says it needs to be re-read to be able to understand it fully. This is an enjoyable read the first time through. It's a story of a man reflecting on his life though meandering and non-chronological stories. Even on the first read, it's a satisfying reflection on how one's life is made of a series of stories. When he jumps between stores without much transition between, it shows how memories can become mixed up.The story is told non-chronologically. Alden Weer is born sometime around 1900-1910. He's the narrator, but you don't actually find out that much about him personally. Most of his stories little glimpses into the lives of his family and acquaintances. A closer look reveals that Weer leaves some important information out of his narration.I see that this book is confidently classified as fantasy. However, the the most fantastical element is that the man reflecting on his life is already dead. As far as I can see, the remaining supernatural events in the book are metaphors or imaginary. However, I suppose that is up for debate.

If you've never read a Gene Wolfe novel, this is not the place to start.I'm not sure how to even describe Peace. I'm not sure I even know what it was about. I don't even know, really, what or where Alden Weer is in this book. He seems to be wandering through a mansion where every door opens into his memories. It's a beautiful metaphor, but not very accessible for those who have never been in such a mansion before. There are a whole lot of things that are never explained.If an author leads you through the wilderness of a story, Wolfe leads you through the most unusual terrain in the worst fog. For some people, this is not a journey they are comfortable taking. They do not trust their guide and they want to see the sights, not feel them. That is perfectly understandable.If any other author had tried to write this, I don't think they could have made me read it all the way through. In the beginning, I even thought of stopping because I had no idea where the book was going, but I kept reading because I trust Gene Wolfe to lead a worthy tale even on an off day. I'm glad I did. If you are an author who is this skilled in prose, you can tell any kind of story that you want. There will be something magnetic and revealing about the story even if the plot can't be untangled and you can't figure out who the characters are. Somehow, you are still going to get a reader out of that mess feeling like they've witnessed something unique and meaningful--because if you are as good at writing prose as Gene Wolfe is good at writing prose, everything you write really is unique and meaningful. (His grocery lists must be riveting.)Unfortunately an abstract book requires an abstract review, and anyone who had no intention of reading this author's work is probably not going to be encouraged by the way I'm writing here--but give Gene Wolfe a try. Maybe don't start here, but do give his work a read. You will be so much richer for it.