Arrow Codex

I find the flak this book has attracted very difficult to understand. It's a perfectly pleasant, slick, smart and fairly clever thirller. Ok, it's not as clever as it thinks it is, and I got very annoyed when somebody was doing a thesis on Donne and the English Revolution. Donne died in 1631 and the English Civil War began in 1642. (The thesis must have been short and unsuccessful.) An undigested lump is downloaded in a cafe, and bibliographers might enjoy spotting mistakes in it. But never mind, never mind, because if we suspend disbelief the book unfolds into great fun, smooth writing, and a fascinating premise. I can't give that last away, but it's a most intriguing idea and there were moments when I really loved Codex, the sly, tricky thing.

I was drawn into this book by the strength of the writing itself: subtle descriptions and subtler echoes between memories, books, events, and the computer game in the story. What kept me interested was the opening of interlocked mysteries and unexpected twists. The central character, Edward, earned my sympathy and my interest and somehow avoided being contemptible despite being painfully passive much of the time, willing to be moved around by most of the other characters in the book, unwilling to take a stand. Yet what I want from these kinds of characters is to see what it means to come out of that passivity, to understand who you are and assert it even if it means things will get much harder for you--the kind of thing I got out of the movie American Beauty (Widescreen Edition), or Wally Lamb's book She's Come Undone. But that's not where author Lev Grossman is coming from, and it's not that kind of book. In a different way, though, it has an exceptional resonance and harmony among all of the elements: Edward's life, the story in the Codex, the game ... they all echo and in some ways contradict each other in delicately-constructed, illuminating, and beautiful ways.Some of the other reviews I've read have been extremely harsh, even making crazy accusations against the author himself. My guess is that these come from people who were enchanted by many of the same elements I found enchanting, but who couldn't reconcile themselves to where Grossman then took them. For some readers, I think this book is wildly disappointing, and if you require pat resolutions and a hero who wins out at all costs, you may be one of them. For readers who are willing to be taken on the ride for its own sake, to disagree with the protagonist and even the world of the story while still being nourished by it, this is a strong book indeed.

I picked up on Grossman because of The Magicians, and I suspect a great number of people who did the same are glancing over the wealth of bad reviews here and feeling worried. Well, here's what to do: if you like simplistic by-the-numbers plots featuring granite-jawed heroes with all the depth of a freshly trimmed toenail punching their way to a 'satisfying' conclusion, as so many of the reviewers here clearly do, this book is not for you. If, however, you're looking for a refreshingly clever, and cleverly constructed narrative, then come right in.For a long time, all those one-star reviews of Codex here and on Amazon US kept me at a distance, but having now read and thoroughly enjoyed the book, I have come to understand why so many people believe the majority of Amazon reviews are not worth a damn, that they are written by people with nary the mental strength to work out the complexities of a Nancy Drew novel. Very simply put, most of the bad reviews here and elsewhere are by people who *have not actually read the book*. Instead, they have skimmed it, glossing over the - to me - carefully placed clues that led to a very, very satisfying conclusion. For instance, the complaints regarding the ending: if you don't get it, you should probably give up reading and stick to DVD's. Ones with lots of bullets and explosions. WIthout giving anything away, the clue is right there. Grossman even states the nature of his clever twist outright, for the benefit of those members of the audience still lipreading their way through the narrative. I have seen precisely one review here - or rather, a comment on a bad review - where a reader clearly understood that given the nature of the mystery at the heart of Codex, the book could not possibly end any other way than the way it did.Look, ignore the bad reviews, unless you like simple, undemanding stories where the hero always gets the girl and the bad guy always ends up falling into a pit, screaming 'foiled again!' For the rest of you - those who understood that The Magicians was a clever, intricate novel by a writer who understood his art on a deep level - Codex will not disappoint.

I love his other books but this one was just ok

I can only think that when author Grossman finished his novel "Codex" and delivered it to his publisher, his publisher called in the editors and a larger, more cohesive novel was whittled down to blockbuster sales size. Yes, I am being kind, but I think that there is definite potential in this fairly short read that revolves around a young career-in doubt investment banker turned private librarian with an after-hours penchant for role-playing computer games. Yet the pages within the pressed board simply leaves out too much information to make the book work in a satisfying way on as many levels as Grossman might have intended.Unfortunately, for the reader, Grossman starts off shakily, asking the unaskable: suspend belief on common sense without any preparation---at least give us a "Once Upon a Time". He isn't really clear about why Edward is lured into the geek world of role-playing when he is scheduled to begin a new and improved level of employment at his firm's London office within weeks. Neither are we told why he decides to roll up his sleeves and begin unwrapping the private book collection of the fabulously wealthy Duke and Duchess instead of just getting on with his 2 week vacation. Grossman does such an enthusiastically entertaining job of characterizing the assortment of counterculture computer nerds who gather around empty pizza boxes and diet Coke cans that I get the sense that the same detail was or should have been afforded to the rest of the narrative. Perhaps in the unedited version of "Codex", Edward's life better parallels the mysterious codex or medieval novel that he is told to find and the sense of time-wasted within the cyberworld better alludes to the sense of redundancy in the land of Cimmeria and the waffling Edward does with his own life goals. If only the reader had been allowed to soak in that dreamy quality and become as addicted to Edward's further discoveries inside and outside reality as Edward is to his gameplaying inside and outside his own reality.Grossman has his moments: the discovery of the actual codex parallels nicely with Edward's growing awareness of the powers-that-be who control the MOMUS game. His characters don't ponder to death the obvious like they do in many of the other popular "let's find the hidden message in the ancient/medieval/Renaissance text" literary offerings of the last few years. Discoveries happen at a fairly believable rate which the reader hardly has time to figure out beforehand. Bravo on this aspect of the novel!The ending, however, left much to be desired. More detail may have made it more understandable. But I would have liked more of a connection paralleling the message secreted by the medieval author and Edward's life--not just its relation to the cyberworld of the game.Bottom line: "Codex" has potential, but it seems more an outline to a much bigger more complicated book that could have been a real cult classic rather than the muddled 300+ page literary thriller that it is marketed as.