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manicule_megan's review against another edition
4.0
It was a really interesting book to read and I feel like there was a lot that I wasn't picking up on. I'm a little sad that this edition won't be released until Summer...
toomanydresses's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
acherry913's review against another edition
4.0
felt like a story i heard as a child retold in the voice of a witty and soft-spoken poet. i loved the composition, the tale, and the characters that the author interwove in the telling of this hazy and beautiful dream
bee_reads1885's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rjdenney's review against another edition
3.0
3 STARS
This was a very interesting and original read for me. I'd never read anything like this before, but on the other hand it was a tad confusing at times and had me going "Whaaa?" but it was a super quick read and has a really awesome cover. The reason I bought this was for the cover and the fact that it took place in an everlasting February (My Birthday month) and February was an actual person/villain in this story who reminded me of Winter from Santa Claus is coming to Town (which I know is an interesting comparison, but it fits.) , being that he's a very confused man who only lashes out because it's all he knows and all he feels.
In this book children are going missing, there's some magical realism going on, there is plenty of snow, and there are quite a few deaths. I liked this fairy-tale-like writing style the author played with and liked how short it was and the different fonts that were used. The book kept my interest until the end, which I also liked. Would I recommend this? If you're trying to add something in a hurry to your reading challenge (like me), then yes, and if you like books written in verse that play with magical realism then you'll want to read this too. All in all this was a good Christmas read.
- Richard :)
This was a very interesting and original read for me. I'd never read anything like this before, but on the other hand it was a tad confusing at times and had me going "Whaaa?" but it was a super quick read and has a really awesome cover. The reason I bought this was for the cover and the fact that it took place in an everlasting February (My Birthday month) and February was an actual person/villain in this story who reminded me of Winter from Santa Claus is coming to Town (which I know is an interesting comparison, but it fits.) , being that he's a very confused man who only lashes out because it's all he knows and all he feels.
In this book children are going missing, there's some magical realism going on, there is plenty of snow, and there are quite a few deaths. I liked this fairy-tale-like writing style the author played with and liked how short it was and the different fonts that were used. The book kept my interest until the end, which I also liked. Would I recommend this? If you're trying to add something in a hurry to your reading challenge (like me), then yes, and if you like books written in verse that play with magical realism then you'll want to read this too. All in all this was a good Christmas read.
- Richard :)
alanaleigh's review against another edition
4.0
The inhabitants of a town wage war against February itself in an attempt to regain lost seasons, children, and dreams. This was all I knew about Light Boxes when I purchased it. I believe I'd seen it listed in some trusted source somewhere, perhaps noting Shane Jones as an interesting new voice in fiction. That, combined with the lovely cover, was enough to intrigue me so that it made its way in to my shopping cart if not in to my purse for an immediate perusal. I bought it and it sat in a stack of other books, so placed to remind me that I wanted to read each and every one of them "next" but I didn't pick it up until April -- perhaps I should have read it during February itself for a better sense of scene, but Jones conjures up the grueling month quite clearly (even for those of us who enjoy winter, it becomes bleak in its unending state). Do I call it poetry? Free verse? Surreal fairy tale that bleeds in to a horror story? A melding of fiction and poetic conjuration of imagery? An attempt to explain via metafiction the experience of Seasonal Affective Disorder? Well whatever it is, and it may be all those things combined, it's not your usual narrative, even when the story concerns a month made both flesh and eternal. Light Boxes is sad and thoughtful and, despite the ongoing nature of February, surprisingly brief in its tale.
Those who have grown up in oppressive winters will indubitably find a kindred spirit in Shane Jones, who envisions the horror of all horrors to be an endless February of ice, snow, and bitter wind. In this town, flight has been outlawed and so, earth-bound, the inhabitants cannot do anything but kindle within their breasts a revolution against February and hope that the sparks are not blown out before something takes hold. Layered worlds provide a scene that feels like an MC Escher drawing, opening holes in the floor that turn out to be gaping wounds in the sky, and children stolen from their beds tunnel underground to provide scraps of messages that convey hopes and war plans. I know of no clear way to describe this novel beyond these swirling images that dance like snowflakes. Yes, there is a story involving a father who must soldier to lead the war against February on after his daughter disappears and his wife dies in her grief. Perhaps it's best to approach this novel as a long free-verse poem, or, like Alan Lightman's Einstein's Dreams, short observations that are tied together by theme and a strange, twisting narrative. In the end, it's not really that "main" narrative that stuck with me so much as the amazing details or vivid descriptions. Did I mention flight was banned? Think on this one idea for a moment... the concept of individuals burning and destroying anything that might rise above, like balloons or even birds... the concealment of treasured items... the painting of kites on a child's arms with the knowledge she will always have to wear sleeves to be safe, but at least she will never forget. The imagery is haunting and while the "story" might not be something that provides a sense of satisfaction, it does not fail in provoking wonder.
The narrative hinges on the experience of February as lingering and oppressively endless. Perhaps it's because I do not experience Seasonal Affective Disorder and actually take great delight in winter but the brevity of the book that I mentioned earlier extends beyond page count. Despite the knowledge that it must be so, the eternal February never sunk in for me, like ice melting through one's clothes. Though I also mean that it took me a little more than an hour to read this in its entirety. When I finished, I wasn't quite sure what to think. I still don't quite know what to think, but I am most definitely thinking of it and on it. So much was unexpected and left open. I had not expected the emphasis on layout and design to convey the poetic message. It could arguably be too kitschy to have such reliance but I never even considered that until after the fact. The design helps the scenes in many ways, though at times it was distracting. I also hadn't quite realized there would be such emphasis on vignettes stitched together to provide structure. The through narrative is exceedingly loose in retrospect, even if the reader does feel compelled on while reading, like a traveler lost in a blizzard who spies a light ahead. Perhaps that's the thing, though, I hadn't realized much of anything before I wandered in to Shane Jones's strange world and that might be just the way to go.
I will, however, likely have to sit on this book some time before I can start suggesting it to people in earnest. New York has just come in to bloom after a winter that had many begging for relief (not unlike the town inhabitants of this novel, though New Yorkers failed to come up with active plans to combat the lingering weather) and so to suggest that they read a novel about eternal winter amidst blossoming daffodils and tulips... well, perhaps not. It is most definitely a novel that benefits from a "right place, right time" attitude and to impose it upon a reader in any other situation would not be to anyone's benefit. Still, should you feel yourself in need of surreal experimentational literature at any point (particularly during a snow storm or chilly night), then I would recommend this slim volume. And I would ask that you report back to tell me if you can look at owls in the same way as you did before reading this book.
PS Goodreads fans should get a kick out of the fact that February himself ( http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2224484-february ) thinks this is "a terrible book of lies."
Those who have grown up in oppressive winters will indubitably find a kindred spirit in Shane Jones, who envisions the horror of all horrors to be an endless February of ice, snow, and bitter wind. In this town, flight has been outlawed and so, earth-bound, the inhabitants cannot do anything but kindle within their breasts a revolution against February and hope that the sparks are not blown out before something takes hold. Layered worlds provide a scene that feels like an MC Escher drawing, opening holes in the floor that turn out to be gaping wounds in the sky, and children stolen from their beds tunnel underground to provide scraps of messages that convey hopes and war plans. I know of no clear way to describe this novel beyond these swirling images that dance like snowflakes. Yes, there is a story involving a father who must soldier to lead the war against February on after his daughter disappears and his wife dies in her grief. Perhaps it's best to approach this novel as a long free-verse poem, or, like Alan Lightman's Einstein's Dreams, short observations that are tied together by theme and a strange, twisting narrative. In the end, it's not really that "main" narrative that stuck with me so much as the amazing details or vivid descriptions. Did I mention flight was banned? Think on this one idea for a moment... the concept of individuals burning and destroying anything that might rise above, like balloons or even birds... the concealment of treasured items... the painting of kites on a child's arms with the knowledge she will always have to wear sleeves to be safe, but at least she will never forget. The imagery is haunting and while the "story" might not be something that provides a sense of satisfaction, it does not fail in provoking wonder.
The narrative hinges on the experience of February as lingering and oppressively endless. Perhaps it's because I do not experience Seasonal Affective Disorder and actually take great delight in winter but the brevity of the book that I mentioned earlier extends beyond page count. Despite the knowledge that it must be so, the eternal February never sunk in for me, like ice melting through one's clothes. Though I also mean that it took me a little more than an hour to read this in its entirety. When I finished, I wasn't quite sure what to think. I still don't quite know what to think, but I am most definitely thinking of it and on it. So much was unexpected and left open. I had not expected the emphasis on layout and design to convey the poetic message. It could arguably be too kitschy to have such reliance but I never even considered that until after the fact. The design helps the scenes in many ways, though at times it was distracting. I also hadn't quite realized there would be such emphasis on vignettes stitched together to provide structure. The through narrative is exceedingly loose in retrospect, even if the reader does feel compelled on while reading, like a traveler lost in a blizzard who spies a light ahead. Perhaps that's the thing, though, I hadn't realized much of anything before I wandered in to Shane Jones's strange world and that might be just the way to go.
I will, however, likely have to sit on this book some time before I can start suggesting it to people in earnest. New York has just come in to bloom after a winter that had many begging for relief (not unlike the town inhabitants of this novel, though New Yorkers failed to come up with active plans to combat the lingering weather) and so to suggest that they read a novel about eternal winter amidst blossoming daffodils and tulips... well, perhaps not. It is most definitely a novel that benefits from a "right place, right time" attitude and to impose it upon a reader in any other situation would not be to anyone's benefit. Still, should you feel yourself in need of surreal experimentational literature at any point (particularly during a snow storm or chilly night), then I would recommend this slim volume. And I would ask that you report back to tell me if you can look at owls in the same way as you did before reading this book.
PS Goodreads fans should get a kick out of the fact that February himself ( http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2224484-february ) thinks this is "a terrible book of lies."
chlosophis's review against another edition
4.0
This book is so amazing. I wish I could write so simply and profoundly like Shane Jones.
It's only 167 pages long (A5 with quirky formatting) and is so refreshing.
You can read it in two or three hours and feel bizarrely peaceful.
My favourite quote:
"They find Bianca dead on the riverbank. Two members of the War Effort drag her from the water and place her limbs at the her side, rest her head on a rock. The members stare. She is covered in blue ink, random letters they can't form into words. When they tell Thaddeus (her father), the smell of mint leaves is so strong it turns the windows green and the clouds look like moss."
It's only 167 pages long (A5 with quirky formatting) and is so refreshing.
You can read it in two or three hours and feel bizarrely peaceful.
My favourite quote:
"They find Bianca dead on the riverbank. Two members of the War Effort drag her from the water and place her limbs at the her side, rest her head on a rock. The members stare. She is covered in blue ink, random letters they can't form into words. When they tell Thaddeus (her father), the smell of mint leaves is so strong it turns the windows green and the clouds look like moss."
adambwriter's review against another edition
4.0
Summary
Shane Jones’s Light Boxes is a fantastical tale of a small town struggling to survive through a perpetual winter. The month is February, and is always February. Those of us Americans & Canadians who have lived through Midwest or East Coast Februaries can immediately recognize the oppression which this last and most brutal winter month brings. Creativity and inspiration are sucked up as children are still forced to remain indoors after two or three long months of bitter cold, snow, sleet, ice, and winds. The mental exhaustion and physical frustration that comes from lack of sunlight, causing “cabin fever” has brought these townspeople to their limit, and after the powerful being, February (who is both an active character(s) and the time period described) bans all forms of flight, for everyone and everything, the townspeople are moved to fight.
The Good
Shane Jones’s Light Boxes has been criticized by some viewers as being a bit nonsensical and unresolved; what these critics miss, apparently, is the entire point of the novel. This is a phantasmagorical romp through the best of lyrical whimsy-noir (yes, I made that up). What I mean is, Jones brings us, with this, his first novel, on an adult fairy tale, the likes of which I can only recall in the works of Lewis Carroll and the Brothers Grimm. The author also takes risks with the composition; as he brings his readers to the creative outer-reaches with his bizarre, dreamlike story, so does he push the boundaries of prose construction by alternating font types & sizes, as well as words-per-page (some filled top to bottom, others just one sentence splashed in the middle of a blank whiteness). All of these elements, as well as the themes themselves: family, home, depression, loss, sadness, and creative-thinking make the novel bittersweet in its playfulness (because the ambiguous ending leaves it up to the reader, really, to determine whether New Town truly answers the prayers of the villagers or not). I also find the idea of a self-conscience deity, an omnipotent being with self-doubt, quite intriguing. The two “powers”, February and The Girl Who Smelled of Honey and Smoke, seem to represent two sides of the same supernatural coin; one compassionate and warm, the other cold and distant. These powers express their commands, their wishes, through writing, none of which ever seems to turn out quite the way it had been planned. Careful readers and experienced writers are likely to catch the meaning here, and be delighted by it (as I was).
The Bad
There really is not much to put in this category. I could say that the novel is too short, but that is not really an accurate criticism, as the novel is exactly as long as it needs to be (though I could have happily gone along with more of the story). I suppose there are two things which I did take issue with, one being a personal preference and the other a question about the story I find could have been more flushed out. In regards to the personal preference complaint, I mean the prose & style. While I applaud authors for being bold and creative in their formatting, I always tend to find these seemingly random, over-the-top text changes a bit distracting. Now, to qualify my own argument, I have to state that this is clearly a dreamscape novel, which should not be bound to conventional rules and, as such, I understand the reasoning (sort of) behind these choices. Still, for me personally, I could do without it. Now, the item in the storyline I wish had been a bit more established was the relationship between “The Builder and the Housewife” and “The Creator, February, and The Girl Who Smelled of Honey and Smoke.” We learn that the Creator, called February, gives The Builder and his wife the same names as the people have given the Creator and his counterpart, which leads me to believe that “The Creator,” who is represented as two beings, male and female, is actually one. Still, what is the relationship between these three (or four) people? It seems almost religious in nature, sub-textually something is going on, but it eludes me.
Final Verdict: 4.5 out of 5.0
Quite obviously, I am generally enamored with this short, dark fantasy. While reading, I immediately began to picture the story in my mind, as I would watch it if it were a film and, if rumors are true, there may indeed be a movie in the works; if so, I believe that, done right, it will be absolutely brilliant. The imagery alone is enough to create a stunningly visual film, but the odd storyline and moving emotional moments will create, I think, something along the lines of a “Waking Life” or “Coraline.” Possible movie aside, though, I found the novel to be touching, both sad and jubilant, with hints of true personal sorrow and struggle on many levels (religious, social, and familial). This particular story and its form are probably not for everyone, but I would certainly recommend it to my more artistic and ambitious readers.
nikkiehippie0's review against another edition
4.0
A strange and magical little find that was again a recommendation from an independent bookstore. It felt like the exact little book I’ve been trying to find. It feels like we are all in a fight against our own February right now with the state of the world. It gave me hope