A review by throatsprockets
The Book of Skulls: A Novel by Robert Silverberg
4.0
For the first half of this book, I was disappointed by the paucity of skulls. However at the halfway point skulls started to appear, and by the end not only were there many depictions if skulls, and not only was skull imagery central to the themes and metaphors that Robert Silverberg was putting across, but skulls began to get involved in the action. If you came yo this book because of the title don’t be put off by the slow burn, this really is a book of skulls.
The story, part road trip part character study part spiritual journey, is satisfying. Silverberg crafts four central characters who start as stock types but grow and deepen as the story continues. It’s a dark tale that takes a fairly dim view of humanity, but it wraps up in a very satisfying manner both in terms of narrative and theme.
But let’s face it, we’re here to read about skulls and Silverberg delivers.
Four skulls out of five. One skull deducted for the very 1970s sexism.
The story, part road trip part character study part spiritual journey, is satisfying. Silverberg crafts four central characters who start as stock types but grow and deepen as the story continues. It’s a dark tale that takes a fairly dim view of humanity, but it wraps up in a very satisfying manner both in terms of narrative and theme.
But let’s face it, we’re here to read about skulls and Silverberg delivers.
Four skulls out of five. One skull deducted for the very 1970s sexism.