What A Difference 20 Years Makes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                     I read this when it first came out, and I was unimpressed.  I filed it in my memory bank, and on my annual book list, with the idea, "Well, that's that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

                                       Twenty years later, "The New York Times" ran an article on the novel and its author.  Other articles appeared, and I began to wonder--Should I take another look at this book?  Maybe I missed something along the way.

                                          And was that true!  I was not ready for it two decades before as I was not steeped in 19th century literature, as one must be to get through this novel.  And not just the text, darlings, but you have to read the footnotes which are all manufactured books by the author, and imaginary stories that go along with the titular story being told.

                                               I am not a fantasy follower, but this novel is so many things in one it bears a reread.  From the opening exposition to the romantic ending that made me tear up, this was an experience I never expected to have but am so glad I did.  The two weeks it took me to read this novel were some of the best two weeks of this year.

                                                  When it first came out, Clarke hinted it being the first of a trilogy.  She never followed through, and now I am glad she did not.  Trilogies I have read over time never live up to their first volume.  Therefore, I am glad "Jonathan Strange And Mr. Norrell" stands alone.

                                                       Take some time, girls, and enter into a world of romance and magic!

                                                         And read all those footnotes, darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!