Carroll Jonathan 13

Reviews & Overviews by Rod Cameron

The Wooden Sea by Jonathan Carroll

The Wooden Sea concerns middle-aged Frannie McCabe, Chief of Police in Crane's View, New York State. His troubles start when a dog he has just buried reappears miraculously in the boot of his car. They rapidly escalate when his 17 year old self appears from the past and tells him that he has "done everything wrong. And that he doesn't like what he has become." He is then catapulted forward to the last day of his life. And learns that he has the power to determine the fate of the universe. Worse still, someone not of this Earth is trying to 'help'.
Jonathan Carroll has amazing powers of description. And the Wooden Sea is no exception. It starts out with a vivid description of a dog, and rapidly becomes surreal.
Strictly, the book could be classified as Science Fiction, as it contains both Time Travel, and Aliens, but essentially it sits outside any genre. If you enjoy Jonathan Carroll, and if you have never read him, track down a copy of Land of Laughs immediately, then look forward to a very strange and amazing journey. The Wooden Sea is a most enjoyable, well-written puzzle book, where the challenge is to work out what, who and when is going on. The Wooden Sea stands on its own, but is the third in a "loosely connected" sequence of which Kissing the Beehive, and The Marriage of Sticks are the first two. Not having read the first two, I'm off to the bookshop on an urgent basis.

Publisher: Gollancz
Date: 2001
Pages: 247 pages
Price: £16.99
Format: Hardback
Reviewed by: Rod Cameron
Date Reviewed: May 2001