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Book Review
Feb. 6th, 2013 11:47 amThe Resurrectionist: The Lost Work of Dr. Spencer Black
by E.B. Hudspeth
I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
This book is in two parts: the first is the tale of Spencer Black, a doctor and scientist in late 19th century Philadelphia who developed a bizarre theory that mythical creatures such as centaurs, harpies, and mermaids were the evolutionary ancestors of humans; the second is a collection of beautifully detailed anatomical drawings of these mythical creatures, with Black's commentary about his discoveries regarding them.
The Resurrectionist is a very interesting book - I'm not sure how much I really liked it, but I keep thinking about it nonetheless. The first part is written in a very concise, almost bare-bones style, more like that of an encyclopedia or newspaper article than a novel. Included in the dispassionate narrative are excerpts from Black's letters and journals, which give some depth to his spiral into madness as his theories lead him into Frankenstein-like experimentation on animals and occasionally people. It's subtly creepy and raises as many questions as it answers. I kind of wish this part had been a little bit longer, to give the reader just a bit clearer idea of what Black was up to, especially at the end of the story. The second part is really fascinating - the drawings are lovely and thorough. They really illuminate what was going on with Black, and possibly contain clues to the mysteries of the first part. Unfortunately, the copy I received was a proof, and thus more than half of the plates were absent.
I'm really curious to see what this author does next.
by E.B. Hudspeth
I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
This book is in two parts: the first is the tale of Spencer Black, a doctor and scientist in late 19th century Philadelphia who developed a bizarre theory that mythical creatures such as centaurs, harpies, and mermaids were the evolutionary ancestors of humans; the second is a collection of beautifully detailed anatomical drawings of these mythical creatures, with Black's commentary about his discoveries regarding them.
The Resurrectionist is a very interesting book - I'm not sure how much I really liked it, but I keep thinking about it nonetheless. The first part is written in a very concise, almost bare-bones style, more like that of an encyclopedia or newspaper article than a novel. Included in the dispassionate narrative are excerpts from Black's letters and journals, which give some depth to his spiral into madness as his theories lead him into Frankenstein-like experimentation on animals and occasionally people. It's subtly creepy and raises as many questions as it answers. I kind of wish this part had been a little bit longer, to give the reader just a bit clearer idea of what Black was up to, especially at the end of the story. The second part is really fascinating - the drawings are lovely and thorough. They really illuminate what was going on with Black, and possibly contain clues to the mysteries of the first part. Unfortunately, the copy I received was a proof, and thus more than half of the plates were absent.
I'm really curious to see what this author does next.
