This week, I read a big chunky science fiction novel (Use of Weapons by Iain M. Banks) and at the beginning, I was confused. Confused about the structure, a tangle of past and present that goes backwards and forwards at the same time. Confused about the world of the novel and the inter-planetary maneuvering of the Culture civilization. Even confused about one of the central characters, an unreadable man with a talent for battle and a mysterious past. I had to piece the story together bit by bit and trust in where Banks was taking me. And I really enjoyed it.
That got me thinking about the value of being confused while reading, when it works for me and when it doesn’t, and the sheer delight of piecing a puzzle together. Of course, I don’t want to be baffled the whole way through. But I love that little moment of connection when a switch flips inside my brain and I see what the author’s up to. It’s a form of trust that goes both ways. The author trusts the reader to suss out what’s going on and the reader trusts that they’re in for an enjoyable journey.
Some of this probably springs from my very specific tastes in mystery reading and fondness for the Golden Age of mystery. (Give me a manor house with a secret room or poison garden and a suspicious cast of characters and I am there post-haste.) I like being a detective, even when it’s not strictly a mystery, and picking up on clues along the way. I even like being left with questions at the end of the book. When it comes to speculative fiction, my favorite kind of world-building is slow and subtle. I don’t need to know everything all at once and sometimes I don’t even need to know everything.
I also have a deep appreciation for a book that makes the reader work for it. It forces me to slow down, where I might sometimes speed through. It drops me deeper into the world with each new piece. And it rewards the act of reading with my full attention. When I was a kid, I used to fall into books with such ease, totally blind to the world around me. That feeling is a lot more elusive now but I’ve noticed that some of the books that hook me the most are the books that slowly unfurl their mysteries, whether that’s a secret identity or a deeply held family secret, and give my mind plenty to chew on along the way.
What’s a book that confused you in a good way? And what are some of your favorite literary puzzles to solve?
Currently reading: Speaking of tricky mysteries, I just started The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett. I really like Hallett’s storytelling style, which blends together letters, texts, and emails to create mind-bending mysteries, and I’m looking forward to playing along with this one.
What’s bringing me joy this week:
Lengthy catch-up sessions with friends. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of talking to someone who’s known you for years and understands you right down to your bones.
My newly acquired Virago editions of two Barbara Pym novels, courtesy of a family member who picked them up for me in London. I devoured Excellent Women when I read it a few years ago and can’t wait to dig into more of her catalogue.
The Oscars on Sunday! I love the movies, the fashion, and even the inevitable thinkpieces the morning after.
I remember being extremely confused at that start of On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta when I read it years ago and just having to trust that it would come together and boy, did it ever. A five-star read for me.
I love a little bit of confusion! Last summer’s Trust and Seven Moons of Maali Almeida both started out that way for me ... and once I figured out what was happening I was even more invested in the stories.