The Great When by Alan Moore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

All books require a reader to supply the rest of the imagination to any work of fiction. This is an old chestnut. But then, there are certain books that require a reader to actively perform a magical incantation that will utterly transform their lives and turn THEMSELVES into magicians of the highest caliber.

And this book is one of those.

Now, don't get me wrong. I've read Moore's Jerusalem. The Long London project is all within it, too, but the Great When is probably a bit less intimidating (if just for length). The LANGUAGE, however, in both, is utterly lush, gorgeous, and on a whole, its words are a sight more brilliant than me, also as a whole.

And yes, I am admitting that I am astonished at the deft density of imagination and the words used to describe it all.

Moore is absolutely a one-off genius or a magician, himself.

And speaking of which, I want to make a quick little supposition about Dennis, the MC. With all the talk of High Arcana in Long London, I just want to point out that Dennis fits the bill of the Fool.

As we know, Fools walk blindfolded on the edges of cliffs and generally never fall off of said cliffs. They are blessed. They're also amusing as hell.

I wish everyone a very, very good time with this, and future, Moore books. He lands at the very top of my "omg omg omg this is seriously kicking my ass" list. Feel free to take my advice or not, but I recommend a hard-copy, a pen, and either tiny handwriting, a bunch of post-its, a dictionary, and a willingness to look up thousands of true-historical characters online for the sake of the novel's true depth and weave.

And yes, I did just imply writing in the margins of the book. This would be for my benefit. If someone (and you know who you are) complains that I'm DEFACING a book, I'll reply that I am merely ENHANCING it with my own observations, for future reader's edifications.

The fact is, these are modern classics that absolutely need devoted followers following with vast conversations. It's worth it. Oh, and I've officially put this on my unofficial 6th star list. Bon appetite!




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