To Say Nothing of the Dog

I finished To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis last night. After I read the last page, I closed the book and looked out the window at the stars. I said, "Wow. What an amazing b-"

That was as far as I got, because then my girlfriend walked in and asked why we weren't engaged yet.

"Uh.... What?" I said, naturally.

She said some things.

Then I said, "Why can't you be more like Verity Kindle?"

Turns out, that was the WORST POSSIBLE THING TO SAY. Not only because my girlfriend has never read To Say Nothing of the Dog, but also because she took the book, and happened to open up to the page where the main character describes Verity as the most beautiful creature in the world.

So yeah, I was a little fried when I sat down to review this book and I certainly hope the recent NUCLEAN EXPLOSION of a conversation I had with my girlfriend doesn't affect my reactions to the book.

Because, damn it, I really liked this book. I didn't love it, because it was a bit slow at times, but I really, really liked this book.

The story is simple, and by simple, I mean complicated. Basically, a time traveling historian has been hired to help a rich lady from 2057 research an old church in England that was destroyed during the bombing during WWII. Then a cat is saved from drowning in 1888, and the Nazis may accidentally win the war. Uh-oh!

I will say this, some people have problems with the time traveling in this story, and with the depiction of historical eras, but be that as it may, it's the characters that make this story worthwhile. Ned, and Verity, and Baine, and Tossie, and Mrs. Mering, and Cyril the dog, and Princess Arjumand are all fun and hilarious characters in their own right, and written together, create a tapestry that had me laughing my head off, and when I wasn't, chuckling merrily.

A comedy is strange in the world of SF. Most of the time, books billed as comedies still manage to take themselves too seriously. To Say Nothing of the Dog doesn't do that. Everything is insane, and everyone's aware. Yet, there are some nail biting scenes. Those, sprinkled throughout the book do add to the tension, and serve to remind us that the fate of the free world is at stake.

It's difficult to review a book that's so silly. I'm so used to serious, gritty and dark novels. This is so different, and it felt like a breath of fresh air. Would I recommend this book to someone? Yes, I most certainly would. I have recommended it to my girlfriend, and I hope it manages to make her not so furious with me.