ISBN: 0375509321 | Pages: 422 (hardcover)
Author: Charles Frazier
I imagine a lot of authors know of this as the book that landed Charles Frazier (of Cold Mountain fame) an eight-million-dollar advance - which may just be the largest ever for a novel.
And maybe I shouldn’t want to read something for that reason alone. The numbers weren’t even supposed to be released, apparently - his editor Kate Medina told Entertainment Weekly she hopes “what people talk about is the book.” Still, it’s awfully hard for any writer to ignore, and when the first chapter arrived unexpectedly as an expensive-looking insert in Publisher’s Weekly I looked it over with some interest.
Then my local bookstore had a signed copy in stock. It’s a well-known fact that I’m completely unable to resist an autographed book.
Thirteen Moons follows protagonist Will Cooper over a period of around ninety years. I’m going to refrain from giving a detailed plot analysis this time, but basically:
- Will is forced to leave home at the age of twelve, in late-18th-century America, to work at a trading post.
- In time, he befriends the Cherokee chief knows as Bear.
- I’d say the book’s larger conflict is unwavering love for Claire.
One of the more interesting descriptions I’ve heard for this book is “frightfully literary.” It did do some unconventional things (like using dashes instead of quotation marks to indicate speech), but I didn’t find anything about it frightful - or even dull, as plenty of people have suggested.
No; the only flaw, from my point of view - if you consider it a flaw - is that this is a very sad novel.
I’m not talking about the end and I’m not talking about a tearful scene or two. I’m talking about the whole damn book, from page one. Even in those brief moments of bliss when Will and Claire are together and all is well in the world, it’s bittersweet. There’s always this shadow hanging over it, this sense that none of it will last.
Don’t understand me? See this excerpt:
Decades later in life, deep into aching middle age, I held deeds to most of the land I then saw, all the way to the longest horizon, stacks of papers saying all that summer country was mine. But of course, all the paper in the world was nothing in comparison to those three days.
That’s one of the better examples, but the paragraphs around it had a similar tone - and there are plenty of similar passages elsewhere in the book, too.
See also:
Agree with me? Don’t? Leave a comment if you’ve read Thirteen Moons - I’d love to hear what you thought of it.
3 Comments
Wow…I didn’t know he got an $8million advance on this! Wasn’t really worth it IMO!
Thirteen Moons is one of the very few books I’ve been compelled to physically recommend. On more than one occasion, I’ve touched another person’s arm or shoulder and, in the most sincere of tones, urged them to read this story. And what a story it is.
With the telling, Charles Frazier transports beyond boundaries of simply recounting events, straight into the heart of this man. Will’s life and the gauntlet he passes through to his end are indeed a sad series of events. What shines though, is that sense of this truly being told by that old geezer sitting on his porch, shooting at trains. Like the bachelor uncle I never had.
When I finish a book which has engrossed me with vivid imagery and strong emotional involvement, I sit back, smile, and feel admiring of its author’s ability to take me there. I really don’t give a lick for the hows and whys of the publishing game. I just know I’ve been had, and that feels GREAT!
I do agree…this is a “sad book with a shadow always hanging over it”. But I really liked it. When I wasn’t reading it I was thinking about it and couldn’t wait to pick it up and continue Will’s story/adventures. Even though I knew that it probably wasn’t going to end well…or should I say…like I wanted it to.
Mr. Frazier has very much entertained me with this book, what a fantastic writer. Of course now I’ll have to read Cold Mountain.
8 million! wow - good for you Mr. Frazier!