Serenity book.

POSTED BY: Kloud
UPDATED: Thursday, November 3, 2005 22:25
VIEWED: 9673
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KLOUD

Friday, October 28, 2005 10:48 PM

Anyone like the Serenity novel?

DONCOAT

Saturday, October 29, 2005 2:14 AM

If you're referring to the movie novelization, I didn't think much of it. I found myself rewriting it line by line as I read it -- that's a sure sign that a book isn't written as well as it might have been.

For contrast, I rarely find myself doing that with the Harry Potter books, or other well-written material (such as Watership Down, another of my all-time favorites).

What specific things didn't I like? For one thing, the narrative voice keeps changing. Sometimes it's written from Mal's perspective, using a Mal-ish dialect. Other parts are written from other's points of view, using different dialects. The perspective sometimes changes several times within a single chapter.

The author also adds some details that I can't imagine were Joss-authorized. For example, supposedly Serenity was flown from Mr. Universe's planetoid to Haven with only one thruster -- that's just plain impossible, barring some totally new physics.

Maybe others weren't as sensitive to these things as I was.

By the way, Amazon is now taking orders for a book "Serenity" by Joss Whedon. That's a different thing (it's the three comics collected into a "graphic novel"). That makes... hmmm... eight different items titled "Serenity" - the pilot episode, the movie, the movie novelization, the Visual Companion, three comics, and the graphic novel. Confused yet?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't about you, Jayne. It's about what they need.

KRAD

Saturday, October 29, 2005 6:32 AM

Sorry the book didn't work so well for you, though for what it's worth, multiple POVs is a fairly common narrative device.

As for the final scenes, first of all, the whole book was Joss-authorized. Secondly, the funeral scene and the subsequent repair scene were pretty obviously not on Mr. Universe's moon, given the total lack of ion clouds in the sky in either scene, so obviously the operative's remaining ships towed them off said moon.

Keith R.A. DeCandido
keith@decandido.net
www.DeCandido.net | www.AlbeShiloh.com
www.livejournal.com/~kradical

UNSARDONIC

Saturday, October 29, 2005 6:39 AM

"For contrast, I rarely find myself doing that with the Harry Potter books, or other well-written material (such as Watership Down, andother of my all-time favorites)."

--------------------

...but, but, but, but-but... am I crazy or... wasn't "Watership Down" a book beFORE it became some form of movie?

Pretty sure I'm right here...

HOHOHO

"MFTIASSOM"

TUDYKRAWKS

Saturday, October 29, 2005 7:06 AM

just remember that the book was written from the SHOOTING SCRIPT meaning that it wasn't written like other books are.

"mine is an evil laugh"

PHOEBE

Saturday, October 29, 2005 7:20 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by KRAD:
Sorry the book didn't work so well for you, though for what it's worth, multiple POVs is a fairly common narrative device.

As for the final scenes, first of all, the whole book was Joss-authorized. Secondly, the funeral scene and the subsequent repair scene were pretty obviously not on Mr. Universe's moon, given the total lack of ion clouds in the sky in either scene, so obviously the operative's remaining ships towed them off said moon.

Keith R.A. DeCandido
keith@decandido.net
www.DeCandido.net | www.AlbeShiloh.com
www.livejournal.com/~kradical

Hey,

Congratulations on being the one to write our novel! Personally I found it an enjoyable read. But, and this isn't a critisism so much as an observation - for those not familiar with the Firefly style dialects, they might be confused with the style it's written in. Mistake that for bad writing, which clearly, it's not.

DONCOAT

Saturday, October 29, 2005 4:19 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Unsardonic:

"For contrast, I rarely find myself doing that with the Harry Potter books, or other well-written material (such as Watership Down, andother of my all-time favorites)."

--------------------

...but, but, but, but-but... am I crazy or... wasn't "Watership Down" a book beFORE it became some form of movie?

Pretty sure I'm right here...

Yes it was. So were the Harry Potter books. What's your point?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't about you, Jayne. It's about what they need.

DONCOAT

Saturday, October 29, 2005 4:34 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by KRAD:
Sorry the book didn't work so well for you, though for what it's worth, multiple POVs is a fairly common narrative device.

As for the final scenes, first of all, the whole book was Joss-authorized. Secondly, the funeral scene and the subsequent repair scene were pretty obviously not on Mr. Universe's moon, given the total lack of ion clouds in the sky in either scene, so obviously the operative's remaining ships towed them off said moon.

Keith R.A. DeCandido
keith@decandido.net
www.DeCandido.net | www.AlbeShiloh.com
www.livejournal.com/~kradical

Well, I hardly expected my comments to go straight to the author! I might have been a little more diplomatic.

I'm a little surprised that you say the book was Joss-authorized. I've read a quote from him elsewhere that when it came to the novelization, he handed it off (the shooting script, that is) and had/wanted no further involvement. Did I misunderstand that quote? How should we resolve the apparent conflict in these statements?

When it comes to the question of where Serenity was repaired -- there's no way she could have flown off Mr. U's moon on her own, given the damage shown in the film (and, as I recall, your book also has Serenity losing one thruster). Either the repairs were done in situ, or somebody called a tow truck. Now, don't I recall a passing comment in the book that the trip to the repair yard was "interesting" because of flying on one thruster? I've gotta go look that up. If I didn't just imagine that, well, I gotta beg to differ that it would be possible.

Of course, that detail alone wouldn't have been cause for a "pan". As I said in the previous post, it failed my "mental rewrite" test, and that's the bottom line for me. I guess it's the frustrated author in me. (Anybody care to read an unpublished novel?)

Edited to add:
Quoted from the book, page 252:
"Mal stood near the cargo ramp,... getting ready to board her... for the first time since they limped to the repair station at Eavesdown Docks. ...It wasn't the best repair shop in the 'verse, but... there was only so far they'd get with only one thruster."
So they flew her from Mr.U's place to Persephone on one thruster. Nope... never happened.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't about you, Jayne. It's about what they need.

UNSARDONIC

Saturday, October 29, 2005 10:43 PM

[ "What's your point?"]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heh-heh... a planetary rotation has occurred since I wrote the line to which your question was directed. During that cosmic event, I fell once more into some sort of mandatory state of hibernation in which, for some reason I have never been able to understand and which has regrettably plagued me all my life.

And guess what, when I came to this morning & discovered your well-placed question (above)... I just plain couldn't remember what my point was... my ability to be logical last night must've attained a state of freakin' tenuousity the likes of which have never before been seen.

Therefore i seem to have set some new Guinness record for non sequiterian logic. I believe this may be my superpower and, hopefully, you'll find that to be some consolation inre.: my inability to answer your question.

Nuthin' personal... it's all "Part Of The Service"

HOHOHO

I seem to be "a stupid, inbred stack of meat"

DONCOAT

Saturday, October 29, 2005 11:19 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Unsardonic:
[ "What's your point?"]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heh-heh... a planetary rotation has occurred since I wrote the line to which your question was directed. During that cosmic event, I fell once more into some sort of mandatory state of hibernation in which, for some reason I have never been able to understand and which has regrettably plagued me all my life.

And guess what, when I came to this morning & discovered your well-placed question (above)... I just plain couldn't remember what my point was... my ability to be logical last night must've attained a state of freakin' tenuousity the likes of which have never before been seen.

Since I just watched "Objects In Space" again, I think I fully understand that particular mental state. One enters it about the time one starts thinking: "Hmmm, maybe River actually did incorporeally possess a spaceship..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't about you, Jayne. It's about what they need.

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