Books
DESCENDER by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, A Review of Volume 5, RISE OF THE ROBOTS
RISE OF THE ROBOTS
Six reviews in 6 days. Today marks the 5th day and review of volume 5 of DESCENDER. No spoilers for this volume, but beware of spoilers if you haven’t already read the first 4 volumes. You can see my first review of volume 1 here in case you stumbled upon this review as a first exposure to my website.
In RISE OF THE ROBOTS, Lemire delivers a number of answers to mysteries within the story world…not all of them, but enough to open up the possibility of some sort of redemptive ending to the saga. By the way, I don’t know the ending, so this is not a spoiler. I’m reading volume 6, the finale of DESCENDER tomorrow. In this volume, the planet Mata, an aquatic world, takes center stage. Mata itself is a mysterious place. It is less known by the UGC and there are early allusions in the first volumes of DESCENDER to the ruins of a great city in the water’s depths. Water is often a symbol in literature, so I look forward to seeing how Lemire works that thematic angle. You’ll also notice that the cover of this volume is a robot in a hazy blue environment…I’m interpreting that blue as an underwater world.
The unique (in the volumes so far) and fun surprise in volume 5 is a double page fold out. Lemire and Nguyen chose to dramatize the culmination of the RISE OF THE ROBOTS as it takes place across the UGC through the art. 
You’ll notice as you turn toward the final pages of volume 5 that a couple feel thicker than the rest. Be careful when you fold them out, so they don’t tear. This is the third reading of our copies of DESCENDER and so far, we’ve only had one issue with the binding (loose pages). I want these beauties to last a long time, so I am reading them carefully. I also love loaning out great books and I’m sure I will loan these out in the future, but I’ll ask my reader friends to read them gently.
Tomorrow, the final review of DESCENDER.
Click here to buy your copy of DESCENDER, Volume 5 Rise of the Robots
DESCENDER by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, A Review of Volume 4, ORBITAL MECHANICS
Vol. 4 DESCENDER
Day 4 and the 4th review. I’m tired as I write this because I had a full day and hosted 10 people at my house for a dinner party. They’re all gone now and the dishes are washed or are in the robot machine that cleans them (thank you, Kitchen Aid!)
So, here it goes…The DESCENDER saga continues, a ramping up of tensions across the Megacosm.
Slight spoilers if you haven’t read 1-3 yet. This volume confirms the PG-13 rating. There is a sexual encounter, not explicit, but emotionally portrayed/drawn by the artist. It’s not graphic in that there are no x-rated body parts on display, but still…it’s a sex scene. Some parents will want to view this before passing it onto their kids.
With that said, this sexual and emotional relationship doesn’t seem to be the main thing and doesn’t dominate the storyline from every angle, but it is one angle. The couple that gives into sexual desire has its relevance to the overall plot. I can’t say more without spoiling the story.
What continues in ORBITAL MECHANICS is character revelation while the battle lines become drawn.
Since I’ve written a couple of novels, I will say that the messy middle is the most difficult part of writing something of epic proportions. DESCENDER has the potential to be epic, so this volume works, yes, to pull us in and draw us deeper into caring about the characters and the outcome of the world in which they live.
Highlights for me emerged as curious plot turns took place. Not every turn surprised me, but many did. The story telling and the art are still fantastic. I know I will read to the end.
To purchase, click Volume 4 of DESCENDER
DESCENDER by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, A Review of Volume 3, SINGULARITIES
Tim-22, used, abused and almost scrapped
YES. Read on, you won’t be disappointed!
I continue this mad and highly pleasurable dash of reviewing 6 volumes in 6 days. Today is day 3, so I’m reviewing volume 3 of the DESCENDER series. No spoilers (unless you haven’t yet read volumes 1 and 2 yet…in which case there are tiny spoilers).
I’m going to have to call SINGULARITIES my favorite volume, so far. It’s filled almost completely with the backstories of all the important characters. If you’re like me, now that you’re hooked on these characters, you have the patience to read back into their histories and you’re going to love it! I also picked up volume 1 again to re-read the first few chapters.
Don’t you admire an author can draw you in with action and plot-driven narrative, when all the while, his/her real aim is to make you fall in love. I do. Kudos to Jeff Lemire for this original and expansive story world inhabited by not just humans, but aliens and robots as well, many of whom we are coming to love.
You will not be disappointed regarding the various bot characters. The backstory of Driller the Killer is included in this volume, as well as that of Tim-22, the sinister and perhaps, alter-ego of Tim-21. In the 19th century novel, Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde, evil and gentleness exist in one human, split personalities. In DESCENDER, the two Tim A.I. characters take on the representations. This is a captivating and common archetype in countless narratives we love…think, Darth Vader/Luke, Voldemort/Harry Potter, Edmund/Lucy. Opposite and rival archetypes reflect human experience. We all know we are not pure good or pure evil, we’re somewhere in between, but understanding the extremes must help us in some way, otherwise, why do we crave these stories? Does it help us live a more balanced life and make choices for “good” or not?
I will draw a conclusion by the end of DESCENDER in regard to its moral relevance for the average scifi reader, but for now, I’m enjoying the ride. I hope you are too. Follow the links below to purchase.
DESCENDER, Volume 3 Singularities
DESCENDER, Volume 4 Orbital Mechanics
DESCENDER, Volume 5 Rise of the Robots
DESCENDER, Volume 6 The Machine War
DESCENDER by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, A Review of Volume 2, MACHINE MOON
Cover Art DESCENDER, Volume 2, MACHINE MOON
Yes! Read this second volume and you might want to order the rest of the series now because if you’re like me, you’re pretty much hooked. This review of volume 2 will have a few spoilers if you haven’t already read volume 1.
MACHINE MOON did not disappoint. The stage is set, the key characters are on that stage (although I’m sure there will be a few new faces in coming volumes) and the heat is cranking up for an epic conflict. In volume 1, the reader is introduced to Tim-21, an A.I. of extraordinary talent, intelligence and empathy. Tim-21 was created by scientist, Dr. Jin Quon, as a companion for humans. The hero, depicted as a gentle-spirited little boy, wakes after 10 years of sleep. He had been companion to a human child and living with him as a brother on a remote mining colony. He wakes to find hundreds of corpses of human miners, dead now for 10 years, and two other robots, lesser A.I. models still active. Following Tim-21’s awakening, the Megacosm made up of nine planets, becomes aware of his presence. His particular intelligence chip is perceived as having brought about a disaster which has wiped out much of civilization. As a result, Tim-21 is targeted by a number of powerful factions who want to destroy him or use him to gain power. He has few human allies, though a couple seem to be emerging. Moreover, his relationship with robotkind turns complicated in this second volume. The reader roots for Tim-21 knowing he is a pawn for nearly every other character, which adds to the tension and the page-turning nature of the story.
I need to take this opportunity to comment further on the gorgeous art of Dustin Nguyen in this series. You too can actually hold this artwork in your hands and it is amazing, worthy of your hard-earned cash.
On Voyage
The colors are intense when the story requires it and muted at other times. For example, backstory and memory are mostly color-less. There are precise pen drawing-style features of characters, with water-color wash to add to the texture and the dreamy quality of the world.
To purchase this comic, click DESCENDER, Volume 2, you won’t regret it. The rest of the series is below.
DESCENDER, vol. 3 Singularities
DESCENDER, vol. 4 Orbital Mechanics
DESCENDER by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen, A Review of Volume 1, TIN STARS
If you’re looking for an epic science fiction graphic novel and vibrant reading experience overall, the DESCENDER series is for you. I will be reviewing each volume, 6 in 6 days, without spoilers.
Here’s the review of VOLUME 1: TIN STARS
First, my pure recommendation…YES! You ought to read TIN STARS. Here’s why:
- The Story is Fantastic (and volume 1 is a great set up for more drama)
- The Art is to Die For
- The Characters Feel True and Interesting
- The World is Fantastically Drawn (in the art and in the narrative)
Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen team up to create a beautiful and gripping story. Due to language and some graphic violence, I rate the novel overall PG-13.
If you hunger for A.I. and space and aliens of various types, shapes and forms, they all inhabit this place. Also, the graphic novel format feels like a window into the future. What the author does not describe in words, we see on the page, beautifully drawn and colored by Nguyen (what a talent!). The graphic novel genre lends itself well to the world of a future civilization, something beyond our imagination and fantastical. The author, Lemire, also knows how to build tension and keep his audience gripped and turning pages.
Speaking of turning pages, I found (after I had read the first volume) this handy reference page, called: Atlas of the Core Planets of the the United Galactic Council. The world imagined by Lemire is complex physically and politically. Each planet has a unique character, so I can see why the author saw the value in adding it.
This page was not present in volume 5, perhaps Lemire assumes we know the world by then, but it is at the end of 1-4. It’s helpful, especially if you’re the type who likes to know the world well before you read the story, flip to the back right away to orient yourself.
Don’t be surprised to see this series come to the screen sometime in the near future. When that happens, you can breathe on your fingertips, wipe them on your cuff and brag…Oh yes, I read the graphic novels, back in 2019.
To order your copy, click here: DESCENDER, Volume 1, Tin Stars
To order your copy of
An Excess Male, The Educator’s Guide
Maggie Shen King
The Perfect Discussion Starter for Public Policy 101
AN EXCESS MALE showcases governmental abuse of big data, but also, the one child policy…perhaps the most disastrous public policy of the modern era.
Warning: this book contains sexual content. I do not recommend it for the Middle Grade Reader<
Do your students know the term public policy?
A societal problem presents itself and a governmental entity decides on laws, regulations or funding priorities to solve the problem…you know, make a policy, for the public. You can find a number of sites that attempt to give a definition of public policy. I appreciated this Audiopedia presentation:
A basic introduction to public policy
Even with the above intro, public policy is still a complicated concept for the average youth who has not paid great attention to politics.
Shen King’s, AN EXCESS MALE tells the story that will enable a reader to study public policy through a microscope, by getting to know a fictional family and the impact a few particular policies have had and will have on them.
For background and history, have your student read one or two articles on China’s One Child Policy. This piece from National Geographic is a good one.
The summary: China feared overpopulation. China had historically been unable to grow enough food to feed their entire population. Their solution to this immediate societal problem was to institute a public policy (a law that went into effect in 1979) that rewarded those who limited their families to one child. Public pressure kept some couples from giving birth more than once, but there were also incentives given, like tax breaks for those who chose to abide by the law. Unfortunately, those who did not conform were sometimes forced to have abortions or to hide their second or third child. Some women were forcibly sterilized. Families, when forced to choose between a girl or a boy child, wanted boys. Boys were prized more highly for their earning potential and for other cultural reasons. Girl babies were given up for adoption, abandoned or hidden away. Unborn girls were also aborted at a higher rate…all because of a public policy. The current problem facing China now (as written about in the article above) is that by 2030, more than 25 percent of men in their late thirties will not have a family of their own. There are not enough brides in China to match up with these excess males.
Starting points for discussion around the novel…
Read chapter 1 most carefully, then continue through the book to the end. The public policy instigated by the Chinese government to solve the problem resulting from the One Child Policy (too many men, not enough women) is presented most concisely in the early scenes of the novel.
- How are the various characters related to Wei-guo? Go down the list and describe the relationships in short sentences or if you prefer draw a family/relationship diagram using Wei-guo as the center. In your diagram and/or description include Big Dad, Dad, May-Ling, Hero, Husband One, Husband Two, MaMa.
- Based on your diagram, what constitutes a family?
- If you were to summarize this first scene, how would you describe what is taking place?
- There is a point of discussion early on around Advanced Families and China First along with a reference to patriotism. How would you summarize what it means to be patriotic in the eyes of Wei-guo’s dads?
- “Every man is allowed one child…” Why do you think that is?
- There are rules and expectations that order these unusual families that are forming as a result of public policy, some rules are dictated by the government, others emerge out of necessity. Begin a list of these rules as you read through the book. Some rules are subtle, not easy to pick up on. Others are more obvious, like “Every man is allowed one child…”
- In chapter one, the term Willfully Sterile is used to describe Hero. What do you think this means?
- Big Dad calls Husband Two a Lost Boy? What do you think that means? How does Hero, the matchmaker defend Husband Two?
- What are the Strategic Games?
- Why might they exist?
- What does Major Jung want from Wei-guo and his band of Strategic Games men?
- He states a statistic. What is the statistic? Doc tries to protest…but clearly, the government official is giving the orders and not allowing for any discussion. Why do you think that is?
- There is a reference in the book periodically to going the max. The meaning is not precisely spelled out. What do you think it means?
- What do you think the government would do to May-ling, Hann and XX if they declared in all honesty who they are and what they want?
- How do you think a government gets this kind of power over individuals…the power to determine what it means to be a man, a woman, a family, a patriot and control those definitions for an entire society?
- The idea of government power through censorship and spying on (keeping track of) their own citizens emerges as a theme and becomes prominent by the final chapters of the book. Do you believe that the government should be able to track you, trace you, know your habits, what you buy and eat and drink? In the name of keeping society safe, is their intrusion into your privacy something you would be okay with?
This is such an important discussion and not just for those living in places like China (where citizens have little say in what their government does)…but in the US and Western Europe and among other “free people”…how much power in the form of data do you want your government to have?
Wired has a great article on the intersection between Big Brother and Big Data This reality is nothing new for the scifi world…but in the past it’s all been make believe. Now science fiction is becoming reality…our reality. What kind of checks on Big Data in the hands of government ought to be put into place now, to avert the kind of situation the reader sees in AN EXCESS MALE?
This ought to be a large public policy debate and a topic discussed by citizens everywhere. How much privacy will we give up for safety and what if our governments turn on us and decide that watching us is a part of creating a better society, more order?
There is much to read and discuss on this topic.
This article from business insider gives another angle and more will be written in the coming years as the technology outruns our ability to debate every new policy.
Enjoy Maggie Shen King’s book. Read it for the love story and the thrilling climax, but pay attention to the under-carriage of this story. A sinister government maintains tremendous power over how society defines everything from sexuality, family and mental illness to patriotism…now that is a scary story…something dreamed up by writer…or something at our doorstep.
To buy AN EXCESS MALE, click here.
An Excess Male, A Book Review Without Spoilers
Author, Maggie Shen King
“Science fiction is any idea that occurs in the head, but doesn’t exist yet, but soon will, and will change everything for everybody, and nothing will ever be the same again.”
Ray Bradbury
The Short Review
Three Reasons I Recommend you read AN EXCESS MALE…
- Learn about China, a rising power with imperial roots and aspirations. Let this novel wake us up to the reality of Big Data meeting Big Brother
- Fall in love with the characters put forward by Maggie Shen King
- Enjoy a good old fashioned love story/thriller. Actually….NO…the love story is unlike anything you have probably read, but the tale will thrill. Love, loyalty, duty are on display, nearly every page.
To buy AN EXCESS MALE, click here.
The Long Review, Also Without Spoilers
I recommend this novel with a few reservations. AN EXCESS MALE falls into the category of speculative fiction, though it bleeds into the scifi genre and would likely be enjoyed by anyone who loves “surveillance stories”, like Minority Report and The Net. This novel has a few PG-13 scenes, and some adult themes that might bore a young adult reader, but many young adults and those older who read speculative fiction will love the book. I would not recommend it for Middle Grade or younger.
Shen King’s story belongs in the future, and yet the reality she portrays is around the bend…How many years away? Maybe ten.
The premise of the novel addresses the terrible truth China is now grappling with…that their one-child policy has resulted in 40 million unmarriageable men. By the year 2030, more than 25% of men in their late thirties will have no family of their own. What are the options for Chinese society? Here are three possibilities…
- Import wives from neighboring Asian nations or elsewhere. The problem…the Chinese, especially the government values a pure and loyal race. They elevate the Han Chinese culture and importing wives will dilute Han Chinese blood.
- Send those extra men to battle. Society does not need them for child-bearing, so let them win honor in fighting to extend China’s influence around Asia and the globe. The problem…many of these men are the only children, the beloved one child of their parents. Who will take care of the parents, those elderly loyal citizens of China who have lived and suffered under this oppressive law to bear only one child? What does it mean if the government plucks away and sacrifices their one and only on the battle field?
- Require that women in China take more than one husband. Most will take two…some will even take three husbands. A new family system will evolve around this patriotic duty. The problems that may result…READ THE NOVEL TO FIND OUT.
Maggie Shen King writes a story that assumes the third possibility. Women marry more than one spouse, all for the good of China. In a spirit and tone that celebrates her Taiwanese/Chinese heritage, Shen King imagines a world where men pay dowries, women of child-bearing age are precious and coveted, and single men bear a painful stigma. Shen King tells the story in the third person, changing the close narrator’s viewpoint chapter by chapter. She signals the shift by titling her chapters with the character’s first name. Two husbands, one wife and one potential husband…these are the characters the reader follows into a labyrinth of love, politics, corruption and societal rules that do not bend for individual freedoms.
I have only one complaint about the novel, that the ending felt rushed and a bit predictable, somewhat contrived. Pacing did not match the earlier portion of the story. It’s an issue that can happen when writing from multiple characters’ perspectives. In this case, the main character and to some extent the heart of the story got somewhat lost in the milieu. However, even with a few flaws, I found the book fascinating and worthwhile. It’s a fun quick read and will immediately get you thinking and feeling.
The House of the Scorpion, Contemplating Human Cloning, For Educators
Educators, THE HOUSE OF THE SCORPION provides a valuable and sensitive context for a discussion on genetics and cloning. To begin the journey, read the novel alongside your student(s). Next, discuss the science. There are a number of kid-friendly articles on cloning, I liked this one from Science News For Students
Finally, with an understanding of what cloning is, dig deep into the human story presented by Nancy Farmer in her deftly written account of a boy clone, Matt Alacrán.
I reviewed THE HOUSE OF THE SCORPION on another post on this website. If you continue reading this post, you’ll encounter more than a few spoilers, so beware, click here if you’re interested in reading the novel review before continuing.
To order HOUSE OF THE SCORPION, click here.
Here are a few questions to get the discussion flowing.
- Who is Matt? How would you describe him?
- Why do you think others often treat him cruelly?
- How would you describe Celia?
- What does Celia feel about Matt?
- What does El Patrón feel about Matt? Why do you think he calls Matt “mi vida”?
- What does it mean to be owned by a person? (Tam Lin, Matt, Celia, and even Felicia…all of them tell stories that indicate they are owned and not free…owned by El Patrón.) How is it that El Patrón owns them?
- What is an eejit?
- How is an eejit similar or different than Matt?
- How would you describe Matt’s struggle with being a clone? Does it make sense to you? Why or Why not?
- Matt’s life makes a positive difference in the lives of many others in the novel. Make a list of those people.
- Do you believe the cloning of people will take place in our future? In no, why?
- If yes, How should clones be viewed by the society that creates them?
- Can you imagine a situation where you would choose to have a clone of yourself created or that of a loved one?
Synopsis of the Cloning Story:
THE HOUSE OF THE SCORPION is a Middle Grade/YA novel that follows the story of Matt Alacrán, one soul and his battle to find meaning and love in the midst of his genetic reality. El Patrón, a powerful drug lord who has an appetite for eternal life, has allowed Matt to be created as his clone, but the assumption is that Matt will not to live much past his adolescence. El Patrón’s long-term plans are to harvest the boy’s organs for himself. Neither the reader nor Matt know all of this initially. The reveal happens little by little. This is not a horror story in essence, though there are horrific issues to grapple with…Primarily, this story is about a young person figuring out who he is, learning day by day what it means to be human.
The Many Colored Land, Book Review
Short Book Review with No Spoilers…
Julian May’s THE MANY COLORED LAND is an exceptional adventure that takes place in Pliocene Europe, think Tolkien meets Jules Verne. This is the first story in a trilogy, involving time travel and aliens. The world created by May is so imaginative, while being true to fossil record and prehistoric science. It’s like taking a course in geology, mammalian evolution and ancient flora all in one.
Three Reasons to Read this Great Book
- Superior world building and vibrant descriptive passages that will delight most scifi lovers.
- A humanoid alien race with a distinctive culture, a compelling ally or enemy?
- A complicated conflict between humans and aliens that drives the narrative
- A female author with mad writing skills. Julian May was unknown to many of my scifi-reading friends until a woman in my scifi book group introduced us to THE MANY COLORED LAND.
To buy this book, click here.
The Longer Review…With a Few Spoilers
The novel opens with a prologue, three essential scenes that set the adventure in motion. I needed to go back and re-read the first two to realize their relevance because there’s no context at that point for the reader to get them. Therefore, I promptly forget them. (Maybe in my younger years I would have recalled them at the right moment, much later in the story…or maybe not!)
The third scene remains memorable. It introduces the reader to a time travel machine and the human scientist who created it. A broader picture of current human existence becomes evident in this scene as scientists from many planets and many species gather to see the machine in operation. Earth’s children have become a part of a larger galactic cooperative, called the Galactic Milieu. The time machine is tested and its limitations are explained. The machine can only send beings back in history, only into Pliocene Europe. No messages can be sent back the other way, none of the beings who travel back in time will be able to return.
The scientist dies, his wife, Madame Guderian, contemplates what to do with the time machine. She begins to hear from various members of her species. Many feel a desire to leave their current situations. They want adventure or purity, something other than what they are experiencing. Many are lost souls, but others desire a simpler existence. She begins sending groups of people back to the Pliocene as a money-making scheme. There are rules, of course, to avoid messing up human evolution, so all females are sterilized before departing. The assumption is that the great ice age and the inability to procreate will bring an ultimate end to whatever societies form in this prehistoric exile. There are also limits to the kind of technology they bring.
The story proceeds to describe a number of human individuals currently living in the Galactic Milieu, all of whom find themselves dissatisfied with their lives in various ways and make the decision to go back in time. Each person has about a chapter of backstory before they come together. They are the characters the reader follows into the Pliocene, landing in the past about 1/4 of the way into the novel.
What follows is an experience in pre-history Europa, with a few good twists. This is scifi, yet fantasy-like, in that the world of the past is a place not unlike medieval Europe, given the absence of technology and another twist…aliens…who have crash-landed on Pliocene Earth. I really cannot say more without giving too much away.
However, here is a taste of May’s lovely writing, a descriptive passage of the Pliocene Black Forest
“The understorey of this evergreen expanse received very little sun. Its plants–only saprophytes nourished by the detritus of the great trees. Some of the things that battened on decomposition were degenerate flowering plants, pale stalks with nodding ghostly blooms of livid white, maroon, or speckled yellow; but paramount among the eaters of the dead were the myxomycetes and the fungi. To the five humans traveling through the Pliocene Black Forest it seemed that these, and not the towering conifers, were the dominant form of life.
They were quivering sheets of orange or white or dusty translucent jelly that crept slowly over the duff of needles and decaying wood like giant amebae. There were bracket fungi–from delicate pink ones resembling baby ears to stiff jumbos that jutted from the trunks like stair treads and were capable of bearing a man’s weight. There were spongy masses of mottled black and white that enveloped several square meters of forest floor as though veiling some unspeakable atrocity. There were airy filaments, pale blue and ivory and scarlet, that hung from rotting limbs like tattered lacework. The forest harbored puffball globes two and a half meters in diameter, and others as small as pearls from a broken string. One variety of fungus cloaked decaying shapes in brittle husks resembling colored popcorn. There were obscene things resembling cancerous organs; graceful ranks of upright fans; counterfeit slabs of raw meat; handsome polished shapes like ebony stars; oozing diseased purple phalluses; faerie parasols blown inside out; furry sausages; and mushrooms and toadstools in varieties the seemed to be without number. At night, they were phosphorescent.”
Another aspect of this novel that I want to write about another time (because this post is getting exceedingly long!) is the way May turns Tolkien ideals on their head. Elves, Humans, Goblins and Orcs? Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? May’s novel upends the notions set forth in the Tolkien universe and I appreciate how she does it. Julian May died about one year ago, October 17, 2017. I think it’s time to bring this book back into the scifi mainstream and celebrate her for being an imaginative storyteller.
The House of the Scorpion, An Audiobook Review
Roadtrip Listen
Audiobook Rating
THE HOUSE OF THE SCORPION
by Nancy Farmer
read by Raúl Esparza
8 out of 10
Highly Recommend! This listen is perfect for a family road trip because the novel is well written and engaging enough to capture the interest of a variety of story-lovers, young and old. The audio voices are well-performed by actor, Raúl Esparza (Ferdinand, Law & Order: Special Victim’s unit) and the story lends itself easily to the listening ear.
5 Reasons for such a strong review:
1. Initially, there are few characters to follow and as new ones are introduced, the listener can maintain a grip on who everyone is…including, there are a number of characters with accents and very distinct voices (performed well by Esparza).
2. The point of view is third person, it stays close to Matt. It does not jump around from character to character.
3. The repetition of little stories told mostly by El Patrón, work like anchors for the listening brain. I write about this in my review of the novel, THE HOUSE OF THE SCORPION Repetition is a common story-telling technique, much like songwriters or poets will use a chorus or a repeated stanza to drive a point home.
4. The writing is top notch, which means, the dialogue is well written. The dialogue feels authentic, like real people talking.
5. Description of Opium takes place slowly and organically. The listener doesn’t have to absorb a huge amount of exposition, the describing of places, houses, rooms, plants, animals, people etc..takes place incrementally. Matt’s life starts out small and his view of Opium is narrow, but little by little, as he learns, the listener learns. Details are added that are important, but not all at once. It makes the audio format easy to follow.
For more on how to choose a good audiobook, see Part II The Rise of the Audio Book