Black Swan Green

I wasn't initially sure about this novel but it quickly won me over, in this semi-autobiographical story of 13-year old Jason Taylor describing a year of his life in 1982, in 13 stories, one for each month of the year, plus an extra January. Each story is very different, and is teeming with the vibrant life of the 80s, picking up contemporary stuff like the Falkland war, Margaret Thatcher, and much much music.

Jason is a stammerer, which causes him much grief, so it's inevitably a story about school bullies for many chapters. Each story could stand alone and not lose much from it, but of course it's perfect that it weaves together. As usual with Mitchell, it alludes to previous books he wrotes, so there's Madame Crommelynck from Cloud Atlas, one of the more lyrical chapters of the book. It's really like listening to all of David Mitchell's doubts he must have had as a young writer.

I really enjoyed this book quite a lot.

Black Swan Green is an intriguing name for a place where seldom a swan is seen. This is the story of Jason Taylor's metamorphosis from bullied school boy to mature adolescent, and I enjoyed it immensely. The story takes place in the early 1980's, before The Bone Clocks. We get a glimpse of Jason's older cousin Hugo Lamb. (His encounters with Jason are retold to Holly in the latter book.) A character and story from Cloud Atlas are neatly tucked in, as well. I loved what Mitchell did there.

The story covers less than a year of life, but a lot happens, even in this seemingly quiet piece of earth. And the ending leaves us with a little bit of mystery, too.

Jason is a very likable character, and enjoyed the time spent with him. The other denizens of his world were skillfully developed and diverse, too. As usual, the writing was excellent, and I recommend this highly.

This has become my year of David Mitchell, I guess. I relied upon GoodReads reviewers to lead me to this one and the recommendation was spot-on. Once again, Mitchell left me wanting to spend a lot longer with the characters. Jason Taylor is amazing kid with a poetic mind facing too many challenges; a stammer, an intense desire to gain popularity without becoming one of the 'hairy barbarians' that determine social acceptance, estranged parents, and just general suburban living.

The novel is arranged in short stories that could stand alone, but their arrangement provides a novel's arc. The tone is perfect. The author is sympathetic to his most minor characters so that all have dimension. Characters from other Mitchell novels make appearances; I'm starting to see this in other works of his and am encouraged. With any luck I'll get to meet Taylor again.

This is the first author that makes me want to hit the 'Become a Fan' button.