 first US hardcover edition | |
| Author | Matt Ruff |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | original jacket illustration by Andrew Paquette; design by Chip Kidd |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher | The Atlantic Monthly Press |
Publication date | 1988 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 396 |
| ISBN | 0-87113-243-5 |
| Followed by | Sewer, Gas & Electric |
Fool on the Hill is a 1988 comic fantasy novel by American writer Matt Ruff, set at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.
The novel follows the events unfolding at Ithaca College, New York, which are influenced and partially set in motion by a supernatural storyteller (heavily implied to be a Greek deity, likely Apollo) called Mr. Sunshine, who is looking to weave reality into a tale.
The story is told from the perspective of characters belonging three different peoples:
The perspective of the humans, first and foremost the successful young author Stephen Titus George, who later on starts becoming aware of Mr. Sunshines influence on reality and his life, including a short romance with Calliope, the worlds most beautiful woman and later, him being made to fall in love with Auroa Borealis Smith, a college student with fantastical dreams. Aside from him, there's also the Bohemians, a nonconformist students association at Cornell University, notably Ragnarok aka. Charles Hyatt, who ends up fighting against Jack Barron, head of the racist Rho Alpha Tau fraternity.
The perspective of the Sprites, who inhabit the Campus while remaining invisible to humans and who become engaged in a war against an evil entity with magical powers called Rasferret the Grub and his army of humanoid rats.
And the perspective of the animals, notably a religious mutt named Luther and his atheist cat friend named Blackjack, who are pulled into tensions between purebred dogs and mutt dogs and are pursued by Draco, an Irish Wolfhound who is bigoted against mutts.
As the story progresses, the lines between these worlds start blurring as Mr. Sunshine has freed Rasferret specifically to be George's enemy. This causes Rasferrets ability to magically animate previously inanimate objects being used to attack humans, first by sending a rubber sex doll on a homicidal rampage, and in the end by bringing an enormous papier mâché dragon to life to do battle with Stephen Titus George.
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Magical realism, magic realism, or marvelous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while incorporating magical elements, often blurring the lines between speculation and reality. Magical realism is the most commonly used of the three terms and refers to literature in particular, with magical or supernatural phenomena presented in an otherwise real-world or mundane setting, and is commonly found in novels and dramatic performances. In his article "Magical Realism in Spanish American Literature", Luis Leal explains the difference between magic literature and magical realism, stating that, "Magical realism is not magic literature either. Its aim, unlike that of magic, is to express emotions, not to evoke them." Despite including certain magic elements, it is generally considered to be a different genre from fantasy because magical realism uses a substantial amount of realistic detail and employs magical elements to make a point about reality, while fantasy stories are often separated from reality. The two are also distinguished in that magic realism is closer to literary fiction than to fantasy, which is instead a type of genre fiction. Magical realism is often seen as an amalgamation of real and magical elements that produces a more inclusive writing form than either literary realism or fantasy.
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