 First edition | |
| Author | Gene Wolfe |
|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
Publication date | 1975 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 264 |
| ISBN | 0-06-014699-0 |
Peace is a 1975 psychological fantasy/ghost story novel by American writer Gene Wolfe. It is the story of a man from a small Midwestern town in the early to mid-20th century, Alden Dennis Weer, who narrates various memories from different parts of his life, including his childhood, early adulthood, and middle to old age. [1] [2]
Unlike a lot of Wolfe's work Peace is a standalone novel set in a somewhat contemporary time and place (as opposed to the future or an imaginary world). Despite this, the story of the novel is one of Wolfe's strangest and most difficult; the narrator's consciousness at times seems to transcend time and space, as if he's narrating from beyond our plane of reality. One interpretation is that the narrator, Weer, is dead, and the scattered memories are those of a ghost; in 2014, Wolfe confirmed that this was his intention. [3] In a 1980 interview, he described the plot of Peace as: [4]
...it isn't a plotting book … The basic idea is that a man has died and he is haunting his own mind, his own past. This is something very few people seem to understand about Peace. If you'll notice the opening line of the book is ‘The elm tree planted by Eleanor Bold, the judge's daughter, fell last night.’ And, in the closing chapters of the book, Eleanor Bold comes to him and requests permission to plant an elm on his grave when he dies (she's on a reforestation kick or something) and of course, the old legend is – if there's a tree on a grave, when the tree falls, the falling of the tree releases a ghost on the Earth. In Peace that ghost prowls through his memories throughout the book.
Different critics interpret differently what is actually happening in the novel, [5] and another interpretation is that the memories of his old age are the fantasies of a middle-aged Weer, who is experiencing a nervous breakdown. The novel includes subtle clues to guide the reader's understanding of the story, although the mysteries behind these clues have been hotly debated. [6]
As in many of Wolfe's novels, much of Peace is taken up with stories within stories, particularly stories told to Weer as a child. [1] Many of the key events of the novel are not explicitly narrated, but can be inferred or guessed at based on information in the stories-within-stories.
Wolfe has described Peace as his favorite of his own work, as it is the one where he came closest to achieving his original goals. Neil Gaiman, who has frequently praised the novel, said: "Peace really was a gentle Midwestern memoir the first time I read it. It only became a horror novel on the second or the third reading." [7]
Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre, and a screenwriter. His works include the comic book series The Sandman and the novels Good Omens, Stardust, Anansi Boys, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book.
Neverwhere is an urban fantasy television miniseries by Neil Gaiman that first aired in 1996 on BBC 2. The series is set in "London Below", a magical realm coexisting with the more familiar London, referred to as "London Above". It was devised by Neil Gaiman and Lenny Henry and directed by Dewi Humphreys. Gaiman adapted the series into a novel, which was released in September 1996. The series and book were partially inspired by Gene Wolfe's novel Free Live Free.
A Walking Tour of the Shambles (2002), written by Neil Gaiman and Gene Wolfe, is a novel in the form of a tour guide concerning a fictional part of Chicago called 'The Shambles'. It guides the reader through such non-existent landmarks as The House of Clocks, Cereal House, and Gavagan's Irish Saloon. A collaboration between Neil Gaiman and Gene Wolfe, it was published with two different covers by the American Fantasy Press . Although Chicago doesn't have a Shambles, Philadelphia, for instance, does.
Gene Rodman Wolfe was an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He was noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his Catholic faith. He was a prolific short story writer and novelist, and won many literary awards. Wolfe has been called "the Melville of science fiction", and was honored as a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
American Gods (2001) is a fantasy novel by British author Neil Gaiman. The novel is a blend of Americana, fantasy, and various strands of ancient and modern mythology, all centering on the mysterious and taciturn Shadow.
John Milo "Mike" Ford was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet.
A frame story is a literary technique that serves as a companion piece to a story within a story, where an introductory or main narrative sets the stage either for a more emphasized second narrative or for a set of shorter stories. The frame story leads readers from a first story into one or more other stories within it. The frame story may also be used to inform readers about aspects of the secondary narrative(s) that may otherwise be hard to understand. This should not be confused with narrative structure. A notable example is The Decameron.
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The Haunting of Hill House is a 1959 gothic horror novel by American author Shirley Jackson. A finalist for the National Book Award and considered one of the best literary ghost stories published during the 20th century, it has been made into two feature films and a play, and is the basis of a Netflix series.
The Book of the Short Sun (1999–2001) is a series of three science fantasy novels or one three-volume novel by the American author Gene Wolfe. It continues The Book of the Long Sun (1993–1996): they share a narrator and Short Sun recounts a search for Silk, the Long Sun hero. The two works are set in the same universe as The Book of the New Sun series that Wolfe inaugurated in 1980 and the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (ISFDB) catalogs all three as sub-series of the "Solar Cycle", along with some other writings.
The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch or simply Mr. Punch is a graphic novel written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated and designed by Dave McKean. It was published in 1994.
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The Graveyard Book is a young adult novel written by the English author Neil Gaiman, simultaneously published in Britain and America in 2008. The Graveyard Book traces the story of the boy Nobody "Bod" Owens who is adopted and reared by the supernatural occupants of a graveyard after his family is brutally murdered.
"I, Cthulhu" is a short humorous story by fantasy author Neil Gaiman featuring H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu, who is dictating an autobiography to a human slave named Whateley. The story reveals much about Cthulhu's 'birth' and early life.
The Knight is a fantasy novel written by American author Gene Wolfe. It depicts the journey of an American boy transported to a magical realm and aged to adulthood who soon thereafter becomes a knight. The first of a two-part tale known collectively as The Wizard Knight is told in an epistolary style, and contains elements from Norse, Arthurian, and Christian Mythology. It received a nomination for the Nebula Award in 2005.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a 2013 novel by British author Neil Gaiman. The work was first published on 18 June 2013 through William Morrow and Company and follows an unnamed man who returns to his hometown for a funeral and remembers events that began forty years earlier. The illustrated edition of the work was published on 5 November 2019, featuring the artwork of Australian fine artist Elise Hurst.
This is a list of works by Gene Wolfe, an American author of science fiction and fantasy, with a career spanning six decades.
Nebula Awards Showcase 2014 is an anthology of science fiction short works edited by Kij Johnson. It was first published in trade paperback by Pyr in May 2014.
A Borrowed Man is a 2015 science fiction hardboiled noir novel by Gene Wolfe.