Elantris - Brandon Sanderson

Well, it's been a while since I posted anything; school pretty well kicked me in the butt. I keep reading good books and not saying anything about them. I started this entry a while back and figured I'd better at least finish it:

This was my first Brandon Sanderson book, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. I'm generally wary of the fantasy genre, as it seems to contain a vast overabundance of worthless junk--only to be rivaled by the modern romance genre. My pleasant surprise upon finishing this book was due to the fact that it actually addressed relevant themes, instead of just swords, sorcery, and the drunken hero in the tavern pinching the serving maid's bottom...

Sanderson easily avoids the common (and genuinely disgraceful) poor mimic of Tolkien fantasy. He pushes towards the need to create a fictional world in order to tell a compelling story, rather than creating a poor story in order to explain an unoriginal fictional world. At the center of the Sanderson's story, as I see it, is an exploration of the basic needs of mankind, and perhaps I could compare it to Maslow's hierarchy. Yet it bypasses the foundation need of physical nourishment in a creative way, and in doing this emphasizes the importance of the higher four needs. It's thought provoking at the very least.

Capitalism is also a theme I noticed, as the fictional society is built upon a merchant ruling class. On one side of the coin, the book explores the benefits of and the human right--or need--for the personal ownership inherent in capitalism. On the other side, it discusses the problems of a society that too easily allows the right to rule to be based upon wealth.

Finally, Sanderson pushes--I believe intentionally--the theme of fall and atonement. The book's namesake, the city of Elantris, is introduced in the story in a disturbingly fallen state, and the entire plot drives towards the resolution of atonement and restoration.

Genre: Fiction/Fantasy