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Vera & Linus
Fiction. VERA & LINUS is a series of short sketches. The book's theme is the love between the two protagonists, Vera and Linus. They are mischief makers and tricksters of the most daring sort, and they are constantly up to no good, but the language holds them with a clear restraint, a restraint born perhaps out of the peculiar nature of their love, a love both for each other and the things of the world. Their mastery, and shifting natures allow them to compel the workaday world as they see it, but not to rule over each other, and so their game begins, as Vera struggles to outwit Linus, and Linus to outwit Vera.
- GenresFiction
228 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2006
3 people are currently reading
328 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
October 23, 2015
Jesse Ball has taken a lead in the list of authors I most enjoy, though I would not be compelled to tell everyone his work is somehow historically unprecedented or of a timeless, untouchable quality.
I feel this same way about Haruki Murakami, who has a similar surreality to his novels, and who has (unlike Jesse Ball, as far as I know) been challenged in Japan as being a writer of popular, disposable fiction, rather than a contributor to a culturally pertinent dialogue that deserves recognition and preservation as such.
Ultimately, I can understand someone not finding Jesse Ball, or Haruki Murakami enjoyable to read, as I don't believe they address any kind of universal topics or answer any important questions about the world in any direct sense. I just find their styles and characters compelling.
Vera and Linus has a kind of magic to it, and reads almost like a fairy tale so is, in that sense, out of time or timeless. With this in mind, it must be mentioned that Thórdís Björnsdóttir, from Iceland (who, according to Wikipedia is Jesse Ball's wife), wrote the book with him. Creative page-numbering indicates who wrote which passages, and there is little difference between the two styles. Yet, this magical quality is present in Ball's other novels "The Way Through Doors" and "Samedi the Deafness," so the quality cannot be wholly attributed to Björnsdóttir's co-authorship.
Vera and Linus is darker than Ball's other work, however, and this could be the result of Björnsdóttir's style, or perhaps just the mood of the work. Regardless, it is a collection of prose pieces, disparate, but connected by character and theme. It could perhaps be described as various glimpses of the lives of Vera and Linus, which are not recognizably linear or continuous. They are also like fairy tales in the lack of description around details that do not make sense, but are presented as everyday occurrences: They plant a child's heart in the ground, talk to trees and other inanimate objects, etc.
This is what I find so engrossing and magical about this book. It also is beautifully poetic, being imagistic and linguistically interesting, rather than being plot, or thematically driven. I found myself reading completely nonsensical passages, smiling, and nodding, "yes, wonderful, what does that even mean, very beautiful, I can't wait to read on."
I had a similar experience with Jesse Ball's novels, which are plot driven, but almost dissolve around you as you read them, ending in ways I hear people who don't like more artistic films, criticize all the time; without resolving a continual storyline, without wrapping up finely combed-out details you have been hoping to see blossom by film's/novel's end. He has this magical way of constructing characters, settings and plots that are eerily absent of details, but full and compelling in their entirety. In fact, I read through his novels as quickly as I could, being drawn into them completely and seduced in a way I had not experienced in a long while. They are magic, seriously.
Vera and Linus, though not the same as reading through one of Jesse Ball's novels, was captivating and magical as well. There is a something old and very deep within the book, which would not be wholly incomparable to the Icelandic sagas, the Grimm fairy tales, or perhaps even the Finnish Kalevala. I would say if one likes these, they would love Vera and Linus, as would many poetry lovers, and I am sure the odd surprised casual reader looking for a little something new and different. I must say, though, I enjoyed Jesse Ball's novels more, but in different ways.
I feel this same way about Haruki Murakami, who has a similar surreality to his novels, and who has (unlike Jesse Ball, as far as I know) been challenged in Japan as being a writer of popular, disposable fiction, rather than a contributor to a culturally pertinent dialogue that deserves recognition and preservation as such.
Ultimately, I can understand someone not finding Jesse Ball, or Haruki Murakami enjoyable to read, as I don't believe they address any kind of universal topics or answer any important questions about the world in any direct sense. I just find their styles and characters compelling.
Vera and Linus has a kind of magic to it, and reads almost like a fairy tale so is, in that sense, out of time or timeless. With this in mind, it must be mentioned that Thórdís Björnsdóttir, from Iceland (who, according to Wikipedia is Jesse Ball's wife), wrote the book with him. Creative page-numbering indicates who wrote which passages, and there is little difference between the two styles. Yet, this magical quality is present in Ball's other novels "The Way Through Doors" and "Samedi the Deafness," so the quality cannot be wholly attributed to Björnsdóttir's co-authorship.
Vera and Linus is darker than Ball's other work, however, and this could be the result of Björnsdóttir's style, or perhaps just the mood of the work. Regardless, it is a collection of prose pieces, disparate, but connected by character and theme. It could perhaps be described as various glimpses of the lives of Vera and Linus, which are not recognizably linear or continuous. They are also like fairy tales in the lack of description around details that do not make sense, but are presented as everyday occurrences: They plant a child's heart in the ground, talk to trees and other inanimate objects, etc.
This is what I find so engrossing and magical about this book. It also is beautifully poetic, being imagistic and linguistically interesting, rather than being plot, or thematically driven. I found myself reading completely nonsensical passages, smiling, and nodding, "yes, wonderful, what does that even mean, very beautiful, I can't wait to read on."
I had a similar experience with Jesse Ball's novels, which are plot driven, but almost dissolve around you as you read them, ending in ways I hear people who don't like more artistic films, criticize all the time; without resolving a continual storyline, without wrapping up finely combed-out details you have been hoping to see blossom by film's/novel's end. He has this magical way of constructing characters, settings and plots that are eerily absent of details, but full and compelling in their entirety. In fact, I read through his novels as quickly as I could, being drawn into them completely and seduced in a way I had not experienced in a long while. They are magic, seriously.
Vera and Linus, though not the same as reading through one of Jesse Ball's novels, was captivating and magical as well. There is a something old and very deep within the book, which would not be wholly incomparable to the Icelandic sagas, the Grimm fairy tales, or perhaps even the Finnish Kalevala. I would say if one likes these, they would love Vera and Linus, as would many poetry lovers, and I am sure the odd surprised casual reader looking for a little something new and different. I must say, though, I enjoyed Jesse Ball's novels more, but in different ways.
April 6, 2024
Oops. Well, I’m done.
This was an unconventional read. The way I can think to best describe it is if the macabre tales of the Brothers Grimm took place in the unstructured dream space of Inception’s Limbo realm—Linus and Vera really do come across as godlike, just like the Cobbs, in comparison to every other person they interact with, who are enfeebled and irrelevant as ants in a colony or white blood cell-like projections of the subconscious. The fractals of story produce no consequences for their actions, and time is non-linear. Vera even locks away a secret from Linus in a chest. I find it so hard to like or dislike a book like this—so untraditional and so far removed from the common novel, short story, or poem that it’s rather impossible to categorize or even describe. I'll put it this way: I liked this somewhat more than Census and somewhat less than How To Set A Fire and Why.
This was an unconventional read. The way I can think to best describe it is if the macabre tales of the Brothers Grimm took place in the unstructured dream space of Inception’s Limbo realm—Linus and Vera really do come across as godlike, just like the Cobbs, in comparison to every other person they interact with, who are enfeebled and irrelevant as ants in a colony or white blood cell-like projections of the subconscious. The fractals of story produce no consequences for their actions, and time is non-linear. Vera even locks away a secret from Linus in a chest. I find it so hard to like or dislike a book like this—so untraditional and so far removed from the common novel, short story, or poem that it’s rather impossible to categorize or even describe. I'll put it this way: I liked this somewhat more than Census and somewhat less than How To Set A Fire and Why.
March 23, 2024
A strange and cryptic delight. One of those books one could open to any page and read from as if it were your fortune for the day.
June 17, 2018
Jesse Ball and Þórdís Björnsdóttir’s “The Disastrous Tale of Vera and Linus” made my reading list in 2010 because an old high school friend (who also happens to be a writer) wrote the following five-star review: “indeed. just about perfect. thanks to everyone who recommended it. it matters little if you are a reader or a writer, it seems that Ball is raising the bar either way.” This was the same year I gave a one-star review to David Byrne’s “The New Sins” stating, at the top, “There was probably a time when I would have found this book entertaining, even enjoyable.”
If you’re interested, you can go back and find the rest of the review, but it only seems appropriate that I would have a similar reaction to “Vera and Linus.” It comes across as both slight and precious. It attempts to pass its nonsensicalness off as profundity. It is wrought with a style of writing that feels forced in its archaicness. It feels like a giant (tiny pocket-sized book) joke that nobody got, except I seem to be the only one who feels this way.
It’s not that the book doesn’t have its charms. It’s short. It’s interesting in the way trying to figure out what two people conversing in a foreign language are saying is interesting. Some of the sketches are amusing, some are lovely, some are disturbing, and some are all three at once. Though largely devoid of detail (they are sketches, after all), the brief stories are highly visual. It would be a treat to see them turned into animated shorts, which isn’t the best praise for a book I was convinced to read because of a review citing its bar-raising writing. Perhaps, like “The New Sins,” I got to the party too late. Perhaps my expectations were wrong. Perhaps, as my friend’s review noted, I was unable to raise my bar as a reader. Or perhaps this attempt at a postmodern fairy tale needed a little more substance, a little more structure, and, also like “The New Sins,” maybe just a little less self-reverence.
If you’re interested, you can go back and find the rest of the review, but it only seems appropriate that I would have a similar reaction to “Vera and Linus.” It comes across as both slight and precious. It attempts to pass its nonsensicalness off as profundity. It is wrought with a style of writing that feels forced in its archaicness. It feels like a giant (tiny pocket-sized book) joke that nobody got, except I seem to be the only one who feels this way.
It’s not that the book doesn’t have its charms. It’s short. It’s interesting in the way trying to figure out what two people conversing in a foreign language are saying is interesting. Some of the sketches are amusing, some are lovely, some are disturbing, and some are all three at once. Though largely devoid of detail (they are sketches, after all), the brief stories are highly visual. It would be a treat to see them turned into animated shorts, which isn’t the best praise for a book I was convinced to read because of a review citing its bar-raising writing. Perhaps, like “The New Sins,” I got to the party too late. Perhaps my expectations were wrong. Perhaps, as my friend’s review noted, I was unable to raise my bar as a reader. Or perhaps this attempt at a postmodern fairy tale needed a little more substance, a little more structure, and, also like “The New Sins,” maybe just a little less self-reverence.
March 28, 2020
Page-long fables. Short twisted fictions. Prose poems of love and violence and revenge and forgiveness and sorrow. How to pass the time when anything can occur. Reminded me of Danielewski's 'Only Revolutions' as well as CA Conrad's 'The Book of Frank'. A dense and layered and rewarding read, one best enjoyed in a forest, within a hollow tree full of clouds.
October 15, 2017
Like a book of fables, or fairy tales, with a couple in their own kind of loving relationship at the heart. The spare language sucks the blood and life from the stories, in a way that makes them almost more haunting.
June 5, 2017
Devious and funny fairy tales of a multiverse shared between two creative lovers.
Does it please me?
Yes, quite very much.
Does it please me?
Yes, quite very much.
February 4, 2018
A violent and one-note exploration of new mythology. Them words real pretty tho.
June 13, 2012
-Has anyone punished you in this recent while?
asked Vera.
-No, said the child, for I am very good and always do
what I am told.
-Well, that, said Linus, will not save you now.
___
-We will wait here, he said, and when someone
comes, we will swiftly waylay them.
-But Linus, said Vera, this is the road to the waste.
No one comes along it.
-I will seek then, said Linus, another craft.
___
At the picnic, Vera kissed Linus on the cheek as he laid
the blanket out beside the child's hand. It had not
shriveled at all, this hand, or been changed by the
weather.
-God loves a child, remarked Linus.
___
Vera wrote a poem that could compel her.
She gave the poem to Linus
and required a similar verse from him.
-In the night, all things go awry, she said. It shall not
be so with us.
___
The cat gave a sigh that spoke of centuries of fruitless
questioning.
-I'm sorry, I can not talk about it.
-Besides...you could never understand it, he added
and looked away where Linus was not.
asked Vera.
-No, said the child, for I am very good and always do
what I am told.
-Well, that, said Linus, will not save you now.
___
-We will wait here, he said, and when someone
comes, we will swiftly waylay them.
-But Linus, said Vera, this is the road to the waste.
No one comes along it.
-I will seek then, said Linus, another craft.
___
At the picnic, Vera kissed Linus on the cheek as he laid
the blanket out beside the child's hand. It had not
shriveled at all, this hand, or been changed by the
weather.
-God loves a child, remarked Linus.
___
Vera wrote a poem that could compel her.
She gave the poem to Linus
and required a similar verse from him.
-In the night, all things go awry, she said. It shall not
be so with us.
___
The cat gave a sigh that spoke of centuries of fruitless
questioning.
-I'm sorry, I can not talk about it.
-Besides...you could never understand it, he added
and looked away where Linus was not.
March 8, 2016
Denty found a small brown volume tucked within the hollow of a cow's skull while seeking treasure. He prepared himself a cup of tea and a tray of goodly butter biscuits, intending to inspect this book for rare mites, but no sooner had it's pages ruffled when screams of children appeared at his door.
-Surely, this is the work of madness, said Denty aloud.
And then the withered moon.
(Basically, this book is pretty magical.)
-Surely, this is the work of madness, said Denty aloud.
And then the withered moon.
(Basically, this book is pretty magical.)
December 24, 2007
It's quite nice this book, especially to touch.
April 19, 2009
a truly amazing gem of a book.
find it, read it.
find it, read it.
June 8, 2009
Beautifully disturbing. Or disturbingly beautiful.
January 10, 2010
indeed.
just about perfect. thanks to everyone who recommended it.
it matters little if you are a reader or a writer, it seems that Ball is raising the bar either way.
just about perfect. thanks to everyone who recommended it.
it matters little if you are a reader or a writer, it seems that Ball is raising the bar either way.
October 30, 2010
This was pretty great. A long creepy, poetic fairytale.
February 15, 2011
This is an intriguing little book, and it shows what Ball would later display full force in his novels.
October 31, 2011
-Put Vera & Linus inside me, said a wonderful bird. Wouldn't that be delightful?
I agreed. It is lovely always to fill.
I agreed. It is lovely always to fill.
November 17, 2011
This little brown book is handy to keep around when you need a reminder of how co-dependency can bring out the best in us (:
April 26, 2012
Quite possibly the most fantastic series of miniature adventures ever presented on the page.
November 10, 2007
1.41.01-Find It.
November 1, 2008
These cats are fucked up.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews