jentropy

This is not an average book review. This is the story of a reading journey and the influence of participatory media on the solitary culture of reading. I began this  journey before I knew the book existed. I participated in a #litchat discussion on Twitter, where we talked about audience and motivation. I asked questions about how to make the move from hobby to profession. Jeremy Duns joined the discussion, with kind and encouraging words, self-reflection, and intelligent debate. I thanked him for his humble advice and continued to follow him on Twitter.

Soon after that, he announced the US release of Free Agent. I am not a reader of spy novels, but he’d been so supportive, I was enthusiastic about supporting him. Rather than purchase the book to enjoy myself, I requested my public library add it to the collection. I sent updates of the progress to Jeremy as I waited for the book to arrive.

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In the mean time, I watched him interact with his fans online, always gracious and kind, and I was even more motivated to read the book.

It arrived last week and I sent him a snapshot when it came in.

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I wasn’t at all sure what to expect from the book, and anticipated confusion reading something so completely foreign. Instead, I was immediately immersed in a world where it was fun to learn, and not at all intimidating. If I had books like this in school, I would have done so much better in history class. The story is so fast-paced, I didn’t feel my reading gave it the respect it deserves. Every word is carefully placed, truly an observable crafting.

For a work with such a massive backstory, it amazed me that I enjoyed the infusion of history and culture within the intense drama. I didn’t skip a word. The book is filled with delicious prose treasures, that I think will appeal to other literary fans. I hunted for gems like this:

He shrugged: he could wear as much tweed as he wanted, but his shrugs were more Russian than vodka.

The story twists on every page, yet is written so a busy mom like me can put it down to fold laundry and return without feeling lost.

This is the first time I’ve read a book and had the opportunity to contact the author, on the other side of the world, and receive an answer within hours. The experience gave life to the book. Watching the author interact with readers made me feel more connected to his love of his work, and I’m grateful I stumbled upon the #litchat that brought me to the discovery.

I’m now passing the book to my husband and will most likely make some gift purchases. It does make a difference to me to be able to connect with the author, and I don’t know what that says about the future of publishing and participatory media. But why are you still reading me? Go read chapter one of Free Agent, then pick up your own copy.

Update: Within a few minutes of posting this, I received a response from the author.

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