Sometimes I can get into the audiobook when the book book doesn’t click with me. I read the first few pages, and I think this would be one of those. It’s well written, there’s just a lot of details and some cultural context that I’m not too familiar with. That can happen with translated books. It’s part of the charm, I think, but it takes a little more effort to read. Plus it’s just a complex story.

Somehow the narration makes it easier for me to really get into it. As long as the narrator is good, and this guy is. His voice is a little stiff, but it kind of fits with the book. It’s growing on me.

I think it’s the descriptions. I got an audio book of the first volume and it seemed like the descriptions went on for ages, but not a whole lot happened. Normally I love fantasy, but so far I can’t warm up to this series.

David Copperfield. I read it in one day when I was a kid and had nothing else to do. Bleak House was a slog too, but it had some nice turns of phrase that stuck with me.

And at the risk of insulting a classic, One Hundred Years of Solitude. I get that it’s supposed to be a critique on society and inspired by the author’s life. I just found it bleak.

Are there shallots or garlic in it? Looks really good. Bet it’d be good with a crusty layer of panko on top too.