The Crystal World
by J. G. Ballard
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Book Summary Information
Author: J. G. BallardEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1988-05-01
ISBN: 0374520968
Number of pages: 216
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780374520960
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of The Crystal World
Book Review: A Fragile Tale of Good and Evil
Summary: 4 Stars
Ballard's The Crystal World is more Christian allegory than science fiction. In it, Ballard presents the theme of man's spiritual and psychological struggle between light and darkness, good and evil, Heaven and Hell, and, especially, perfection (symbolized as crystals) and corruption (symbolized as the flesh, especially leprous flesh). Ballard's tone is subdued, his characters more derived more from archetype than reality ('The Woman of Darkness,' 'The Woman of Light,' 'The Pilgrim Journeying to the Sacred'), and his images beautiful. It is Dante journeying through a leprous Hell and a crystal Paradise, attempting to find meaning in his life.
The only flaw in the book is that, in places, Ballard feels the need to point out the symbolism in this book and translate its meaning. This is the job of the critic, not the writer, and one suspects that Ballard was instructed to do this by a nervous editor who was afraid the book was to 'literate' for a mass audience. But whatever the reason, it is a flaw of the book that detracts from its crystal perfection.
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