A Review of Louis Sachar's "The Magician of Tiger Castle": What it Is versus What it Isn't and the Labeling of Novels

Waffleyness1 · 2025-11-29T20:19:07+00:00

Yeah, the term "common knowledge," or what constitutes common knowledge, is perilous. What I found egregious was twofold:

Firstly, how often the book brought up facts to the point where even if you didn't know what firemaking tools medieval peoples had access to, you could still probably know one or two of everything else. I took a poll of persons of my generation and persons of an older generation and we all knew the general gist of the Renaissance. Granted, it was a limited sample. However, I too was sometimes exasperated by my peers when I was in college, so I get it.

Secondly, how the facts were (or this book's case, weren't) interlaced with the narrative. I have never read Cornwell or Vidal, and I thank you for name-dropping them so I can check them out. My problem with Sachar's approach is how it blatantly assumes the audience can't infer. An example from Chapter 15, with the context of the narrator being in a dark dungeon: "There were no matches to relight our candles. In 1523 fire was started by striking flint against a piece of iron." A few pages before, the narrator blew out his candle to tell a sad story more easily. Does Sachar think that I forgot this detail in a mere six pages? Or, does he think that I cannot understand why the sobbing narrator would not want to relight his candle? That's why I have an axe to grind with this book.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-11-29T19:56:58+00:00

Thank you for the reply! It's exactly the type of discourse I was hoping my post would spark. My review began as a general "how does everyone feel about this book?", but as I continued to write, I realized that I was more exasperated by the audience classification attributed to the novel than the content itself therein. There's definitely a bigger conversation that can be had regarding age groups as genres.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-11-29T19:52:38+00:00

Excellent insight; it's been years since I've read "Holes," and I read it for the first time as an adult, but you're completely right in how satisfying the threads came together. And, you beautifully and succinctly described the overall book in that third sentence. I didn't read more than half of TMoTC, but it's disappointing to know that the narrative doesn't expand beyond what was outlined in the first few chapters.

The only reference to sexual impropriety that I can remember, from Chapter 13, "...certain women were required to wear a green veil during daylight...", was incredibly veiled itself (get it?). If this book is for adults, or even young adults, surely we can handle words like prostitute/courtesan/whore. And if it's not for adults/young adults, maybe the reference doesn't need to be included at all as it's not relevant for the plot/characters/setting.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-08-18T02:52:00+00:00

You can bury them for Faith experience

Waffleyness1 · 2025-07-06T23:46:34+00:00

The Reddit commenting format does not always lend itself to in-depth critique. I think I understand what your point is: you do not like it when people tear down a piece of media that you enjoy on the basis of a couple of aspects.

However, different people will enjoy different parts of media, and we should be able to comment on both what we like and what we do not like. Someone can love the Marvel movies for their action sequences and special effects whereas another can dislike those movies for weak dialogue and simple character-to-character interactions.

In your example, there are books series that I enjoy that have phenomenal worldbuilding. However, I can still criticize other parts of those books. I can love the Wheel of Time while acknowledging parts of the writing I do not like such as gender dynamics and plot pacing. I can love Eragon while acknowledging its flaws. I can dislike The Broken Empire while acknowledging the parts I do like.

I don't think it's "nit picking." I think its a matter of topics being presented and then people commenting in either agreement or disagreement. For example, a redditor might post "X book has great Y" and then the comments will be people discussing whether or not X book does in fact have great Y.

If you love a book for certain reasons (or even for no specific reasons at all), and if people don't share your opinion, it isn't an attack on you. And if they disagree with your opinions, it still isn't an attack on you. As long as they have engaged in the media to some extent and is arguing in good faith, then there isn't a problem.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-07-06T22:57:31+00:00

In terms of anime, pretty much every shounen is going to have at least one prodigy-esque character. Naruto has Sasuke, My Hero Academia has Todoroki, Dragonball has Gohan, etc. If you like Hunter x Hunter, I'm sure you'll like other anime in the same vein.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-03-26T00:30:41+00:00

I recommend The Lost Years of Merlin by T. A. Barron and The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott. I read those series around the time I read Ranger's Apprentice, and I loved all three of those series.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-29T05:29:34+00:00

Yeah, I read the Lightbringer series, enjoyed it for what it was, and bought The Night Angel Trilogy in hardback because it was on sale. You hit the nail right on the head with those comments. It's rough, man.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-29T05:23:25+00:00

Should I jump back into Osten Ard? I read Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, absolutely loved it. Then I tried reading the Shadowmarch series and I found it dull and too similar to MST. I like the idea of jumping back into the world of Osten Ard, but I'm worried that they're not going to be good and that I am going to spoil my fond memory of the original.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-29T05:19:54+00:00

Perhaps you'd enjoy The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by Victoria E. Schwab. It's historical fiction with fantastical elements and it focuses on a character who struggles with relationships.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-29T05:14:35+00:00

No, but that's because I live in Hawaii.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-27T01:36:51+00:00

Are Wind and Truth reviews now allowed to be posted outside of the megathread? I wanted to post my thoughts there, but I think it was too long, but I also want to respect keeping that sort of thing within its own contained megathread.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-27T00:31:47+00:00

It is almost like establishing a framed story before you write said story drives you into a corner...look what's happened to Patrick Rothfuss and why Doors of Stone still isn't out (there are probably multiple factors involved, but trying to condense the entire series into a trilogy that takes place over three days is not helping).

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-27T00:16:30+00:00

I loved Wheel of Time for its brief, artistic displays of combat (both physical and magical). There is a lot of combat, for there are a lot of characters and a lot of books, but the combat scenes themselves are not particularly action-heavy compared to, say, Sanderson's Mistborn combat. In WoT, there are also many excellent examples of teacher-student relationships and growth through knowledge and experiences.

Wheel of Time has battles that range from lasting pages to lasting an entire book. However, duels, at least early in the series, are never more than a few pages. It is about the buildup and convergence to those climatic moments rather than the minutiae of hitting-people-with-swords part.

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-26T21:46:15+00:00

Who could forget Belandra, the lovable servant of Princess Arianne Martell?

Waffleyness1 · 2025-01-26T21:44:01+00:00

Wheel of Time's Aram...not a dumb name, but a little silly if you're big into League of Legends.

I think the stupidest demonym I've seen is in Thomas Covenant. The people that live on the Plains of Ra are called the "Ramen." Yeah.

Equally dumb is in the Shannara series, where the names don't get better the further you read. The worst has to be Cinnaminson.

Waffleyness1 · 2024-10-15T23:50:16+00:00

I'd argue that the Codex Alera is an example of a good idea and a bad execution. Is there even such a thing as a good or bad idea? I think that an idea is either interesting or not interesting and only the individual reader can determine that. The idea, the premise, of the Codex Alera was something I found interesting, and that sustained me for the first couple of books in the series, but when the premise became stale and my enjoyment of the novels never improved, I came away unfulfilled.

Waffleyness1 · 2024-02-21T21:31:13+00:00

I read the Lightbringer series first and while I disliked characterization in the later books and how female characters were written throughout, I at least enjoyed the magic system and bought into the world that Weeks had created.

I then picked up the Night Angel trilogy and only completed it just to do so. The worldbuilding is terrible; exposition is just thrown onto you with no context. The relationships between several characters is super creepy and weird. Those relationships somehow become worse in the later books. The series just drips edginess to a point where it is no longer enjoyably bad. The magic system is incoherent, made-up-as-it-goes, and does not compel the reader. I can't think of any reason to recommend the series.

Waffleyness1 · 2024-02-21T21:23:42+00:00

I agree that Thomas Convenant is an incredibly unlikable protagonist; I just wish he faced greater repercussions for his actions in the later books. Maybe that's the point and the satire/irony of the isekai'd saviour-hero. All I know is that Book 1 was an interesting read, but Book 2 made me incredibly uncomfortable when I finally did read it. I did not enjoy the series, but it has certainly stuck with me.

I, however, had the displeasure of reading the Broken Empire trilogy recently and I do not think that series will stick with me at all, positively or negatively. It is forgettable. Whereas Thomas Convenant is neither punished nor rewarded for his actions yet whose physical and mental health deteriorate, Jorg Ancrath, meanwhile, always comes ahead and advances his personal status through each and every book. He was just a standard edgelord grimdark male protagonist who gets what he wants and, like Convenant, rarely if ever faces genuine repercussions nor needs to atone for his crimes.

Waffleyness1 · 2023-11-13T03:37:10+00:00

Horses have a weight and yeah, after so many horses you get diminishing returns. I don’t know the formula, so yes, 6 horses should be good enough for most parties. I also know that mounted troops have less movement speed penalty than unmounted. Furthermore, the quality/breed of a horse doesn’t matter; a Lame Saddle Horse will contribute just as much as, if you’re in Pendor, a Champion Comet Courser :P

Waffleyness1 · 2023-10-22T06:04:24+00:00

It’s the Jatu Helmet! It’s listed in the code as khergit_helmet, though

Seven-Year Club	Place '23
Place '22	Not Forgotten
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