lyrical and poetic to the utmost, and a fantastical and mystical reflection on the uncertainty that is life on earth, this gem of a novel is an absolute pleasure to read: every word a treasure, fine produce of the earth, something to sink your teeth into and feel the juice flowing out. there's a vibrancy within the pages that almost takes your breath away, a quaintness that's just two corners left of normalcy that it's both utterly strange and fantastically believable all at the same time.

i might say this is a fairy tale, but this is both something more than that and also just... not that. the lyricism might make one think it's that, while the content might persuade one it's a picaresque; but... i don't know. this is unclassifiable in genre and in tone, so completely and breathtakingly original and fresh and utterly engrossing that i'm a bit hard-pressed to fully encapsulate all that i feel about this book.

what it is, in the end, is something utterly and completely on its own level, a hallmark in and of itself. like the introduction states, i'm not one to wax philosophical or poetic about the function and form of a novel, but this?

this is a Novel.