The Wooden Sea concerns middle-aged Frannie McCabe, Chief
of Police in Crane's View, New York State. His troubles start when a dog
he has just buried reappears miraculously in the boot of his car. They
rapidly escalate when his 17 year old self appears from the past and tells
him that he has "done everything wrong. And that he doesn't like what
he has become." He is then catapulted forward to the last day of his
life. And learns that he has the power to determine the fate of the
universe. Worse still, someone not of this Earth is trying to 'help'.
Jonathan Carroll has amazing powers of description. And the Wooden Sea is
no exception. It starts out with a vivid description of a dog, and rapidly
becomes surreal.
Strictly, the book could be classified as Science Fiction, as it
contains both Time Travel, and Aliens, but essentially it sits outside any
genre. If you enjoy Jonathan Carroll, and if you have never read him,
track down a copy of Land of Laughs immediately, then look forward to a
very strange and amazing journey. The Wooden Sea is a most enjoyable,
well-written puzzle book, where the challenge is to work out what, who and
when is going on. The Wooden Sea stands on its own, but is the third in a
"loosely connected" sequence of which Kissing the Beehive, and
The Marriage of Sticks are the first two. Not having read the first two,
I'm off to the bookshop on an urgent basis.
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