The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

[cehedley]

Harry August is a rather peculiar fellow. No matter what he does, when he dies he is born again in the same time period with his memories of his past life intact, living the same life he lived before. Although he finds companions who also die and are reborn, he grows weary of the monotony. At the end of his eleventh life he is visited by a young girl who says the world is ending sooner and sooner with each life cycle. Finally, Harry is able to move, to change, and to do something other than live the same life over and over and over again.

I will first start this review with what I really enjoyed about the book. Claire North must have put her heart into Harry August and the many characters in the book. Each character was unique and going through their own journeys. The character development was excellent and I applaud North for doing such a grand job. As I read I could feel Harry’s ennui, his desire for change, for anything and, most of all, his loneliness. Reading about kalachakra and ouroboran fascinated me and brought to mind moral dilemmas. Is it wrong to change the course of history if it betters mankind? Is it wrong to kill a man before he kills another? The surreal world North presented made you question if perhaps our own world was not so different from her world.

Another aspect I greatly enjoyed about The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August is the relationship between the protagonist, Harry, and the antagonist, Vincent. They are a perfect example of frenemies, two men who greatly respect and even like one another, but who differ so greatly in beliefs and are, therefore, pinned against one another. As Vincent continues to see Harry as a liability he keeps Harry close, but I can’t help but wonder if perhaps he keeps him close because Vincent is so fond of Harry. Though by the end, it seems pretty clear that Harry is going after Vincent out of vengeance rather than the good of mankind.

All righty. Now let’s get to the things I didn’t care for. Honestly, this book was a chore to get through until near the end of the book. I spent the first half of the book asking, “Why does the author want me to know this?” or “What is the point of this?” I felt myself not caring about his plights and growing rather bored of the narration. It felt like the book might never have a plot line. I was thoroughly confused since the book opened with a girl telling Harry that the end of the world is getting closer and closer. However, North did not touch on this until around half way through the book. As I was reading the first half I actually FORGOT what the girl told him. Why tease the readers about the plot and then not discuss it for a great portion of the book?

Also, North discusses science and the idea of time traveling which might be interesting to a reader who enjoys sci-fi, I found it difficult to get through. I wonder what sci-fi readers would think of this book. I am not a sci-fi fan and I ended up zoning out every time science was discussed. In fact, I actually zoned out quite a bit for the first half of the book.

My rating (on a 5 point scale): 3

[miss_argyle]

Thanks for this review. I really enjoyed the book and was a bit mystified that it didn't make a bigger splash than it did. From your review I now understand this one just wasn't everyone's cup of tea. While I enjoyed the book, my biggest complaint was that I kept waiting for some big denouement and when the ending came, it seemed a bit underwhelming.

[Pass4Books]

I agree with miss_argyle that I am rather surprised that "The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August" by Claire North was not a larger hit with science fiction enthusiasts, but I also can understand where cehedley came from. I am an sci-fi reader and I can understand the science within the book, although her vocabulary made me realize she put in considerable work writing the story.

To get to the point this story would be great for readers who would like to know what potentially could happen if you were given another chance to do something. There was several inserts in regards to Harry's life which only showed how he grew up and developed as the main protagonist throughout his lifetimes. There was generally no chronological order in regards to the narration of his story causing me to get side tracked a few times and wonder where I am within the story or where Claire North may be going at times.

In regards to the ending, I found it unique, indicating a level of patience only known to the kalachakra or ouroboran. The climax leading to the ending showed the story as perhaps the challenge and possible hard challenges limited to these individuals, but yes perhaps a little underwhelming.

[weiwei]

I've been hearing some great reviews for this book. I tried reading this book twice but just couldn't get it through. I didn't even make it pass the first quarter of the book. And it is frustrating. I have the same problem as cehedley, I kept zoning out and just left me feeling more confused than ever.

[rssllue]

Thanks for the insight into the book. It sounds interesting, but I am not sure if it will be a great read or not.

[Orionsbelt]

I loved this book! I agree that it draggad a little but I found the concept of the kalachakras fascinating, however I understand why someone may not like it.