Review of The Fox

[Carin Fraser]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Fox" by M. N. J. Butler.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The Fox by M.N.J. Butler is a lengthy novel that takes place in the time of ancient Greece. The story is written from the point of view of Leotychides, now an elderly man. Telling about his childhood, adult years, and through to old age, the author provides Leotychides' perspective on his life in Sparta. He describes the agoge, which was the ancient training system that taught youth to become warriors. Butler also describes ancient battles and Leotychides' relationships with his family. Questions as to Leotychides' paternity arise in the story.

I liked the plentiful use of dialogue in this book, as it provided a lot of insight into the thoughts and feelings of the characters. The language Butler uses makes the reader feel like they are living in ancient times. While the story was fairly slow in the beginning, it did pick up as it went on and became much more intriguing. Butler writes very descriptively and truly paints a picture of what is happening.

Butler's epic novel also has good character development, not just for Leotychides, but for many other characters as well. The reader is able to see some of the characters grow from their youth to adulthood. Another element of the novel that I enjoyed was how Butler incorporates both fictional and real-life historical characters in the novel. This helps to make the stories more believable.

The book is quite long and I think it could have been shortened significantly without taking much away from the story. There were so many characters written into the novel that it was very difficult to keep track of who everyone was. What made it more challenging is that a lot of the names were similar so it was hard to keep everyone straight. The 12-page glossary at the beginning of the book gives an indication as to how complicated the novel is and how many characters are involved.

This book would be enjoyed by someone who likes historical fiction and has a particular interest in ancient Greece. Readers without any knowledge of, or interest in, ancient history may find this story difficult to follow. There are a number of battle scenes depicted in the novel, which might not suit everyone, but they are not particularly violent or graphic. I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars since it is a well-written portrayal of a man in ancient Greece, however, it is much too long and complex.

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The Fox
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