Leviathan
Simon Pulse, 2009
Fantasy
ISBN: 1416971734
448 pages
Synopsis
It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet.
Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker and a loyal crew of men.
Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She’s a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.
With the Great War brewing, Alek’s and Deryn’s paths cross in the most unexpected way…taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure. One that will change both their lives forever.
Critique
Steampunk is on the rise, or shall we say, gathering steam? This recent novel by Westerfeld is a perfect example of the kind of possibilities open to this new fantasy genre, and I, for one, am very excited at the prospects before us. Personally, I’m growing a bit tired of wizards, dragons, fairies/elves and vampires, as it seems that almost all of the recent fantasy novels fall into one of those four categories, the only exception being the novels written by Garth Nix, Kate Constable, Elizabeth Knox, or Kristen Cashore.
Steampunk, and its sister Madcap (which is more like Victorian fantasy/sci-fi in the same way that Steampunk is Industrial and Scientific Revolution fantasy/sci fi) are widespread enough at this point, as a fantasy genre that there are several people picking up their brushes, instruments, tools, and pens to create Steampunk art in their own artistic field.
For the young adult literature discipline, Leviathan is likely to be an early industry standard for others to follow much like Lord of the Rings is for elf/dwarf fantasy, Interview with the Vampire is for vampire mythology (not including of course Dracula), and Pern is for dragons—yes, it’s that good.
What makes Westerfeld such a talented writer in the fantasy genre is that he’s not solely reliant on the fast-paced action and fantasy tropes that so many in this genre have a tendency to fall into. He integrates all of the elements that make up a good story—social commentary regarding politics, nationalism, gender equality, and the general social unrest caused by scientific advancement, specifically as it pertains to biogenetics and cloning, as well as three-dimensional characters and an overall depth to the story because of the many layers of internal and external conflict encountered by the characters. Even as an alternate version of the history, many of the same elements that caused World War I are explored throughout the text.
My only criticism is that I wish it were a self-contained one off rather than a series, but I suppose I may change my tune when I see the second book. I recommend this to all readers 12+.
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For the Classroom
Even though this is arguably not historical fiction, and is really more like historical fantasy, there are so many imaginative elements throughout the text, such as the war machinery of the Clankers and the explanations of the symbiotic relationships of the creatures created by the Darwinists, that make it a fantastic classroom companion. Although it doesn’t work very well for a history class, it should work wonders for the imaginations of those in biology, chemistry, physics and engineering.
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