A Case of Curiosities

However, in a note of speculation, the book is after all set in the very late 18th century, there is probably a surprising reference to a hit disco song from the 1970s. Maybe I am reading too deeply into it, but I believe Kurzweil was winking at the song "Ring My Bell." Ring any bells anyone? I guess we will shelve that question in the "Empty Compartment."
Darn! Way too many jokes and asides today! LOL

Kurzweil obviously delights in playing games with the reader, breaking down defenses and challenging expectations. In an early scene, for example, a surgeons removal of "the devils handiwork" from a child stimulates our sensibilities and anticipates our revulsion. Then Kurzweil jerks the chain and shows us who is in control. In serious or scholarly scenes, he lightens the mood with puns, word play, and jokes, some clever, some groaners--a noblemans motto, "Born to Serve," refers to his tennis abilities; an expert in insanity is named Battie. Unique images provide constant surprises and vitalize his descriptions--"[The sound of] feet walking through snow was indistinguishable from the noise when the baker squeezed a sack of cornstarch"; "her costume was a taxidermists dream."

Kurzweils ability to bring this period to life in a context accessible to the reader is daunting. Gracefully incorporating such diverse subjects as the enameling process, watchmaking, contemporary 18th century science and philosophy, and love of pornography, Kurzweil makes these esoteric subjects come alive, not because they are so alluring to the reader, but because they are important to the characters, whose lives are intriguing and whose problems, despite the 18th century context, are nevertheless universal. This precursor to The Grand Complication does not have as tight a plot that that novel, but I thought it just as intelligent and just as much fun to read.