There’s nothing like a library fine to quicken the reading of a book. Yikes! I borrowed The Age of Magic by Ben Okri from the library and it’s 3 days overdue. That’ll accrue a $1 fine. Thankfully, that’s all I need to pay as I finished it! Yay!

Well it wasn’t that this book was boring or painful to read. In fact, I like the subject matter. Time was my issue. Knowing that the book was popular, I really should have started reading it as soon as I took it out of the library.

So, what is this book about? Well, it’s mainly about a team of film makers documenting their journey to Arcadia. I’m not sure if they’re actually going to that particular area of Greece or the term refers to some kind of utopian place. It’s a mixture of of real (3D practical everyday stuff) and surreal (spiritual, magic, multi-dimensional) things and happenings. It reminds me of manga films like Spirited Away – you know stories about ordinary folks entering the realm of the supernatural. And because I like all that stuff, it’s a nice enough story. Oh this might be a spoiler but I don’t think they get to Arcadia at the end. Or do they? Is the hotel the utopian place they were searching for? I’m not quite sure. I’m guessing this is part of a series?

It’s an ok book, easy to read and I like the subject matter. But nothing much happens here – a more philosophical and metaphysical study of life.