The Builders

by Daniel Polansky

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Have you ever reached the end of a book and you’re just trying to figure out how to classify it? That’s where I am right now.

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The idea of the book isn’t exactly new, I mean it has a Wild West flare to it, lots of death and of course revenge but the thing that makes it somewhat unique is the fact that the cast are animals. It’s difficult to take anything that happens in this book seriously when I remember that I’m reading about animals and not humans, it fits very well with the supposed joke of a story Daniel Polansky aimed to deliver but was still more amusing than the supposed dark atmosphere going on.

One of the things I really liked here was the idea of revenge, the kind where the protagonist isn’t going to give up midway and try to take the high ground but just plain old revenge. I think I kind of hoped that like the cover of the book this would have more swords and such included to satisfy my fantasy loving self but now that I think a little harder about it, Daniel Polansky’s approach is probably much much better.

The chosen animals were also interesting and better yet their portrayal in size and abilities was interesting, I like the approach he took with it. But, I dislike how forgettable some of the characters are. It’s a very very short book so of course they won’t be fleshed out or anything of the sort, but I still didn’t want to pause every now and then to try and recall who is who and what they’re good at. Maybe a shorter cast list would’ve been a better approach here, or illustrations to make it stick easier.

While that was one big issue I had with the book, or rather the only big issue I had with the book, I found myself entertained. Hoped for more for sure but Daniel Polansky’s writing was entertaining and I’m definitely going to read more of his books, “Those Above” sounds really good so I hope I enjoy it!

Final rating: 3/5