World Without End ~ Ken Follett

Funk Rating: 9 out of 10

This is a delicious, delightful escape to the 14th century in England. A captivating tale that slowly grabs you and pulls you into a world that is so different from today, yet all so similar in terms of behaviors, motivations, desires, and the like. For all that technology and industry have brought us over the centuries, and for how different our day-to-day lives are, this book reminds the reader that people are people. With their noble sacrifices, their not-so-noble choices, their flaws, their love (both for others and for their passion, whatever it may be) and their ingenuity.

This is a long book, designed to create a separate world for its characters and for you to join them. The plot is a little wandering, but the characters and the themes are wonderfully done. Follett has followed up Pillars of the Earth with a real gem in my mind. It's not a page turner in the sense that some thrillers are (I'm not sure how one can write a 1000+ page "page turner"), and the characters are confusing for the first half until they appear with sufficient frequency to create a little lock-in. But for a town of a couple thousand growing to up to 7,000 inhabitants that lives through all sorts of trials, tribulations, and re-birth, it's a joy.

I'd certainly put this on your reading list if you want a big fat book this winter to read by the fire and cuddle up with. It reminded me of Tolkien's ability to create an alternate world that at the end you find is all so very real in your mind. Delightful, just delightful!