Moon Over Brendle by Jeff Noon

This book combines elements of a coming of age story and a fantasy adventure story while also being a book about stories themselves and the power they have. Noon is not an author I was familiar with at all but I really enjoyed his writing style. If you like books that combine magic and memoir then you might like this.

The book is a fictional quasi-autobiography narrated by an older man who is a science fiction author. He recalls his childhood as an 11-year-old boy in a small village in England. On the surface, it is a coming-of-age story: the boy begins to understand the world around him, one suffused with a mysterious Dust that only a few people can see and no one fully understands. During this time, he meets an older man who takes him under his wing and sparks his passion for writing.

At a deeper level, the novel is about writing, inspiration, and the creative process. Although I have not read much by the author, this feels like his most personal work, exploring his inner motivations and imaginative impulses. It is also a broader reflection on imagination and, perhaps, the meaning of life and how these elements are intertwined.

A deeply personal book from an author known for weird fiction. It is a lovely read, particularly for fans of the author and those interested in books about writing. It may not be his strongest literary work—being somewhat light on plot and lacking the tension of his other novels—but it remains more than adequate.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to NetGalley and Angry Robot for an advance copy that of a book that is bit fiction, a bit real, a bit magical and dusty, about a boy leaning about the power of the mind and the imagination, lessons that will see him through life and his many creations.

I don't look back much. I don't have fond memories of school, old jobs, even current jobs. However I do remember having awesome summers. Being able to read what I want, watch unbelievable amounts of movies on our illegal cable box, doing the occasional lawn. I remember these years by books, by comic events, and movies. Many of which formed my thinking, for better or for worse. Maybe even shaping me into the man I am today. Just like it did for the main character in this book a bit of magical realism, and autobiography. Moon Over Brendle by Jeff Noon is a story about a young boy, science fiction, dust, family, a small town, and the odd things that go on, events that shape an author and his creations in different ways.

Joe Sutter is enjoying the summer of 1968, reading comics, thinking of fictional adventures, and seeing things that only he can see. The world is covered in a dust, called by the people Greot, but Joe and his best friend Denny call it the Koag. This dust is visible to humans only for 3 minutes and 39 seconds a day, but Joe is gifted in that he can see the many colors of Greot, a gift that is getting him into secondary school. One day Joe see the dust, the Greot, around a man who is dying, a grey color, and one that does not look right. This starts off something odd for Joe, where he finds that he and Denny seem to be going in different places, Denny finding girls, and Joe not wanting the world to change. Joe meets an old man, at least to Joe in a tower outside of town, a science fiction author of the pulp variety who introduces Joe to a world of thinking and looking at things that changes Joe. As Joe gets older he also becomes a writer of some renown, and looks back at these early days, sharing what the dust Greot has told him, and where things started to change.

A mix of autobiographical, magical realism, a love story to reading and ideas, and a bit of weird. The book starts right away, dropping the reader right into the story, with dust, Denny and Joe explaining his life, and the world. This pace keeps up, even when Joe is looking back. I liked this story quite a bit, though it was not what I expected. There are many moments that one can tell that Noon is sharing what happened in his past. There are references to classic books, science fictional and writers who have been unfairly forgotten. Noon has a real gift for putting one in a fantastical setting, and making things seem real, and relatable, not matter how high the weird gets.

A book that was not what I expected, but one I really enjoyed. Not like other Noon books, though still with some crazy things happening. This is more of a look back, a look at a magical time, when the world was bright, the books were new and the future seemed unlimited and bright. A very good and personal book, and one I am glad I read.

Well that was one of the most remarkable books I've read in a long time.

It's 1968, and Joe is 11. It's the summer holidays, which means hanging out with best friend Denny, and generally exploring his small town. One day, the pair stumble across the dying body of the local drunk, Tom Halfpenny. Then Eileen starts turning up to hang around with Denny occasionally; then Joe sneaks into a weird, semi-neglected house, getting caught by the elderly inhabitant. The old man is a science fiction writer, and for a period of 1968 he and Joe form a strange, important relationship.

Those three things sound like they should be given very different values. But when you're eleven, they might have fairly similar weight. Indeed, Eileen maybe stealing your best friend may have the greatest import.

In terms of the book, there's one significant point I haven't noted yet. This is not our world. Joe is a witness: he can see the Greot, the colourful dust that flows over everything in the world, in varying hues and in different densities according to its own rules. Only witnesses can see Greot all the time - except at 3.06am, when everyone can - and an even fewer number of people can see what Greot sees; and there's even fewer who can manipulate Greot.

The novel is written as a memoir: a man looking back over his life, the paths he followed from 1968, how the events of that year had an impact on him. It could very easily have been written in a realist style: young boy influenced by slightly mysterious older mentor. It could have been magical realism, too - did the young boy really experience something magical? Instead, Noon commits fully to the novel as fantasy. and it's richer for it. Joe's experiences with the Greot, understanding what it is (and is not), what it can (and can't) do, how it impacts on other people; all of these are significant factors in his growing up. The fact that the Greot is never explained, and that otherwise this is recognisably our world, add to the beauty and delight and captivating-ness of the novel.

This novel is just stunning. I hope many people find it.

I read several books by Jeff Noon so long ago that they're not recorded in Goodreads, which didn't exist at the time. And enjoyed them a lot! So of course I was intrigued to see how things had changed in 30ish years -- and was delighted to find how much I loved this magical realism memoir.

The nostalgia was strong throughout; be interesting to see how this lands for other folk, but for this Brit it was perfect. It's strange from the start (of course) since we are in a setting that has Greot, a swirling, pervasive rainbow dust. Everyone can see it for a few minutes every night, but narrator Joe is one of the few who can see it all the time. Which does not translate into understanding it in any way, but that's not the story. We're here to read about how Joe becomes a writer, influenced by a deeply odd older man who is himself a prolific writer (in particular of sci-fi.) And by Greot, by his free-range childhood, by his family, by comics, by thinking creatively, and so on. It all comes together in a lovely way.

Highly recommended for when you're in a weird mood.

4,5 stars
L'auteur sait mêler fiction et autobiographie à merveille ! J'ai trouvé l'histoire très touchante, la plume parfaite et le côté "régressif" de l'enfance m'a énormément plu !

Moon Over Brendle by Jeff Noon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a comfortable and nostalgic tale that serves as a fascinating quasi-autobiography. Part fantasy, all tribute to SF, the imagination, and wonder.

It takes us back to 1968 when pulp fiction was pulp fiction dreaming about being something so much more, and alongside that, an 11 year old boy embodying it. The dust that so few people could see could be a magical element or imagination itself, and that's where we, the reader need to be.

It's absolutely a Jeff Noon book. Not nearly as weird as his other works, but still firmly wondrous.

I got a lot out of it. But then, the old classics are books I appreciate a lot. The nostalgia, even for works well before my own time, is real.

I'm very happy with this work.

Moon Over Brendle by Jeff Noon is the type of coming of age story that leaves you feeling enthralled, full of wonder and like you've just had that perfect cuppa at the end of a long day

"Magical contemporary fantasy meets fantastical memoir" if that isn't kne of the best hooks I have seen this year, I don't know what is!

1968 and Joe Sutter is at the age where he is about to leave junior school behind and go on to grammar school (age 10/11) his reality is that of any other young boy of the time, drawing, comics and getting into places he shouldn't, including talking to strangers, one being an old SF author at the top of Brendle Hill, the very perdon who imbues Joe with a desire to read, explore and to create .

Alongside this reality, is a gossamer cloud of dust, a fine ethereal, colourful apparition of sorts, opposite to the miasma of reality, the "greot" of Joes town. The old author's encouragrment leads Joe to explore the threads between realities, all while life trundles on around him

The wonder I have experienced with this book comes from the lyrical, deeply personal narrative that cradles a memoir, part fact, part imagination. The lines between the two are blurred throughout. This story is an entity that grows alongside the author. Was it borne out of escapism from everyday life in an industrial town or a desire to explore worlds beyond the boundaries of reality. Two very different things, although they appear the same and this exact feeling is borne from reading this book

The backbone of this book is a sort of ode to writing and reading and the voyage of discovery it takes us on. What inspires usto create, how we process what we read and how it is grounded in our consciousness. There is an innocence to the narrative when it is placed in imagination, the world has more colour, compared to the drunk and dinginess of reality and the re-imagined "Greot" that only 10% of humanity can see, Joe being one of the privileged few.

All in all, this book exceeded my already brimming excitement and will remain with me as a favourite

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and Angry Robot for this stunning ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

Moon Over Brendle reminded me a bit of Robert McCammon’s Boy’s Life, that feeling of summer and being young, and the inherent magical realism that can be felt in this time. Jeff Noon builds the story well and gives us characters that stand up well even when things get weird. While not my absolute favorite by the author it was well crafted and you can feel the heart in it.

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Moon over Brendle is essentially a coming of age story full of innocence, stories and a sprinkling of magic.

Joe Sutter is an outlier, he is one of one 10% of the population who can see Greot, the multi coloured dust that swathes his world. This makes him special or an outsider, depending on your point of view. He loves to read comics, listen to music and make up fantastical stories. His adventures lead him to a dilapidated Farmhouse where he meets an old sci-fi author who takes him under his wing and mentors him sowing him the path to become a writer.

Moon over Brendle has more than just a sprinkling of magic, there is also a sprinkling of truth which nestles alongside the magic realism. This book feels very personal to the author and gives us, the readers a small window into some of Noon’s early life. On reading the Angry Robot website, the old man in the book refers to the renowned author, Ray Bradbury.

Thanks to Netgalley and Angry Robot for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. And Mr Noon, thanks for sharing.