A.S. Byatt is a master. This book is pretty amazing, as Byatt has to create not only her protagonists, their world, and their quest, but also two literary figures and great portions or excerpts of their works. It’s quite a feat.

This is a book that takes a great deal of effort and time, but it’s worth every moment that’s put into it. It’s easier if you’re already familiar with literary analysis (and if you like it) because there’s a great deal of that involved, but it’s also about the power of stories, the power of writing–especially as it pertains to knowledge, and, of course, it’s about love.

This book is perfect for:

• English majors
• people who like reading about books and academia
• people who don’t think books should be shorter than 500 pages