Thursday Next: First Among Sequels: A Thursday Next Novel (Thursday Next Novels (Penguin Books)) - Harry Potter 6 Books

Product Description

Jasper Fforde returns to BookWorld in this New York Times bestselling installment of his Thursday Next series

Jasper Fforde has thrilled readers everywhere with his gloriously outlandish novels in the Thursday Next and Nursery Crime series. Now, after a two-year hiatus, the demand for Thursday Next has more than tripled. And with Thursday Next: First Among Sequels, Fforde’s famous literary detective is once again ready to make the world safe for fiction. Thursday Next is grappling with a host of problems in BookWorld: a recalcitrant new apprentice, the death of Sherlock Holmes, and the inexplicable departure of comedy from the once-hilarious Thomas Hardy novels, to name just a few—all while captaining the ship Moral Dilemma and facing down her most vicious enemy yet: herself.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #457763 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-29
• Format: Bargain Price
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Full of bizarre subplots, many of which don't go anywhere, bestseller Fforde's fifth novel to feature intrepid literary detective Thursday Next (after 2004's Something Rotten) blends elements of mystery, campy science fiction and screwball fantasy à la Terry Pratchett's Discworld. With the Stupidity Surplus reaching dangerously high levels all over England, Acme Carpets employee and undercover SpecOps investigator Next has her hands full trying to persuade her 16-year-old slacker son, Friday, to join the ChronoGuard, which deals with temporal stability; if Friday continues to sleep away his future, the end is near—for everyone. To complicate matters, a malicious apprentice begins making classic works of literature into reality book shows (Pride and Prejudice becomes The Bennets), a ruthless corporation tries to turn the Bookworld into a tourist trap, and the Cheese Enforcement Agency tries to bust Next for smuggling killer curd. The fate of the world may lie in a Longfellow poem. Fans of satiric literary humor are in for a treat. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Bookmarks Magazine
Set in a world where books are more fun than television, more serious than the CIA, and more important than proper diet and exercise, the Thursday Next novels continue to grow in popularity-which is a good sign. In the fifth novel of the series (after Something Rotten, ***1/2 Nov/Dec 2004), Jasper Fforde again shows off his delicious British wit (and occasionally heavy-handed use of puns) in another zany romp. If you're already a fan, First Among Sequels is sure to thrill. If you're new to the series, you might as well dive right in. Either way, you'll soon have a new appreciation of Henry Longfellow.

Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.

Review
“ Playful . . . It’s not hard to see what this enthusiasm is about. . . . It’s easy to be delighted by a writer who loves books so madly.”
—Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“ What keeps this series humming is Fforde’s lively engagement with books and the indefatigable woman he’s created to defend them.”
—John Freeman, People

“Richly crammed with jokes, ideas, and action. Brainier silliness is hard to find.”
—USA Today

“ The BookWorld seems to have encouraged Fforde’s rogue imagination to escape all fetters and really go wild.”
—Michael Dirda, The Washington Post

Customer Reviews

Jasper Fforde is amazing, as always
Thursday Next is the most fun heroine that has ever walked the world of fiction. This book is, not surprisingly, full of fun and nonsense, drama and edge-of-your-seat suspense, and, of course, Neanderthals. If you've enjoyed Mr. Fforde's work before, you'll love this one, too.

Different - Fun- Interesting!
I really enjoyed this book, however, I doubt that I can convey in a short review exactly what it is about. There is just so much going on inside its pages. It is a story of a middle-age woman, her husband, and children living in our world in the future, and what takes place there will truly make your head swim.
Her world is strange, at least it is coming from where we are in time right now. Thursday has her hands full trying to raise her children, keep secrets from her husband as to exactly what she is doing, and fight crime that is beyond weird. To top it off she travels into the world of books, and must deal with all the problems that they encounter. I loved this part. Hearing the characters talk and actually be brought to life from several of the books that I have read was fun. I was also quite taken back by all the 'problems' they encounter as books. What an imagination our author has.........really.
This book goes everywhere from characters in book land, to weird ghosts, time travel, the end of time, family life, and dangerous killers, to name a few of the adventures. The strange part is somehow our author pulls all of these together to make one interesting and really fun read. I liked this book. It was different and enjoyable, almost like taking a wild ride at a favorite amusement park and coming off a bit dizzy, but happy nonetheless. I recommend it for anyone who wants something different, fun, and entertaining. Thursday Next is quite a lady and one I hope to enjoy other reading adventures with.

An acquired taste
Jasper Fforde's work has a niche all its only and is certainly an acquired taste. The puns and word play become quickly cloying and annoying. The red herrings likewise. I think it is deceiving to give this a 4.5 rating as a book for the general reader. Most of the time Amazon ratings suit me. I couldn't even finish Thursday Next and certainly won't be tempted to try another of Fforde's books.