I’m having trouble with my current read. Maybe I should just watch the mini-series.

Here’s my problem: we have a main character whom we’ll call “Horace.” We see everything from Horace’s point of view. We’re with Horace when Horace gives advice to his boss. We’re with Horace when he hands his horse off to the groom. We’re with Horace when he goes home to his wife and tells her the highlights of his day.

When Horace speaks or twiddles his pen or tosses his cloak, all we are ever told is the “he said” or “he twiddled” and we don’t know whether it was Horace or his boss that twiddled. We don’t know it until we go back and read the scene again.

And cast of characters includes nine “Horaces.”

The author crafted a masterpiece of research and imagination. Perhaps it’s a new literary fashion to go spare on the stage directions. So how far do we want this trend to go? Remove stoplights from roads? Withhold forks from diners? Trim vowels from words?

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“Place Junior Mints on warm cookies.”

You can see why I might need a little chocolate right now.

I’ll try a little longer with Horace, Horace, Horace, Horace & company and let you know how it goes.