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When It's A Jar
Maurice has just killed a dragon with a bread knife. And had his destiny foretold. . . and had his true love spirited away. That's precisely the sort of stuff that'd bring out the latent heroism in anyone. Unfortunately, Maurice is pretty sure he hasn't got any latent heroism.
Meanwhile, a man wakes up in a jar in a different kind of pickle (figuratively speaking). He can't get out, of course, but neither can he remember his name, or what gravity is, or what those things on the ends of his legs are called. . . and every time he starts working it all out, someone makes him forget again. Forget everything .
Only one thing might help him. The answer to the most baffling question of all. . .
When is a door not a door?
Meanwhile, a man wakes up in a jar in a different kind of pickle (figuratively speaking). He can't get out, of course, but neither can he remember his name, or what gravity is, or what those things on the ends of his legs are called. . . and every time he starts working it all out, someone makes him forget again. Forget everything .
Only one thing might help him. The answer to the most baffling question of all. . .
When is a door not a door?
385 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
57 people are currently reading
1280 people want to read
About the author
Tom Holt
111 books1,163 followersTom Holt (Thomas Charles Louis Holt) is a British novelist.
He was born in London, the son of novelist Hazel Holt, and was educated at Westminster School, Wadham College, Oxford, and The College of Law, London.
Holt's works include mythopoeic novels which parody or take as their theme various aspects of mythology, history or literature and develop them in new and often humorous ways. He has also produced a number of "straight" historical novels writing as Thomas Holt and fantasy novels writing as K.J. Parker.
He was born in London, the son of novelist Hazel Holt, and was educated at Westminster School, Wadham College, Oxford, and The College of Law, London.
Holt's works include mythopoeic novels which parody or take as their theme various aspects of mythology, history or literature and develop them in new and often humorous ways. He has also produced a number of "straight" historical novels writing as Thomas Holt and fantasy novels writing as K.J. Parker.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 134 reviews
July 15, 2018
Jars that might be jars that might be doors that might be jars. Or not. Underachievers. Doughnuts. Hydras. The Multiverse. Valhalla. Beer bottles. Slightly reluctant heroes. Nobel Prizes.
Pre-ordained traditional narrative conventions.
Jack and the Beanstalk. Parcel tape. Transdimensional interface terminals. Total nonsense that makes perfect sense. Things with a capital T. And goblins. Always goblins. Oink.
That's the beauty of Tom Holt for you, my Little Barnacles. Think you know what "wacky" means? Not if you haven't yet read one of Holt's Slightly Zany Fantasy Stories (SZFS™) you don't. I kinda sorta know lots about sheer and utter lunacy, so trust me on that one. Now let's dance.
That's the beauty of Tom Holt for you, my Little Barnacles. Think you know what "wacky" means? Not if you haven't yet read one of Holt's Slightly Zany Fantasy Stories (SZFS™) you don't. I kinda sorta know lots about sheer and utter lunacy, so trust me on that one. Now let's dance.
December 13, 2013
I have no idea why I never read a Tom Holt book before now, but I think that’s pretty criminal and I completely plan on immersing myself in many of Holt’s books as soon as I possibly can. Fans of Terry Pratchett won’t want to miss this author, or this book. When It’s A Jar is one of those delicious books that flawlessly hits all the right notes.
Read my full review here:
http://www.bookwormblues.net/2013/12/...
Read my full review here:
http://www.bookwormblues.net/2013/12/...
June 18, 2015
Nah. Something I've read before. London, underground, a clumsy hero, some nice pseudo-technicalities, a couple of good ideas, a couple of not-so-necessary details (e.g. a dragon) - I could've spared myself all this, but my daughter insisted. However it was not a bad read all in the whole. I even laughed out loud once. The only thing that really pissed me off was the female lead. So, you decide to make a strong female character, bless you. You try really hard: A plucky girl grows into a military tom-boy - wow, good for you! But what do you do next? You put her in some box for the rest of the story and basically make her into a bland side-kick, or worse, a damsel in distress. What a shame after all that initial effort.
February 2, 2018
I really don’t like to give two stars to a Tom Holt novel but this one just really felt disjointed and missing the normal quick witted and funny nature of his books. It is my least favourite and seems to rely too much on connecting various aspects of other books. If you want to start reading Tom Holt books then do not start with this one as it will turn you off and he has so many other great books out there!
February 2, 2014
Storyline generally engaging, though not gripping. A moderately funny read. Looking at other reviews, I agree that I should have read Doughnut first. Perhaps I can still figure out what happened in the ending of this novel if I do so later.
Minor: The problem with plotting that depends on plays on words is that it is dialect-dependent. You need a Brit translator to read this book. Pacing reasonable. Protagonist irritating. Female role flat.
Major: Some interesting philosophizing, but several points where the characters are not properly following through on their premises. Overall, the book came across as oddly skittish about the potential for real omnipotence in a multiverse. At several places the author approaches transcendence but backs off as if hitting a taboo or considering something truly risque.
It's been a while since I read any of Holt's books, but I seem to recall that the trope of a polytheistic cosmology active in today's world is one of his hallmarks. Unfortunately for Holt, this novel got too serious and asked too many hard questions. It also offered enough attempt at serious answers that this reader was tripped up and dropped out of the suspension of disbelief by the failure to take seriously (or even comically) answers on offer in the real world.
It's telling when the story includes a reference or joke about nearly every mythological and religious system ever worshiped or conceived by humanity, yet seemingly takes exquisite care to direct our attention away from a rather significant one. In the end, Holt runs into the same flaw that undermines Neil Gaiman's American Gods. To achieve internal consistency, both need to address the failure of polytheism in the face of monotheism.
In this book, a cramped worldview has produced a novel about a cramped multiverse. Holt invested a lot of effort into conceiving a bigger coffin. I was left feeling that it's not so much a jar as a message in a bottle thrown out bravely and pointlessly into the seas of human consciousness: Hope and meaning wanted; No deities allowed.
Minor: The problem with plotting that depends on plays on words is that it is dialect-dependent. You need a Brit translator to read this book. Pacing reasonable. Protagonist irritating. Female role flat.
Major: Some interesting philosophizing, but several points where the characters are not properly following through on their premises. Overall, the book came across as oddly skittish about the potential for real omnipotence in a multiverse. At several places the author approaches transcendence but backs off as if hitting a taboo or considering something truly risque.
It's been a while since I read any of Holt's books, but I seem to recall that the trope of a polytheistic cosmology active in today's world is one of his hallmarks. Unfortunately for Holt, this novel got too serious and asked too many hard questions. It also offered enough attempt at serious answers that this reader was tripped up and dropped out of the suspension of disbelief by the failure to take seriously (or even comically) answers on offer in the real world.
It's telling when the story includes a reference or joke about nearly every mythological and religious system ever worshiped or conceived by humanity, yet seemingly takes exquisite care to direct our attention away from a rather significant one. In the end, Holt runs into the same flaw that undermines Neil Gaiman's American Gods. To achieve internal consistency, both need to address the failure of polytheism in the face of monotheism.
In this book, a cramped worldview has produced a novel about a cramped multiverse. Holt invested a lot of effort into conceiving a bigger coffin. I was left feeling that it's not so much a jar as a message in a bottle thrown out bravely and pointlessly into the seas of human consciousness: Hope and meaning wanted; No deities allowed.
December 16, 2015
Cleverly written interdimensional book about the multiverse. It could not have a more confusing start, but after about 100 pages you have quite a good idea of what is going on, although not 100% until the last three pages. It will definitely make one laugh on multiple occasions when reading it - at least I could not have gone through it without a grin on my face every few pages and laughing out loud as frequently. A typical Tom Holt humorous book which is definitely worth a read if mythology and entertainment is what is sought for.
July 22, 2017
Got so bored of this it was impossible to finish. and it started so well 😢😢😢
September 28, 2014
I've read a fair number of Tom Holt's novels (though most of them before I began reviewing books here in 2008) and for the most part, if you've read one of them, you've read them all. The dream is always the same. The protagonist is a guy, a genuinely nice guy, who (as nice guys do) is in great danger of finishing last. He has a boring job, a small and messy flat somewhere in or near London, and a girl in mind whom he greatly admires, usually from a distance. Then... fantasy intrudes. His new job involves werewolves in business suits; his would-be girlfriend is abducted by UFOs piloted by froglike aliens; a bagel turns out to contain the secret of transdimensional travel... stuff like that. And our protagonist is utterly unprepared for the fact that he—and only he—can possibly play the pivotal role in righting whatever wrong this intrusive fantasy element has introduced... and that eventually, somehow, he will get the girl after all.
Sounds terrible, right? The same general template, book after book. In fact, though, Tom Holt's novels are enormously comforting, light reads done consistently well. I don't think he's ever even been on the longlist for the Man Booker prize—that's not the kind of book Holt writes—but when his protagonist runs into the otherworldly thingy that's about to ruin his life, you feel for him. When he appears just about to lose the love of his life to that multi-tentacled thingy from beyond, you feel for him—and for her. And the thingy. And when he finally grabs a sword and swings it, heroically beheading his favorite teapot... you laugh at him, sure, but you're also laughing with him. Because that's how Holt rolls.
That's Maurice, the current incarnation of Holt's everyman, torn between Duty and Fun as he wrestles with the decision—simple for some—of whether to leave his flat. You can see he fits right into the mold. And it's no spoiler to reveal that he decides to leave his flat after all, not least because that's where a dragon recently materialized—a dragon that, by the way, Maurice just slew... with a bread knife.
Holt didn't harm my enjoyment of When It's A Jar any when I ran across his take on my very own adoptive hometown, either—on pp. 190-191, where we find out that "the credit crunch of 2008 was caused by the Bank of the Dead (the venerable institution in which a thousand generations of pious Chinese had made provision for themselves in the afterlife by burning huge quantities of paper money)" in a scheme which "came badly unstuck when Gary Suslowicz, twenty-six, of Portland, Oregon, dived into a freezing river to rescue a nine-year-old girl's schnauzer puppy from drowning."
It is just this sort of mixture of reality, fantasy and the absurd to which Holt returns, again and again—and it's a wellspring that, so far, has failed to run dry.
Sounds terrible, right? The same general template, book after book. In fact, though, Tom Holt's novels are enormously comforting, light reads done consistently well. I don't think he's ever even been on the longlist for the Man Booker prize—that's not the kind of book Holt writes—but when his protagonist runs into the otherworldly thingy that's about to ruin his life, you feel for him. When he appears just about to lose the love of his life to that multi-tentacled thingy from beyond, you feel for him—and for her. And the thingy. And when he finally grabs a sword and swings it, heroically beheading his favorite teapot... you laugh at him, sure, but you're also laughing with him. Because that's how Holt rolls.
There are two categories of people who join things: nerds, and men who want to meet girls. He toyed with the possibility that he might be both{...}
—p.140
That's Maurice, the current incarnation of Holt's everyman, torn between Duty and Fun as he wrestles with the decision—simple for some—of whether to leave his flat. You can see he fits right into the mold. And it's no spoiler to reveal that he decides to leave his flat after all, not least because that's where a dragon recently materialized—a dragon that, by the way, Maurice just slew... with a bread knife.
Holt didn't harm my enjoyment of When It's A Jar any when I ran across his take on my very own adoptive hometown, either—on pp. 190-191, where we find out that "the credit crunch of 2008 was caused by the Bank of the Dead (the venerable institution in which a thousand generations of pious Chinese had made provision for themselves in the afterlife by burning huge quantities of paper money)" in a scheme which "came badly unstuck when Gary Suslowicz, twenty-six, of Portland, Oregon, dived into a freezing river to rescue a nine-year-old girl's schnauzer puppy from drowning."
It is just this sort of mixture of reality, fantasy and the absurd to which Holt returns, again and again—and it's a wellspring that, so far, has failed to run dry.
March 26, 2015
This is a review of the audiobook.
It's a sad, sad story when a favorite author dies and you cast about for someone to replace him (and Jasper Fforde isn't responding to your nagging to get hopping). Listening to a book is just not the same as reading it. If you miss something, it's easier to go back and read it over a few times just to get it straight. So I may have missed some bits in this. Will save it for our next big trip and sleep through most of it and see what my husband thinks.
On paper (figuratively ... perhaps, "on audio" is more appropriate), this book should be a good Pratchett substitute. There's both science and legend going on. There are repeating characters. And a dragon that isn't really a dragon, so stop calling it one in the blurbs! Maurice kills it and now he has to get rid of it. Not able to read the fine print on the non-existent contract for removal, he doesn't realize that this has cost him his oldest friend (true love?). He loses his job in a Hamlet-style tide of action and inaction to find her. His new job is surreal, a reverse pyramid situation where everyone is in management and he's the only peon doing the work. The Norns (I suspect) foretell or arrange his "wyrd" on the Tube. And the access between this and all the other worlds in the multiverse lies in the hole of a donut.
Maurice is the epitome of a reluctant hero, torn between a quiet life of underachievement and being Hero of the Year. His task is to release God from his prison, but is that such a good idea? Well, if he manages that while trying to find his childhood friend ... oh, what about releasing Theo Bernstein from his jar? Sigh. Holt can handle complicated pretty well, but I found the pacing agonizingly slow. That may have been the fault of the reader, who otherwise did a pretty good job, but read slowly and deliberately.
Perhaps I was expecting too much in my mourning over the loss of Pratchett, who would leave us breadcrumbs of hilarity to make the trip less onerous.
It's a sad, sad story when a favorite author dies and you cast about for someone to replace him (and Jasper Fforde isn't responding to your nagging to get hopping). Listening to a book is just not the same as reading it. If you miss something, it's easier to go back and read it over a few times just to get it straight. So I may have missed some bits in this. Will save it for our next big trip and sleep through most of it and see what my husband thinks.
On paper (figuratively ... perhaps, "on audio" is more appropriate), this book should be a good Pratchett substitute. There's both science and legend going on. There are repeating characters. And a dragon that isn't really a dragon, so stop calling it one in the blurbs! Maurice kills it and now he has to get rid of it. Not able to read the fine print on the non-existent contract for removal, he doesn't realize that this has cost him his oldest friend (true love?). He loses his job in a Hamlet-style tide of action and inaction to find her. His new job is surreal, a reverse pyramid situation where everyone is in management and he's the only peon doing the work. The Norns (I suspect) foretell or arrange his "wyrd" on the Tube. And the access between this and all the other worlds in the multiverse lies in the hole of a donut.
Maurice is the epitome of a reluctant hero, torn between a quiet life of underachievement and being Hero of the Year. His task is to release God from his prison, but is that such a good idea? Well, if he manages that while trying to find his childhood friend ... oh, what about releasing Theo Bernstein from his jar? Sigh. Holt can handle complicated pretty well, but I found the pacing agonizingly slow. That may have been the fault of the reader, who otherwise did a pretty good job, but read slowly and deliberately.
Perhaps I was expecting too much in my mourning over the loss of Pratchett, who would leave us breadcrumbs of hilarity to make the trip less onerous.
June 28, 2025
My dad had a Chrysler LeBaron in the early 1980s and the "Electronic Voice Alert" system was the closest thing the real world ever got to Knight Rider's Kit. As kids we LOVED that car growing up and would intentionally leave the doors wide open just to hear it say "The Door is Ajar. The Door is Ajar."
So when I saw this book title it triggered so many fond memories, and my few Tom Holt forays had been entirely positive so far, so I thought, why not?
And that's about the warmest thing I can say about this book. Right after buying it I realized it's book two in a four book series. I found the third and then started there, LOVED it, so then went back to the beginning... to find the first two books flat and disappointing. Book three, The Outsourcer's Apprentice, has much of the setting in a fantasy world, with multiverse and sci fi elements thrown in, heavy on the absurdity and macroeconomics (or micro?! Size and scale are relative, rather like coffee stirrers...) along with a strong female lead, what's not to love? Books one and two proved to be sausage fests almost entirely absent of female characters except as cameos for a lackluster love interest / angle, and heavy on philosophy and mathematical ponderings on the multiverse, heavy on the sci fi, light on the world building of the other dimensions, as they only serve as brief layovers on the heroes long (tedious!) journeys.
Maurice is the most ambivalent, listless, sad sack of a hero I have encountered in some time. (Oh wait, come to think of it, except for Theo at the start of Doughnut. Guess bleak and boring is on point for Holt's heroes in these two.) Maurice is almost intentionally despondent. Slap a tail and some long ears on him and call him Eeyore. He's working late hours doing nothing even longer all day at Overthwart and Headlong (brilliant company firm name though) as they are downsizing and everyone's working longer though not any harder to avoid getting laid off. He catches the tube and three very different women at various points of the train carriage, all knitting (the Macbeth witches joined a stitch bitch group?!) all start a conversation that's alarmingly precise in references to Maurice's own life, from the name of his firm, to his crush on Steve (Stephanie) now in the Army, to his nemesis George, and then a bunch of questing references that grow increasingly alarming as Maurice (and the reader soon too) are quite sure that he's no hero and wouldn't stand a chance on any one of these Herculean tasks.
And then not much happens until Maurice wakes up in bed one night and is enraged to discover a nine-headed hydra at the foot of his bed. WHY?! The creature is sleeping! It's not even bothering him! It's curled up rather like a cat. So what does Maurice do? Goes to the kitchen to grab a bread knife and cuts its throat. OBJECTION! Which throat? It has nine heads and presumable nine necks and nine throats. Again: WHY?! We don't even get a conversation with the hydra! Or to understand why s/he is there and how it came to be so. I was promised dragons and goblins and instead all I get is a dead hydra for the first 230 pages until I get about 20 pages with the goblins. It's NOT enough time in fantasy land, not by a long shot. It's Holt's own fault as he does such a good job with the story there in book three that he's set the standard high and I want to spend more time there.
And THEN what does our "hero" do? He calls his old elementary school crush, Steve (Stephanie). She's in the army now, so to speak/sing, in special forces, so Maurice assumes she has someone she can call to clean up these situations. Look, Steve should have been the heroine here. I could have read a whole book about her. She's no bullshit, doesn't flinch at the weird, gets things done. Bottom line, she has the secret sauce that Maurice is missing: AGENCY. Don't get your hopes up. Steve might have been able to redeem this novel but she's not given enough page time, thus, or opportunity, to do so.
Look Maurice, ya basic, ok? Lame! His only moment of smart insight is working at Carbonec House as he discovers what the job actually is, impressive given he has no direction on what he's actually supposed to be doing. While that resonated deeply with the modern work world... it seemed a bit... overkill? Like they couldn't have just told him go down to the basement and retrieve boxes when we send you a list? Don't touch or move or organize or open anything, just retrieve the boxes when we ask for them. Simple enough. He could have figured out the rest of the covert stuff from there without have to struggle with the basics...
I will say the truth serum job interview was one of my favorite parts of the book:
"I see. Now then, your most recent employment: IT assistant at Overthwart and Headlong."
"Yes."
"Did you like it there?"
"No, it was foul. I never really found out what I was supposed to be doing, the management were a bunch of fascists, the money was rubbish. ..."
...
"In your previous employment, what were your expectations?"
"Well, I hoped they'd basically just leave me alone so I could play games on the computer and read a book or something."
"And were they met?"
"No. Alice was always prowling around trying to catch people out, so you had to look busy, even when there wasn't any work on, which was most of the time."
...
"And right, how would you describe yourself?"
"Oh, I just sort of chug along, you know? When people used to ask me, What do you want to do when you grow up? I told them, as little as possible."
THAT's the problem with Maurice. While that might make for an amusing side character it doesn't work for a hero! If the hero's motto is: "We are men of action. Lies do not become us." Then Maurice's motto would be: "We are men of inaction. Let's not be hasty. Also, lies might become us depending on what multiverse we wind up in, as lies might be essential in stalling maneuvers as we determine the lay of the land and friend vs foe."
The second I could live with, the first I can't get past. Here's to hoping book four spends more time in fantasyland - promising, given that Mordak is back, more goblins (and elves, and dwarves) please.
So when I saw this book title it triggered so many fond memories, and my few Tom Holt forays had been entirely positive so far, so I thought, why not?
And that's about the warmest thing I can say about this book. Right after buying it I realized it's book two in a four book series. I found the third and then started there, LOVED it, so then went back to the beginning... to find the first two books flat and disappointing. Book three, The Outsourcer's Apprentice, has much of the setting in a fantasy world, with multiverse and sci fi elements thrown in, heavy on the absurdity and macroeconomics (or micro?! Size and scale are relative, rather like coffee stirrers...) along with a strong female lead, what's not to love? Books one and two proved to be sausage fests almost entirely absent of female characters except as cameos for a lackluster love interest / angle, and heavy on philosophy and mathematical ponderings on the multiverse, heavy on the sci fi, light on the world building of the other dimensions, as they only serve as brief layovers on the heroes long (tedious!) journeys.
Maurice is the most ambivalent, listless, sad sack of a hero I have encountered in some time. (Oh wait, come to think of it, except for Theo at the start of Doughnut. Guess bleak and boring is on point for Holt's heroes in these two.) Maurice is almost intentionally despondent. Slap a tail and some long ears on him and call him Eeyore. He's working late hours doing nothing even longer all day at Overthwart and Headlong (brilliant company firm name though) as they are downsizing and everyone's working longer though not any harder to avoid getting laid off. He catches the tube and three very different women at various points of the train carriage, all knitting (the Macbeth witches joined a stitch bitch group?!) all start a conversation that's alarmingly precise in references to Maurice's own life, from the name of his firm, to his crush on Steve (Stephanie) now in the Army, to his nemesis George, and then a bunch of questing references that grow increasingly alarming as Maurice (and the reader soon too) are quite sure that he's no hero and wouldn't stand a chance on any one of these Herculean tasks.
And then not much happens until Maurice wakes up in bed one night and is enraged to discover a nine-headed hydra at the foot of his bed. WHY?! The creature is sleeping! It's not even bothering him! It's curled up rather like a cat. So what does Maurice do? Goes to the kitchen to grab a bread knife and cuts its throat. OBJECTION! Which throat? It has nine heads and presumable nine necks and nine throats. Again: WHY?! We don't even get a conversation with the hydra! Or to understand why s/he is there and how it came to be so. I was promised dragons and goblins and instead all I get is a dead hydra for the first 230 pages until I get about 20 pages with the goblins. It's NOT enough time in fantasy land, not by a long shot. It's Holt's own fault as he does such a good job with the story there in book three that he's set the standard high and I want to spend more time there.
And THEN what does our "hero" do? He calls his old elementary school crush, Steve (Stephanie). She's in the army now, so to speak/sing, in special forces, so Maurice assumes she has someone she can call to clean up these situations. Look, Steve should have been the heroine here. I could have read a whole book about her. She's no bullshit, doesn't flinch at the weird, gets things done. Bottom line, she has the secret sauce that Maurice is missing: AGENCY. Don't get your hopes up. Steve might have been able to redeem this novel but she's not given enough page time, thus, or opportunity, to do so.
Look Maurice, ya basic, ok? Lame! His only moment of smart insight is working at Carbonec House as he discovers what the job actually is, impressive given he has no direction on what he's actually supposed to be doing. While that resonated deeply with the modern work world... it seemed a bit... overkill? Like they couldn't have just told him go down to the basement and retrieve boxes when we send you a list? Don't touch or move or organize or open anything, just retrieve the boxes when we ask for them. Simple enough. He could have figured out the rest of the covert stuff from there without have to struggle with the basics...
I will say the truth serum job interview was one of my favorite parts of the book:
"I see. Now then, your most recent employment: IT assistant at Overthwart and Headlong."
"Yes."
"Did you like it there?"
"No, it was foul. I never really found out what I was supposed to be doing, the management were a bunch of fascists, the money was rubbish. ..."
...
"In your previous employment, what were your expectations?"
"Well, I hoped they'd basically just leave me alone so I could play games on the computer and read a book or something."
"And were they met?"
"No. Alice was always prowling around trying to catch people out, so you had to look busy, even when there wasn't any work on, which was most of the time."
...
"And right, how would you describe yourself?"
"Oh, I just sort of chug along, you know? When people used to ask me, What do you want to do when you grow up? I told them, as little as possible."
THAT's the problem with Maurice. While that might make for an amusing side character it doesn't work for a hero! If the hero's motto is: "We are men of action. Lies do not become us." Then Maurice's motto would be: "We are men of inaction. Let's not be hasty. Also, lies might become us depending on what multiverse we wind up in, as lies might be essential in stalling maneuvers as we determine the lay of the land and friend vs foe."
The second I could live with, the first I can't get past. Here's to hoping book four spends more time in fantasyland - promising, given that Mordak is back, more goblins (and elves, and dwarves) please.
January 2, 2014
Before reading this book, be sure to Read Tom Holt’s Doughnut or you will spend more of your precious time wondering who Max is, why he is important and what is it with doughnuts. OK, Done that? Good. On with the tale.
Maurice Katz is a hero, unlikely but true. He did not intend to be one, but the multi-universe needed him, so there. The first half of the book is stage setting and motivation for the action that takes place in the second act. Here the reader learns about the importance of doughnuts, plans and how the multi-universe really is out to get Maurice (and maybe everyone else as well). There is the characteristic Tom Holt word play, not to mention twisting of the reader’s mind and conception of reality. Be sure to carve out enough time to read and enjoy When It’s a Jar. It may not be his best work, but it is satisfying.
Maurice Katz is a hero, unlikely but true. He did not intend to be one, but the multi-universe needed him, so there. The first half of the book is stage setting and motivation for the action that takes place in the second act. Here the reader learns about the importance of doughnuts, plans and how the multi-universe really is out to get Maurice (and maybe everyone else as well). There is the characteristic Tom Holt word play, not to mention twisting of the reader’s mind and conception of reality. Be sure to carve out enough time to read and enjoy When It’s a Jar. It may not be his best work, but it is satisfying.
June 9, 2014
Originally posted at Fantasy Literature.
When It’s a Jar is Tom Holt’s sequel to last year’s Doughnut. It can stand alone, but you probably want to at least read about Doughnut first (here is Stefan’s review). In Doughnut, physicist Theo Bernstein made a math error which blew up the Very Very Large Hadron Collider. Then from his friend, a famous physicist, he inherits a bottle which is a portal to the multiverse he never knew existed. Now he can travel to different parallel universes through the holes in doughnuts. Or bagels work, too.
In When It’s a Jar, Theo is back and is again having some life-threatening trouble with the multiverse. He’s stuck in a jar and keeps having his memories wiped. Each time he has to start over, reconstructing all of his knowledge about the world and his situation from “first ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
When It’s a Jar is Tom Holt’s sequel to last year’s Doughnut. It can stand alone, but you probably want to at least read about Doughnut first (here is Stefan’s review). In Doughnut, physicist Theo Bernstein made a math error which blew up the Very Very Large Hadron Collider. Then from his friend, a famous physicist, he inherits a bottle which is a portal to the multiverse he never knew existed. Now he can travel to different parallel universes through the holes in doughnuts. Or bagels work, too.
In When It’s a Jar, Theo is back and is again having some life-threatening trouble with the multiverse. He’s stuck in a jar and keeps having his memories wiped. Each time he has to start over, reconstructing all of his knowledge about the world and his situation from “first ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
May 22, 2014
I really love it! Now I see why Tom Holt is compared with Terry Pratchett. They create unique characters and funny plot.
When I saw this book I understood - it's mine. Word games, hero-loser and mysterious jar. Fascinating!
I love scenes with Maurice when he yells 'What's the hell!', 'How did they dare?!' and so on. Kinda funny reaction)
I want to read "Doughnut" too because I like Theo the most=) He is a bit self-concerned and crazish like one of those who invent great things. I think his story will be even more interesting.
Oh, of course, I learnt new thing about -ish (English is not my native language).
And I really enjoyed the reading. I love when author plays with words and makes the reader think and laugh or laugh and then think)
When I saw this book I understood - it's mine. Word games, hero-loser and mysterious jar. Fascinating!
I love scenes with Maurice when he yells 'What's the hell!', 'How did they dare?!' and so on. Kinda funny reaction)
I want to read "Doughnut" too because I like Theo the most=) He is a bit self-concerned and crazish like one of those who invent great things. I think his story will be even more interesting.
Oh, of course, I learnt new thing about -ish (English is not my native language).
And I really enjoyed the reading. I love when author plays with words and makes the reader think and laugh or laugh and then think)
December 27, 2013
At first glance, When It's a Jar looks like a screwball comedy fantasy, and it certainly can be read that way. But it goes deeper than that. It also takes swings at the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, the characteristics of universal myths, the Matter of Britain, and the limitations of godhood.
March 30, 2015
This book read disjointed to start from me. The alternations between narrators were jarring and the book lacked a lot of flow. What this book did do was make me laugh. The economics, the working conditions, the plight of the goblins were all very funny and the goblin leader's speech to the masses was a riot.
Four stars, probably 3.7 ror 3.8, but the laughs made me round it up.
Four stars, probably 3.7 ror 3.8, but the laughs made me round it up.
September 7, 2018
When I first read Tom Holt roughly 25 years ago none of the 15 or so books I read were a part of a series (or at least that's how I remember it). So I had Mr. Holt classified as "does not write series". Therefore, when I found two books by him at my library I hadn't read it never occurred to me to see if they were a part of a series. Turns out they were and I read them out of order. Further they were books 2 & 4 in the series. In truth, though, Mr. Holt's books relate to each other snugly, but do not rely on each other to further develop an overall story, and so reading them out of order was not detrimental.
In the "YouSpace" series a way of traveling between alternate universes has been created and any doughnut (or bagel or similar round item with whole) can serve as the key since the creator of this method of travel has no intention of getting stuck in an undesirable universe. In "When It's A Jar" we are given the story of Maurice, a decidedly unheroic Brit who, nevertheless, is pushed by fate into the role of hero.
One thing I like about Tom Holt is that he has the knack of telling a quirky story. Here I am specifically thinking about prediction that Maurice will kill a dragon. Instead of that being a climax of the story, the dragon just appears in Maurice's bedroom early in the story due, apparently, to some inadvertent use of YouSpace technology. This infuriates Maurice to the point where he unthinkingly kills it, only to find out later that this particular species of dragon is largely harmless. So this entire happening essentially amounts to fate showing Maurice that he is going to be a hero regardless of any proclivities to the contrary. It also introduces, in the form of dragon removal experts, a couple of characters who play a fairly significant role throughout this series. Maurice's friend/love interest, Stephanie, mysteriously disappears at the some time as the dragon remains which becomes a major motivation for Maurice to continue, in his own unique way, down the road of a hero.
I admit that I got a little tired of all the stumbling around the MC does but that was in part due to having just read "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" and Mr. Holt's strongly consistent sense of humor. The simple truth is that Mr. Holt tells highly intelligent and humorous tales and this one in particular meets that description. However, if I had to choose between this book and "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" to read I would choose "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" as it has a more satisfying resolution. If it were permitted I would give "When It's a Jar" 4.3 stars and "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" 4.6.
Bottom line: Tom Holt is an excellent story teller and this book is worth the read.
In the "YouSpace" series a way of traveling between alternate universes has been created and any doughnut (or bagel or similar round item with whole) can serve as the key since the creator of this method of travel has no intention of getting stuck in an undesirable universe. In "When It's A Jar" we are given the story of Maurice, a decidedly unheroic Brit who, nevertheless, is pushed by fate into the role of hero.
One thing I like about Tom Holt is that he has the knack of telling a quirky story. Here I am specifically thinking about prediction that Maurice will kill a dragon. Instead of that being a climax of the story, the dragon just appears in Maurice's bedroom early in the story due, apparently, to some inadvertent use of YouSpace technology. This infuriates Maurice to the point where he unthinkingly kills it, only to find out later that this particular species of dragon is largely harmless. So this entire happening essentially amounts to fate showing Maurice that he is going to be a hero regardless of any proclivities to the contrary. It also introduces, in the form of dragon removal experts, a couple of characters who play a fairly significant role throughout this series. Maurice's friend/love interest, Stephanie, mysteriously disappears at the some time as the dragon remains which becomes a major motivation for Maurice to continue, in his own unique way, down the road of a hero.
I admit that I got a little tired of all the stumbling around the MC does but that was in part due to having just read "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" and Mr. Holt's strongly consistent sense of humor. The simple truth is that Mr. Holt tells highly intelligent and humorous tales and this one in particular meets that description. However, if I had to choose between this book and "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" to read I would choose "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" as it has a more satisfying resolution. If it were permitted I would give "When It's a Jar" 4.3 stars and "The Good, The Bad and the Smug" 4.6.
Bottom line: Tom Holt is an excellent story teller and this book is worth the read.
January 2, 2020
When I had begun to have existential crises about how rapidly Pratchett, Adams and their ilk were being exhausted like our depleting petrol reserves and I'd have to start fracking among pulp fiction, a friendly neighborhood book seller put this book into my hand. Five hours later, I'm worried again, but feel like I've been thrown some manner of lifeline - for this book can be read and reread, with a seemingly inexhaustible supply of simile and crammed full of references (and fore-, mid- and aftershadowing), many of which I'm sure I missed on my first read. That in itself would make it one of my favorite kinds of books, if not for the fact that the author is clearly having fun writing it. My only quibble is that there are some places where the marginally believable pseudoscience transitions into more incredible territory, with the pacing making it a bit hard to suspend disbelief at times. Otherwise a thoroughly enjoyable piece of writing, with an occasionally angry protagonist given knife-guns with recursive chekovian potential, who sometimes resorts to going home and having a beer when the going gets tough and a multiverse system that transcends simply not being completely broken and instead aspires to be rather fun. .)
October 2, 2021
Imagine a world that exists on the logic of puns and dad jokes. One VERY specific dad joke in fact.
Now, add in a clause where every time you start a new chapter the story re-sets or semi-continues just in a completely different setting and genre.
Oh but you are the hero, regardless of how big of a loser you are. Your crush is the damsel in distress, regardless of how capable she is. That jerk from highschool is the big bad, he is horrible and in love with your crush too so obviously nobody likes him and probably smells funky.
This book reads like a half remembered dream with all the shows and comics you read the past few days getting recycled into it for some inner wish fulfillment.
It starts off fun and interesting, drags in the middle with a lot of repetition and nonsense filler, tries to end epically but instead it's less the money shot and more a sad fart.
Because I was listening to the audiobook I thought my phone died suddenly at the end of a chapter but no, it's one of those books that don't end so much as the author just decided to stop writing...
So far I'm not impressed with the youspace series.
Now, add in a clause where every time you start a new chapter the story re-sets or semi-continues just in a completely different setting and genre.
Oh but you are the hero, regardless of how big of a loser you are. Your crush is the damsel in distress, regardless of how capable she is. That jerk from highschool is the big bad, he is horrible and in love with your crush too so obviously nobody likes him and probably smells funky.
This book reads like a half remembered dream with all the shows and comics you read the past few days getting recycled into it for some inner wish fulfillment.
It starts off fun and interesting, drags in the middle with a lot of repetition and nonsense filler, tries to end epically but instead it's less the money shot and more a sad fart.
Because I was listening to the audiobook I thought my phone died suddenly at the end of a chapter but no, it's one of those books that don't end so much as the author just decided to stop writing...
So far I'm not impressed with the youspace series.
June 25, 2019
Maurice isn’t living the most impressive life. He can pinpoint where things started to go awry – when he looked through the hole in a doughnut and saw into another reality. He gave up on the laws of the universe at that point and lost all ambition for the sciences he’d once loved. Strange things continue to happen to him – people appearing out of nowhere and telling him he’s got a destiny to fulfill, that he’s a hero, that he’s got to rescue someone named Theo Bernstein (who IS Theo Bernstein??). When the love of his life (whether she knows it or not) disappears and Maurice loses his tech job and starts working for a mysterious storage facility and when he has a run-in with an old frenemy from his school days, Maurice starts to unravel all of the weird stuff that’s been happening to him and has a chance to fix it. This amusing sequel to “Doughnut” introduces new characters in another part of the multiverse as they are caught up in the complexities of Youspace.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 2, 2017
This was classic Tom Holt - lackluster protagonist living a normal but dull life who finds himself facing epic weirdness. There are plenty of references to prior novels and, of course, YouSpace and multiverse theory. The book is pretty fast paced although, as in other books, the protagonist is frequently lacking in his ability to comprehend the obvious although to be fair, what would you do if suddenly confronted by something that was clearly magical and hence contradicting all known laws of science? - probably do a little better than to say 'Um' but maybe not much.
Overall the book was enjoyable and there were a few truly comedic moments. While not for the serious minded, the book is worth reading for those who enjoy a wild plot and a happy ending.
Overall the book was enjoyable and there were a few truly comedic moments. While not for the serious minded, the book is worth reading for those who enjoy a wild plot and a happy ending.
April 9, 2019
Een van Tom Holts betere boeken. Het tweede deel in de YouSpace serie, waarin het multiversum net is gecreëerd en iemand daarvan misbruik probeert te maken door middel van handel in aandelen. Daarnaast iemand die wakker wordt in een soort enorme jampot zonder enige herinnering, die van alles en nog wat afleidt over de wereld door middel van pure logica. Dingen met een gat erin, zoals donuts kunnen gebruikt worden als portaal naar een andere realiteit maar in die andere realiteit ben je dan ook direct die andere jij, met andere herinneringen, vooral dat laatste maakt het boek af en toe wel wat verwarrend om te lezen maar het is zeker de moeite waard.
August 23, 2025
Picked this book up purely based on the blurb on the back and after finishing it I'm not sure how I feel. It reads like a Douglas Adams style novel, but the humour just fell flat for me. The whole novel jumps about in a "multiverse", there are multiple nods to mythology which I quite liked. It was a bit hard to follow at points. There was a good bit of action, but I felt the story got a bit lost in places. It had potential but I feel the author may have tried a bit too hard to replicate the humourous style of those who came before. It's not a bad book, just wasn't for me.
September 22, 2017
Anyone else imagine book characters as actors? Because there was a character in this book with a scarf, so naturally I imagined him as looking like Tom Baker. The next time he was introduced, the book described it as a Tom Baker scarf!
Aaaand that was my favorite part of the book.
It isn't a bad book. It has a Hitchhiker's-like feel and some really funny moments. I just could have done without Maurice entirely. I much preferred the guy in the jar.
Aaaand that was my favorite part of the book.
It isn't a bad book. It has a Hitchhiker's-like feel and some really funny moments. I just could have done without Maurice entirely. I much preferred the guy in the jar.
March 8, 2023
8.8/10 - This book is a wonderful second in the series. Very well written and super funny. Tom Holt is becoming my favourite author and very glad I started with this series of his.
Slightly confused at some parts but that is no hate to the writing, if anything it is praise as to the level of detail Tom puts into his books.
Slightly confused at some parts but that is no hate to the writing, if anything it is praise as to the level of detail Tom puts into his books.
February 18, 2017
It could have been amazing with multiverses all over the place but it was unfortunately peppered with crappy one liners. Tom Holt has a gift for similes but when there's roughly 5-6 per page it gets a little tedious and distracts from the plot somewhat. And also, meh!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 21, 2019
If you've not read Doughnut you'll be at a loss to understand much of what's happening. If you have read Doughnut you'll be at a loss to understand why his publishers are letting him continue with the YouSpace series.
September 21, 2019
Bizarre. Funny in places (weird funny) but often difficult to follow. Minimal female representation, no points for LGBT/disability representation. Good if you like pseudoscience and books that make you earn your enjoyment.
March 4, 2020
I tried to read it but ended up stopping 3/4 of the way through. I just felt it was too much hard work for a relatively dull story line. I've read one of his previous books and really liked it so maybe it's just this ones not right for me.
May 21, 2023
I love Tom holt! When it's a Jar was my favourite book before it was stolen by an ex who I'm fairly sure can't even read. I love the YouSpace series, it's satirical, sci-fi (ish) and fantasy combined. It's bizarre, but follows its own logic to a t. Brilliant
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