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The Quincunx Cycle #5
Days by Moonlight
Longlisted for the 2019 Scotiabank Giller Prize
"A mash-up that is part fabulism, part faux biography, and part satire, Days by Moonlight conveys the experience of grief, managing to transform its inarticulable and symbolic weight into a finely wrought literary work." -- Quill and Quire
Botanist Alfred Homer, ever hopeful and constantly surprised, is invited on a road trip by his parents' friend, Professor Morgan Bruno, who wants company as he tries to unearth the story of the mysterious poet John Skennen. But this is no ordinary road trip. Alfred and the Professor encounter towns where Black residents speak only in sign language and towns that hold Indigenous Parades; it is a land of house burnings, werewolves, and witches.
Complete with Alfred's drawings of plants both real and implausible, Days by Moonlight is a Dantesque journey taken during the "hour of the wolf," that time of day when the sun is setting and the traveller can't tell the difference between dog and wolf. And it asks that perpetual question: how do we know the things we know are real, and what is real anyway?
"A mash-up that is part fabulism, part faux biography, and part satire, Days by Moonlight conveys the experience of grief, managing to transform its inarticulable and symbolic weight into a finely wrought literary work." -- Quill and Quire
Botanist Alfred Homer, ever hopeful and constantly surprised, is invited on a road trip by his parents' friend, Professor Morgan Bruno, who wants company as he tries to unearth the story of the mysterious poet John Skennen. But this is no ordinary road trip. Alfred and the Professor encounter towns where Black residents speak only in sign language and towns that hold Indigenous Parades; it is a land of house burnings, werewolves, and witches.
Complete with Alfred's drawings of plants both real and implausible, Days by Moonlight is a Dantesque journey taken during the "hour of the wolf," that time of day when the sun is setting and the traveller can't tell the difference between dog and wolf. And it asks that perpetual question: how do we know the things we know are real, and what is real anyway?
224 pages, Paperback
First published March 13, 2019
39 people are currently reading
2120 people want to read
About the author
André Alexis
21 books619 followersAndré Alexis was born in Trinidad and grew up in Canada. His most recent novel, Fifteen Dogs, won the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. His debut novel, Childhood, won the Books in Canada First Novel Award, the Trillium Book Award, and was shortlisted for the Giller Prize and the Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. His other books include Pastoral (nominated for the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize), Asylum, Beauty and Sadness, Ingrid & the Wolf, Despair and Other Stories of Ottawa and Lambton, Kent and Other Vistas: A Play.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 196 reviews
April 15, 2022
A woman I used to know once told me a story about going to Mexico for the first time, never having studied Spanish, but suddenly discovering that she understood the language. She then became fluent in one week.
I feel as if I'm in a similar story reading this book, my second by André Alexis. I've never had an affinity for mythology or poetry, I'm not Canadian and am unfamiliar with the political or cultural idiosyncrasies, but I found myself mesmerized, understanding references beyond what I remember reading. And even if I missed the root source of some of the material, I had no problem understanding it like a language I've privately spoken forever.
The novel starts like a realistic story: a young man, a botanist, agrees to accompany a professor on an odyssey to research the life of a poet. But very quickly this becomes a modern-day myth with references to ancient ones (the botanist's name is Alfie Homer), and the sandwiching of Greek mythology with a modern story, plus the general zaniness, sometimes makes this hilarious. Other times, it was like finding a map to my life and psyche, and therefore it became an ocean of something I sank deep into, staying as open as I could to absorb whatever wisdom and life acceptance might be there for me in my idiosyncratic life in New York City. Over and over, I had moments when I suddenly felt clear, as if I'd awakened from a dream. And I think this might be the experience of any reader who is on a lifelong quest—call it spiritual, self-awareness, or whatever you like—to understand what we're doing here.
The writing is understatedly wonderful; you have to notice—it never shouts, "Look at literary me!" So that gives a regular reader (one not well-versed in mythology) a connection. I'm sure I could (and may) read this book many times and keep understanding it differently. But for this first reading what penetrated most was our human inability to ever really see things without projections of our own. And how if our projections are somehow shattered by the reality of the person we are projecting onto, we lose interest; or if we are the object of somebody's projections, the kiss of death can be insisting that we are not who they see. ["I'd hate to have my image of him (the poet the professor is researching) destroyed by facts, (132)" says the professor at the prospect of actually meeting the man whose life he is chasing.] Or, if we willingly shatter our own projections, there is the possibility of something privately numinous.
Seeing this ridiculous quest as the norm was oddly a relief. While reading, I often felt myself surrendering the fight for perfection—perfect knowing, being perfectly known—and it always is a relief to stop trying to do something that is futile . . . and instead allow the shattering, sometimes lonely, unknowing to direct us. (And if you choose this third option, this book is very good company.)
I feel as if I'm in a similar story reading this book, my second by André Alexis. I've never had an affinity for mythology or poetry, I'm not Canadian and am unfamiliar with the political or cultural idiosyncrasies, but I found myself mesmerized, understanding references beyond what I remember reading. And even if I missed the root source of some of the material, I had no problem understanding it like a language I've privately spoken forever.
The novel starts like a realistic story: a young man, a botanist, agrees to accompany a professor on an odyssey to research the life of a poet. But very quickly this becomes a modern-day myth with references to ancient ones (the botanist's name is Alfie Homer), and the sandwiching of Greek mythology with a modern story, plus the general zaniness, sometimes makes this hilarious. Other times, it was like finding a map to my life and psyche, and therefore it became an ocean of something I sank deep into, staying as open as I could to absorb whatever wisdom and life acceptance might be there for me in my idiosyncratic life in New York City. Over and over, I had moments when I suddenly felt clear, as if I'd awakened from a dream. And I think this might be the experience of any reader who is on a lifelong quest—call it spiritual, self-awareness, or whatever you like—to understand what we're doing here.
The writing is understatedly wonderful; you have to notice—it never shouts, "Look at literary me!" So that gives a regular reader (one not well-versed in mythology) a connection. I'm sure I could (and may) read this book many times and keep understanding it differently. But for this first reading what penetrated most was our human inability to ever really see things without projections of our own. And how if our projections are somehow shattered by the reality of the person we are projecting onto, we lose interest; or if we are the object of somebody's projections, the kiss of death can be insisting that we are not who they see. ["I'd hate to have my image of him (the poet the professor is researching) destroyed by facts, (132)" says the professor at the prospect of actually meeting the man whose life he is chasing.] Or, if we willingly shatter our own projections, there is the possibility of something privately numinous.
Seeing this ridiculous quest as the norm was oddly a relief. While reading, I often felt myself surrendering the fight for perfection—perfect knowing, being perfectly known—and it always is a relief to stop trying to do something that is futile . . . and instead allow the shattering, sometimes lonely, unknowing to direct us. (And if you choose this third option, this book is very good company.)
October 24, 2019
A slightly bizarre and beautifully written story. I read André Alexis’ work for his prose, and this book had so many lovely passages in it.
While on the surface a story about a man, Alfred Homer, agreeing to accompany family friend Professor Booth while he hunts for information about an Ontario poet John Skennen, it’s also about the odd people and places they meet on their eight-day driving trip, and how the time profoundly transforms Alfred.
Though nothing obviously terrible happens during their travels (except for a dog attacking Alfred) I found the story became darker and darker each new place they stopped at. Each town seemed a little odder, whether due to its rituals or its people, transforming the towns into something either strange or savage, all described in lovely prose.
(I liked how Alexis also brought one of his own books, Pastoral, into this story, even having Alfred and Booth meet the model for that book’s main character, who complained about that book’s effect on his life.)
I don’t always understand exactly what Alexis is exploring in his novels, but I love his use of language, and how his stories skirt the line between fiction and the fantastic, of which this book was a good example.
While on the surface a story about a man, Alfred Homer, agreeing to accompany family friend Professor Booth while he hunts for information about an Ontario poet John Skennen, it’s also about the odd people and places they meet on their eight-day driving trip, and how the time profoundly transforms Alfred.
Though nothing obviously terrible happens during their travels (except for a dog attacking Alfred) I found the story became darker and darker each new place they stopped at. Each town seemed a little odder, whether due to its rituals or its people, transforming the towns into something either strange or savage, all described in lovely prose.
(I liked how Alexis also brought one of his own books, Pastoral, into this story, even having Alfred and Booth meet the model for that book’s main character, who complained about that book’s effect on his life.)
I don’t always understand exactly what Alexis is exploring in his novels, but I love his use of language, and how his stories skirt the line between fiction and the fantastic, of which this book was a good example.
January 13, 2019
“Having experienced what I did, it seemed to me that religion - its language, biblical advice, sacred ritual, and so on - was insignificant to the universe. I now felt that the universe is and that one is and that sermons, prayers, and vows were all an outdated way of pointing to the depths you could not reach.”
In Days by Moonlight, readers are treated to the story of an unusual road trip abound southern Ontario, as told from the perspective of the book’s easy-going main character, Alfred Homer. The narrator makes several references to the trip as a journey into the underworld, and as you get into the meat of the novel, it becomes clear that this underworld is one of Canadian identity.
Alexis touches on religion, economics, racism, and even Canadian sexuality in a way that is mostly comical and satirical, but also endearing on occasion. It’s difficult to classify Days by Moonlight into a particular genre, but it is definitely a critique of Canadian identity that I won’t soon forget. I adore Alexis’ writing style and I look forward to reading more of his books.
Thank you to NetGalley and Coach House Books for the ARC. I thought it was great!
https://allisonhikesthebookwoods.tumb...
March 5, 2019
Beneath these small impressions, there was something deeper. I could feel the flow of that particularly Canadian thing: passion brought on by outrage. Outrage seeped into the Wolf and Pendulum and permeated the place: an outrage that turned, at times, to aggression, an aggression that few of those in the pub would have permitted themselves unless prompted by their sense of political imbalance – the fate of the poor, distant committees dictating to those who lived in Nobleton. In the Wolf and Pendulum, I recognized what you could call a “Canadian instinct” or, if you were being unkind, a Canadian addiction: moral reproach.
While I do think that Days by Moonlight stands on its own as an unsettling and intriguing piece of fiction that does more than most books to explore and expose the Canadian psyche, it's more important to consider it as part of André Alexis' “quincunx” project: a series of five novels, revolving around similar themes, that will ultimately interconnect like the pips on a die showing a five. Once again, I'll let Alexis explain the project that came to him as he attempted, and repeatedly failed, to rewrite Pier Paolo Passolini's Teorema:
I finally stripped the story down to its essence – divine visitation – and thought about the ways in which that essential story could be told. Five approaches came to me at once. I wanted to tell it as a pastoral (that is, a tale set in an idealized rural world), as an apologue (a moral tale involving animals), as a quest narrative (with Treasure Island in mind), as a ghost story (like Ugetsu Monogatari), and as a kind of Harlequin romance. The novels were suggested not by personal experience, not by grief or exile or post-traumatic stress, but by the art of storytelling itself.
So far in the project, Pastoral is the, er, pastoral, Fifteen Dogs is the apologue, The Hidden Keys is the quest narrative, Days by Moonlight is the ghost story, and they've already begun to intersect in interesting ways: some dogs from Fifteen Dogs appeared in The Hidden Keys, and characters from Days by Moonlight go to Barrow (the setting of Pastoral), and not only has one of the characters read Pastoral, but they meet the priest that that book's main character was based on and he disputes his portrayal. In each of these books, Alexis makes statements in an afterword that I have found helpful for understanding his intent, and for this book, he lists the great travel novels that he found inspirational (from Dante's Paradiso to Gulliver's Travels) and writes, “Days by Moonlight is not a work of realism. It’s not a work that uses the imagination to show the real, but one that uses the real to show the imagination.” And that's truly the essence of this book, right there. So what's it about?
Alfred Homer is a young Botanist who has recently experienced a twin set of griefs and is invited by an old friend of his father's to accompany him on a brief road trip across Southern Ontario. This Professor Bruno intends to follow the trail of an obscure poet about whom he is writing a book, and knowing that there are some interesting horticultural specimens to be observed along the way, Homer agrees to be driver and companion on the quest. Because they are both travelling and interviewing people who knew the poet, this narrative is a mixture of the pair witnessing strange events – a community of Black people who don't speak during daylight hours, a visit to the Museum of Canadian Sexuality – and listening to fantastical stories – about witches, demons, and ghostly visitations. Much of what is witnessed is satirical in nature – in a way that does reveal essential truths about what it is to be Canadian – and the majority of the conversations are about art and truth and metaphysical belief – in a way that does reveal essential truths about what it is to be human. There's a lot packed into this small volume, and for the first time, I'm really getting a sense for the quincunx.
On a personal note: I enjoyed that this book travelled to places that I'm familiar with. In particular, I have never seen Stouffville – a tiny rural community where I lived for seven years as a child – in a novel before, and while I'd agree with Homer's assessment that it's “like any number of towns in the area”, I had to wonder why only its residents spoke like yokels, “I don't think youse are going to get much out of Gram. She hasn't been herself lately, eh?” (But as Alexis says in the afterword that these towns are “exaggeratedly, or (even) perversely portrayed”, I'm not actually taking offense. At least I'm not from Nobleton.)
I thought of the places we'd been, of house burnings and Indigenous parades, of good intentions and savage politeness, of stories and dreams. Were these, too, what was meant by “country”? It was easy to be at one with a world of autumnal trees and washed-out skies. It was something else to be one with a people's worst impulses, ideas, and behaviour. And yet, the Tim Hortons in Seaforth was where I first felt that when all is accepted, all is transcended.
I'm going to need to read all four of these books again before the fifth comes out; this feels like a truly remarkable project; truly art.
November 14, 2019
Alfred Homer's just trying to put his past behind him. He's lost both his parents to a car accident and his lover has just left him. So he joins his parent's friend, Professor Morgan Bruno, on the hunt for information on poet John Skennen that will take them both across Southern Ontario.
And while the small towns of Schomberg, Feversham, New Tecumseth and Coulson's Hill are all actual locations in Ontario, what awaits the pair in the book is another thing altogether. They encounter towns peopled by blacks that speak only in sign language, annual house burning lotteries, ridiculous Indigenous parades, witches, werewolves and the Museum of Canadian Sexuality.
It's all a deep metaphor! It sound exhausting and self-important when I put it like that, but Days by Moonlight proves to be a dreamy odyssey propelled by Alexis' lyrical writing that glides effortlessly from one story to the next. It avoids feeling didactic and self-important in favour of a bucolic, certainly skewed but confidently Canadian road trip. All that's missing is a Timmy's double-double for the ride and roadside poutine stops.
And while the small towns of Schomberg, Feversham, New Tecumseth and Coulson's Hill are all actual locations in Ontario, what awaits the pair in the book is another thing altogether. They encounter towns peopled by blacks that speak only in sign language, annual house burning lotteries, ridiculous Indigenous parades, witches, werewolves and the Museum of Canadian Sexuality.
It's all a deep metaphor! It sound exhausting and self-important when I put it like that, but Days by Moonlight proves to be a dreamy odyssey propelled by Alexis' lyrical writing that glides effortlessly from one story to the next. It avoids feeling didactic and self-important in favour of a bucolic, certainly skewed but confidently Canadian road trip. All that's missing is a Timmy's double-double for the ride and roadside poutine stops.
October 28, 2025
This is one the most imaginative novels I’ve ever read. Alexis seems to have absolutely no self-consciousness about the mix of genres and approaches in his work. He is tied to literature — especially a certain kind of classic (and, in this instance, he lists his inspirations after the text of the novel) — and yet free to do as he likes. And it works. He is excellent at ambiguity, at not taking a position, while letting his characters debate or believe, and letting the reader land as he or she will. He even does this with his satire. He is also a Black writer who can at one moment run with the likes of Paul Beatty and at other moments put race aside altogether. And he is Canadian in a way that makes Canada into the foreign country (like, say, Hungary) that it so rarely is for Americans. He is the greatest literary discovery I’ve made in the last year. Highly recommended.
November 8, 2021
The place words come from is the same place that death comes from.
A river that branches, meanders, and then joins back with the main channel; this riverine image came to me several times while reading Alexis's next book of the Quincunx.
The story begins with an aging professor and a young botanist planning a roadtrip around the small towns in southern Ontario to retrace the steps of a mysterious poet.
In Gulliver-like fashion, on this trip they encounter extraordinary circumstances, locations, and people. The book is also a close look at phases of life and the processes and emotions of love and grief.
Like many of Alexis's books, there are paragraphs that wax philosophic, contain humor and satire, e.g. a trip to the Museum of Canadian Sexuality, and elements of fantasy (there may or may not be a werewolf).
Alexis's writing is unlike any author I can think of - hard to describe, but lyrical, comforting, and fluid.
This loose Quincunx series refers to other books' characters and locations, but they do not need to be read in order, and largely can be standalone novels. Days by Moonlight included mentions of two dogs from Fifteen Dogs, and a visit to Barrow, the setting of Pastoral. Fifteen Dogs was probably the most ambitious and well-known of this series, and I really loved that novel, but it is possible I enjoyed the content and interpretations of this one even more.
A river that branches, meanders, and then joins back with the main channel; this riverine image came to me several times while reading Alexis's next book of the Quincunx.
The story begins with an aging professor and a young botanist planning a roadtrip around the small towns in southern Ontario to retrace the steps of a mysterious poet.
In Gulliver-like fashion, on this trip they encounter extraordinary circumstances, locations, and people. The book is also a close look at phases of life and the processes and emotions of love and grief.
Like many of Alexis's books, there are paragraphs that wax philosophic, contain humor and satire, e.g. a trip to the Museum of Canadian Sexuality, and elements of fantasy (there may or may not be a werewolf).
Alexis's writing is unlike any author I can think of - hard to describe, but lyrical, comforting, and fluid.
This loose Quincunx series refers to other books' characters and locations, but they do not need to be read in order, and largely can be standalone novels. Days by Moonlight included mentions of two dogs from Fifteen Dogs, and a visit to Barrow, the setting of Pastoral. Fifteen Dogs was probably the most ambitious and well-known of this series, and I really loved that novel, but it is possible I enjoyed the content and interpretations of this one even more.
February 21, 2022
What a profoundly strange novel!
In Days by Moonlight we follow recently divorced Alfred Homer and Professor Morgan Bruno on a research trip through southern Ontario. Quite quickly the novel ventures into the absurd, strange, and near-psychedelic.
To my taste, this is my least favourite of the Quincunx novels that I've read so far. Having recently read and loved The Hidden Keys, it was a bit of a disconcerting switch to this much stranger fare. By no means is the novel bad; indeed, it only reaffirms my faith that Alexis is a top tier talent and one of Canada's greatest living novelists. Instead, I found it a little uneven and really peculiar. I also never identified with the leads as much as I had in the other novels.
As it is with all the novels in the Quincunx, I think I'll be returning to this one in the future. There's some excellent humour and much deeper meaning here that I'd love to dig into on a re-read. Though I'm a little confused as to the proper reading order of these books, this is not the one to start with since it seems to touch on themes from all of the other books.
Well, nothing but Ring left now!
In Days by Moonlight we follow recently divorced Alfred Homer and Professor Morgan Bruno on a research trip through southern Ontario. Quite quickly the novel ventures into the absurd, strange, and near-psychedelic.
To my taste, this is my least favourite of the Quincunx novels that I've read so far. Having recently read and loved The Hidden Keys, it was a bit of a disconcerting switch to this much stranger fare. By no means is the novel bad; indeed, it only reaffirms my faith that Alexis is a top tier talent and one of Canada's greatest living novelists. Instead, I found it a little uneven and really peculiar. I also never identified with the leads as much as I had in the other novels.
As it is with all the novels in the Quincunx, I think I'll be returning to this one in the future. There's some excellent humour and much deeper meaning here that I'd love to dig into on a re-read. Though I'm a little confused as to the proper reading order of these books, this is not the one to start with since it seems to touch on themes from all of the other books.
Well, nothing but Ring left now!
April 6, 2022
I declare this to be among my favorite novels of all time. I could read it 20 times, back to back, and get further joy from every reading. If I could take only 10 books to a desert island, this would be among them.
This is a travelogue, a road trip story, taking place over eight days, passing through small towns of southern Ontario. The first few pages reveal little of the wonders that follow. Alfred "Alfie" August Homer is 33 years old, lost his parents to a car accident a year ago, and the woman he expected to spend his life with left him 6 months ago. He is grieving. Professor Bruno, a friend of his father's, asks him to serve as driver, interview transcriber, and good company on the professor's 2 or 3-day road trip to acquire colorful anecdotes about a mysterious disappeared poet John Skennen of whom he had written a "literary account." Alfie thinks "what the heck; why not."
The crazy, hilarious, wondrous, mystical, mythical, larger-than-life events begin with Alfie and the Professor's first encounter in the first town in which they stop, and become more of everything all the way through to their return home to Toronto. A huge part of the magic of this novel is that it starts out so simply, taking you by the hand and leading you further & further into the unimaginable without you even noticing, until you look up and think "oh my goodness, where have I been and how in the world did I get there." The pages are replete with story, with characters, with setting, with prose (oh the prose), but this is so much more than just a pleasing work of fiction -- it is deep, it is broad, it asks all of life's big and small questions and kindly lets you reach your own conclusions, and it does all of that in just 218 pages.
This book was the 4th published in Alexis' Quincunx Cycle, although it is categorized by the author as Quincunx 5.
This is a travelogue, a road trip story, taking place over eight days, passing through small towns of southern Ontario. The first few pages reveal little of the wonders that follow. Alfred "Alfie" August Homer is 33 years old, lost his parents to a car accident a year ago, and the woman he expected to spend his life with left him 6 months ago. He is grieving. Professor Bruno, a friend of his father's, asks him to serve as driver, interview transcriber, and good company on the professor's 2 or 3-day road trip to acquire colorful anecdotes about a mysterious disappeared poet John Skennen of whom he had written a "literary account." Alfie thinks "what the heck; why not."
The crazy, hilarious, wondrous, mystical, mythical, larger-than-life events begin with Alfie and the Professor's first encounter in the first town in which they stop, and become more of everything all the way through to their return home to Toronto. A huge part of the magic of this novel is that it starts out so simply, taking you by the hand and leading you further & further into the unimaginable without you even noticing, until you look up and think "oh my goodness, where have I been and how in the world did I get there." The pages are replete with story, with characters, with setting, with prose (oh the prose), but this is so much more than just a pleasing work of fiction -- it is deep, it is broad, it asks all of life's big and small questions and kindly lets you reach your own conclusions, and it does all of that in just 218 pages.
This book was the 4th published in Alexis' Quincunx Cycle, although it is categorized by the author as Quincunx 5.
November 30, 2020
Full disclosure...I never would have read this if it hadn't been a book club pick, I didn't like Fifteen Dogs, I didn't expect to like this, so this might not be the most objective review. This bizarre travelogue made me feel like I was back in university reading Gulliver's Travels. It is part a satirical look at Canadian culture, part a philosophical examination of love and grief, and I suspect so much more. The wonderful thing is that I am no longer in university, and no longer have to analyze it to death. I can just move on to books that I want to read. It wasn't all bad...it held my attention better than Fifteen Dogs, and a brief mention of Gordon Lightfoot led me to enjoy an afternoon listening to his wonderful music.
July 18, 2019
André Alexis' wonderful Fifteen Dogs was a tour de force: original, thought-provoking, and clearly a magical fiction from the beginning. This new novel, the fifth of his five related novels, not nearly as successful.
It starts out with a young narrator telling how he's driving a scholarly friend who's doing research on the life of a mysterious poet around rural Ontario. Unlike Fifteen Dogs, the clues that all is not what it seems don't reveal themselves immediately, and so the reader is led down a number of paths that he or she only tardily realizes are the stuff of fairy tales. This is annoying because the book is so full of botanical detail that one is tempted to think it's a fiction wrapped up in nature writing. Then comes the description of the fire lion flower that Jacques Cartier and his men used in orgies, or the hand-shaped ground cover that tastes good in salads but which is clearly a plant from the netherworld. What? was my reaction. This can't be!
Similarly a number of thinly disguised figures from the CanLit world make their appearance. A cross-dressing museum guide named Michael bears a striking resemblance to an expert on copyright, while a poetess who made up stories about being abused as a child suggest another rather woman whose work was acclaimed but whose personal life was a disaster.
I read the book to its end, but that's about it. The other three books in Alexis's series will remain unread, I think.
It starts out with a young narrator telling how he's driving a scholarly friend who's doing research on the life of a mysterious poet around rural Ontario. Unlike Fifteen Dogs, the clues that all is not what it seems don't reveal themselves immediately, and so the reader is led down a number of paths that he or she only tardily realizes are the stuff of fairy tales. This is annoying because the book is so full of botanical detail that one is tempted to think it's a fiction wrapped up in nature writing. Then comes the description of the fire lion flower that Jacques Cartier and his men used in orgies, or the hand-shaped ground cover that tastes good in salads but which is clearly a plant from the netherworld. What? was my reaction. This can't be!
Similarly a number of thinly disguised figures from the CanLit world make their appearance. A cross-dressing museum guide named Michael bears a striking resemblance to an expert on copyright, while a poetess who made up stories about being abused as a child suggest another rather woman whose work was acclaimed but whose personal life was a disaster.
I read the book to its end, but that's about it. The other three books in Alexis's series will remain unread, I think.
January 21, 2019
Days by Moonlight, a fantastical journey through the underworld of southern Ontario, follows two companions on their journey to discover the fate of the poet John Skennen. Professor Morgan Bruno is a fumbling academic driven by research on his favorite poet. His assistant, Alfred Homer, has suffered great loss recently and needs the distraction of this trip. Inadvertently the two enter an incredible, almost mystical world in Days by Moonlight, the fourth novel in Alexis’s quincunx 5 that in his words “is one project that is taking forever”.
Alfred Homer has lost his parents recently and now his girlfriend has left. He is convinced to travel with a family friend on a research field trip. Alfred being a botanist is told there will be time to collect and catalogue plants along the way but he has little time for that. The two friends visit family and friends of John Skeenen and learn all sorts of hidden facts about the poet and what happened to him. In the meantime, they are touched by the broader issues of religion, poverty, racism, and sexuality in Canada. How they handle what they witness reveals the true person within the two travellers. One thing for certain is that they are both changed forever.
Alexis has an easy flowing way of telling a story. The novel is simple and almost whimsical at times, but its intention is quite profound as it makes references to very serious ongoing issues in Canada (and globally).
The novel is part of five novels that will be interlocked (quincunx 5). “Pastoral” was the first followed by “Fifteen Dogs”, “Hidden Keys” and now “Days by Moonlight”. The fifth is yet to come. Of course the only way to judge the work as a whole will be to read all five, which I fully intend to do as soon as they are available.
I highly recommend this book for a number of reasons. Firstly it is an entertaining story that stands alone. Secondly, in a unique manner, it brings to light a number of serious issues that Canadians should not and cannot deny. And lastly, for those that like the literary form a quincunx is a collection of 5 novels that employ forgotten or abandoned literary forms to create contemporary stories. Who would want to miss that? I give it a 5 on 5.
I want to thank NetGalley and Coach House Books for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.
Alfred Homer has lost his parents recently and now his girlfriend has left. He is convinced to travel with a family friend on a research field trip. Alfred being a botanist is told there will be time to collect and catalogue plants along the way but he has little time for that. The two friends visit family and friends of John Skeenen and learn all sorts of hidden facts about the poet and what happened to him. In the meantime, they are touched by the broader issues of religion, poverty, racism, and sexuality in Canada. How they handle what they witness reveals the true person within the two travellers. One thing for certain is that they are both changed forever.
Alexis has an easy flowing way of telling a story. The novel is simple and almost whimsical at times, but its intention is quite profound as it makes references to very serious ongoing issues in Canada (and globally).
The novel is part of five novels that will be interlocked (quincunx 5). “Pastoral” was the first followed by “Fifteen Dogs”, “Hidden Keys” and now “Days by Moonlight”. The fifth is yet to come. Of course the only way to judge the work as a whole will be to read all five, which I fully intend to do as soon as they are available.
I highly recommend this book for a number of reasons. Firstly it is an entertaining story that stands alone. Secondly, in a unique manner, it brings to light a number of serious issues that Canadians should not and cannot deny. And lastly, for those that like the literary form a quincunx is a collection of 5 novels that employ forgotten or abandoned literary forms to create contemporary stories. Who would want to miss that? I give it a 5 on 5.
I want to thank NetGalley and Coach House Books for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.
November 6, 2018
A deceptively quiet writing style describes quite a delightfully weird week-long road trip through southern Ontario. The magical realism in the book pokes at the line between what is real and what is story or imagination in our lives. I think there are also some half-genuine, half-satire explorations of love and spiritualism and naturalism there, as well as some not-so-subtle digs at Canada's historic racial inequalities. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and the thoughts the book provoked.
November 27, 2025
Positively Kafkaesque and in true Kafkaesque fashion I simultaneously found this monotonous at times, wonder why it is a book, and am compelled to finish the series. This book truly has it all —lycanthropy, Macedonian flatulence, and a near-miss accidental appendectomy.
September 13, 2019
3.5 stars - Ahh journeying in a bizarre, or more bizarre, rural Ontario on a mission to learn more about a poet. This one is very "Canadian", whatever that means, including much mocking of Canadians. I love the weirdness throughout and that Alfred is a botanist, but sometimes the philosophy hit me a bit hard over the head. Lots of stories within this story so lots to peruse and think about.
December 26, 2018
I was already filled with adoration for this book when I landed on a section that references Andre Alexis' Pastoral, and then I fell even harder for the book. Once again writing the author within his own story gives a nice sensation similar to brain freeze after eating too much ice cream too fast. There also seemed to be a relation to his work Beauty and Sadness here.
This is the fourth in the quincunx that I have read but it is the fifth in the quincunx according to the author. If you find this statement confusing then it is likely that the work of Mr. Alexis is not for you. Of course I could be wrong, and I often am.
Had you asked me any time before starting this book if I would ever read a passage written by Andre Alexis that deals solely with farting and flatulence, I would have laughed in your face. Well color me surprised to find such a passage in this book. I shall also report that said passage had me roaring with laughter.
Everything about this story is so engaging and easy to read. There are many literary references that any avid reader will notice and enjoy.
The problem with the quincunx for me is that I selfishly want more out of every book. More about the story itself, more about the lead and/or supporting characters. But each one is a work of art that stands on it's own.
In short: I found this book fascinating, just as I have found every work by Andre Alexis. However, this book in particular seemed to have a more personal feel, lots of dashes of reality twining in with the sumptuous fiction. This is not a travelogue but the book takes the reader on a wild ride along with the main characters. After reading works by Andre Alexis I sometimes find it hard to go back to other works of fiction. It is as if the writing produces subtle changes in the reader that subsist after reading. Just a kink in your reality.
Thanks to Coach House books and NetGalley for this chance to read an advance copy.
This is the fourth in the quincunx that I have read but it is the fifth in the quincunx according to the author. If you find this statement confusing then it is likely that the work of Mr. Alexis is not for you. Of course I could be wrong, and I often am.
Had you asked me any time before starting this book if I would ever read a passage written by Andre Alexis that deals solely with farting and flatulence, I would have laughed in your face. Well color me surprised to find such a passage in this book. I shall also report that said passage had me roaring with laughter.
Everything about this story is so engaging and easy to read. There are many literary references that any avid reader will notice and enjoy.
The problem with the quincunx for me is that I selfishly want more out of every book. More about the story itself, more about the lead and/or supporting characters. But each one is a work of art that stands on it's own.
In short: I found this book fascinating, just as I have found every work by Andre Alexis. However, this book in particular seemed to have a more personal feel, lots of dashes of reality twining in with the sumptuous fiction. This is not a travelogue but the book takes the reader on a wild ride along with the main characters. After reading works by Andre Alexis I sometimes find it hard to go back to other works of fiction. It is as if the writing produces subtle changes in the reader that subsist after reading. Just a kink in your reality.
Thanks to Coach House books and NetGalley for this chance to read an advance copy.
March 30, 2019
There's a lot going on in this book. In a nutshell, the story follows botanist Alfred Homer and Professor Morgan Bruno on a road trip through Southern Ontario. Bruno seeks relatives and friends of mysteriously vanished poet John Skennen, intending to interview them for a book he is writing. Homer is grateful for the distraction from the one-year anniversary of his parents' death and the fresher grief of his fiancé's decision to leave him. Besides, he has heard that Feversham, the last town on their itinerary, has a field of Oniaten grandiflora on its outskirts, and he wants to see it for himself.
Along the way, they encounter increasingly absurd and surreal circumstances and characters. Through house burnings meant to celebrate pioneer spirit, uncomfortable Indigenous parades, a sex museum, and a town where it is illegal for black people to speak aloud, Alexis plumbs the depths of Canadian identity, racial injustice and prejudice. Through stories told to the main characters-- stories of witches, lycanthropy, ghosts, a demon pig, and miracles-- Alexis explores themes of grief, unrequited love, and religious faith.
This book, like its main characters, roves. It has a relaxed, pastoral pace, the pace of rural conversation, but covers a great deal of ground and is constantly moving. It is quietly absurd, rich with thought-provoking satire. I enjoyed the botanical sketches throughout the novel. They serve as a sort of reminder of Homer's tenuous anchor to home amid surreal events.
This book serves perfectly well as a stand-alone novel, but is part of a larger whole, being book four in the author's Quincunx Cycle. I would recommend this book to those looking for a humorous yet cerebral read, touching on painfully important topics. I give this book 3.5 stars.
Thank you to Coach House Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
Along the way, they encounter increasingly absurd and surreal circumstances and characters. Through house burnings meant to celebrate pioneer spirit, uncomfortable Indigenous parades, a sex museum, and a town where it is illegal for black people to speak aloud, Alexis plumbs the depths of Canadian identity, racial injustice and prejudice. Through stories told to the main characters-- stories of witches, lycanthropy, ghosts, a demon pig, and miracles-- Alexis explores themes of grief, unrequited love, and religious faith.
This book, like its main characters, roves. It has a relaxed, pastoral pace, the pace of rural conversation, but covers a great deal of ground and is constantly moving. It is quietly absurd, rich with thought-provoking satire. I enjoyed the botanical sketches throughout the novel. They serve as a sort of reminder of Homer's tenuous anchor to home amid surreal events.
This book serves perfectly well as a stand-alone novel, but is part of a larger whole, being book four in the author's Quincunx Cycle. I would recommend this book to those looking for a humorous yet cerebral read, touching on painfully important topics. I give this book 3.5 stars.
Thank you to Coach House Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
April 11, 2019
I loved Fifteen Dogs, and I loved the blurbs for this, but for some reason it just didn’t come together for me. Even the physical book is gorgeous—incredible cover design, heavy paper, a terrific job. And yet the story just seemed to wander without making any of the memorable stops I was hoping for.
I was prepared for a peripatetic, picaresque tale of a journey through the underworld. Alexis’s prose and his mind are still elegant and persuasive, as they were in Fifteen Dogs. And I still like to see him spin a sugar-candy tale, full of subtle humor and gentle satirical pokes, out of philosophy and epistemology. But this one just didn’t come together.
If you’re from southern Ontario, this might entice you more. It’s a bit of a love letter, Alexis style, to that landscape and culture, which escapes my West Coast psyche.
I was prepared for a peripatetic, picaresque tale of a journey through the underworld. Alexis’s prose and his mind are still elegant and persuasive, as they were in Fifteen Dogs. And I still like to see him spin a sugar-candy tale, full of subtle humor and gentle satirical pokes, out of philosophy and epistemology. But this one just didn’t come together.
If you’re from southern Ontario, this might entice you more. It’s a bit of a love letter, Alexis style, to that landscape and culture, which escapes my West Coast psyche.
April 3, 2019
Andre Alexis is a genius & a national treasure.
February 9, 2019
*thank you to Netgalley, André Alexis and Coach House Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
2.5 stars.
Ohh I do feel bad for giving this such a rating on the lower end of the scale. It's not that it's a badly written story or a story that I believe is truly uninteresting. It was simply just not for me. I didn't feel connected with the story and that made it a challenge to get into. I can see that it is enjoyed by quite alot of people which is also why I think it's just me. I would pass this along to others to read though and would like to thank the author again for allowing me the chance to read this.
2.5 stars.
Ohh I do feel bad for giving this such a rating on the lower end of the scale. It's not that it's a badly written story or a story that I believe is truly uninteresting. It was simply just not for me. I didn't feel connected with the story and that made it a challenge to get into. I can see that it is enjoyed by quite alot of people which is also why I think it's just me. I would pass this along to others to read though and would like to thank the author again for allowing me the chance to read this.
March 20, 2024
I definitely need to physically read this, it was hard to follow as an audiobook. I loved Alexis’ narration though, he has a very soothing voice. Some of the themes made me think “the men are not alright,” but mostly I was intrigued and enjoyed the prose
May 4, 2024
So bizarre and so strange but I liked it. All his books in the Quincunx have been awesome (this is my fourth read of his). I’m sure smarter people than I will have a deeper understanding of the tales and travels the characters went through - I just enjoyed the ride.
February 21, 2019
"Days by Moonlight" by André Alexis.
My first time reading that author.
4 stars.
Well written, interesting, entertaining, not boring. I really liked it! It's easy to read, enjoyable, funny weird, I really liked the narration, the style, the story, the dialogue. A nice road trip.
Also liked the drawings.
Thank you NetGalley and Coach House Books for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own!
My first time reading that author.
4 stars.
Well written, interesting, entertaining, not boring. I really liked it! It's easy to read, enjoyable, funny weird, I really liked the narration, the style, the story, the dialogue. A nice road trip.
Also liked the drawings.
Thank you NetGalley and Coach House Books for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own!
February 15, 2021
A book that tries to talk about all of Canada while bumbling about a generally unimaginative (even though fictional) rendering of Southern Ontario. I’ve read Pastoral, 15D, and Days By Moonlight now, which I guess is 3/4 of the expected 5 total books in the series. I just don’t see where the “point” is falling, and in this case (as with 15D), I listened to the audiobook version read by the author himself, so I’m not just failing to grasp tone on the page, but instead I’m failing to connect with the slipshod pacing, the entirely unlikeable/or/boring cast—who seem designed to pan a kind of neoliberal academic vision of the country, in a novel that is composed on that very wavelength—and the hard pivots in and out of the precious moments of worthwhile writing. Glimmers of great ideas come in to life in the middle of the Odyssey-lite journey (the speaker’s surname is Homer, cough cough, as every other held-hand over-exposed reference and namedrop is), but are trampled by pulled-punch delivery; that Alexis is simultaneously imagining the canlit that name-drops the incredible Karen Solie as the younger generation of poets,’ while not seizing the obvious joke about Engel’s “Bear,” in the most sterile journey through a museum of canadian sexuality you could imagine, well, it speaks to the book needing to (at bare minimum) spend a little more time cooking, or god forbid, find a point or make us laugh. While the fact that Alexis can parrot the absolutely brutally clueless humanities prof voice is admirable, just how much of that he subjects us to in the continual dialogues and sidebars is almost criminal. The most ecstatic material (which I won’t spoil here) comes in the close, and that’s when the speaker actually gets a little bit of attention and development, but that’s too late, and that could have all happened without the obnoxiously Ontario-centric fool’s errand that is the entire front end of the book. I gasped in embarrassment when earlier books in the series started getting looped back in alongside meaningless platitudes about fiction and truth near the end of the book as well (which get reprised yet again in the end-notes, more hand-holding about a boring distinction that should’ve spoke for itself but didn’t because the writing just wasn’t there). I feel like the writing is, well, old, as in, Atwoodian (boring but respected just for having stuck around). I guess I just can’t stand reading a canlit figurehead complaining about political correctness versus disingenuous canadian politeness when the whole novel is an exercise in the latter, with a gravity well of Ontario narcissism in its center. Really really disappointed, but you know, I’m sure the highly awarded Alexis will continue happily with his life whether or not I find anything to connect with in a series of 5 books that don’t really actually have an overarching frame other than a couple shoehorned references to themselves in the later works.
March 18, 2019
With the exception of Fifteen Dogs - which I loved - I’ve always struggled with the way Alexis writes… and never really been able to ‘get into him’ as an author. Sadly this novel is no exception.
Featuring the steady, measured, restrained - almost aloof - narration that is typical of his stories, I never really connected with the events of the novel, notwithstanding that it is quintessentially Canadian with respect to both the setting - something Alexis can be counted on - and it’s ‘soundtrack.’
As a continuation of his ‘quincunx’ this novel is variously: a search for illumination; an exploration of grief; a coming to terms with the human condition; a biting political critique; and a ghost story (of sorts).
Sadly though, I could not connect with the novel. It rambles on, too many times going from one ridiculous scene to another trying to make its point.
Case in point… The following question is posed - "What remains of our feelings for those we’ve loved when they leave us?" This is one of the big questions of the book - and comes after a long rambling story about a witch and a woman and two men. When it comes, it feels forced… the character is ‘telling’ us this question, rather than the author letting us figure it out for ourselves. This happens over and over again. I feel like I’m being preached (hah!) at, rather than being left to figure things out for myself.
Near the very end, again part of a long rambling back and forth, Professor Bruno notes that "...anything that makes it into a book is speculation… Some of it’s useful. Some of it’s entertaining. Some of it’s too drab to be either." (p209)
Far too much of this novel was just that. Drab.
Featuring the steady, measured, restrained - almost aloof - narration that is typical of his stories, I never really connected with the events of the novel, notwithstanding that it is quintessentially Canadian with respect to both the setting - something Alexis can be counted on - and it’s ‘soundtrack.’
As a continuation of his ‘quincunx’ this novel is variously: a search for illumination; an exploration of grief; a coming to terms with the human condition; a biting political critique; and a ghost story (of sorts).
Sadly though, I could not connect with the novel. It rambles on, too many times going from one ridiculous scene to another trying to make its point.
Case in point… The following question is posed - "What remains of our feelings for those we’ve loved when they leave us?" This is one of the big questions of the book - and comes after a long rambling story about a witch and a woman and two men. When it comes, it feels forced… the character is ‘telling’ us this question, rather than the author letting us figure it out for ourselves. This happens over and over again. I feel like I’m being preached (hah!) at, rather than being left to figure things out for myself.
Near the very end, again part of a long rambling back and forth, Professor Bruno notes that "...anything that makes it into a book is speculation… Some of it’s useful. Some of it’s entertaining. Some of it’s too drab to be either." (p209)
Far too much of this novel was just that. Drab.
Read
April 17, 2019This was well-written but I didn't connect at all to the story or the characters. DNF
August 27, 2022
I'm not quite sure what to do with this novel. It starts out fine enough, a road trip through Ontario, precisely the reason I wanted to read it right now since I took it with me on my own road trip through Ontario (albeit I was going in a different direction). Alfred's now deceased parents were friends with this professor who is currently working on a biography on this elusive local poet, he asks Alfred (who is a botany student) to help and drive him and off on their journey/ quest they go. We stop in all these little towns and the plot slowly goes from realist to satirical to mildly absurd over to surreal and potentially even paranormal to end in a very religious corner with miracles and all. So, huh.
Along this trip there were moments that I liked a lot. We have a stop in a town that puts on an Indigenous Parade where one throws rotten fruit at actors portraying the racist forefathers but when actual Indigenous People start participating the town gets mad, another town has a law that forbade black people from talking in public (because after the white people were so proud of themselves for taking in fled slaves from the US they suddenly got worried the different way of speaking would corrupt the town's white culture) but in present day given the chance to abandon the law the black population votes to keep it since they established their own silent language and culture around the situation. There are a few similar, rather absurd situations with really interesting social commentary, I was engaged for these parts. But then things get weirder and weirder and like I said in the end this turns into an examination of faith that will change our protagonist in profound ways. The novel really lost me in its later parts (that whole werewolf dream thing???) and as an atheist I didn't get along with the turn the later chapters take. Though I am sure there are different ways of viewing the ending.
This is also part of Alexis' "Quincunx" series, apparently part five, but my understanding is that they are not connected by characters or plot but by themes. I mean, one of the previous novels, "Pastoral", is mentioned as a book here and we meet someone that inspired a character in said novel, supposedly dogs featured in a different novel reappear here. I think all of these novels contain some form of nature writing and apparently faith is a recurring topic, I didn't know that and maybe wouldn't have chosen this novel then because both can be a miss for me. I was here for the input of a Trinidadian-Canadian writer, the social commentary, I love road trips and the surrealism sounded intriguing. But by the end it was all a little too over the top and abstract and, yes, too religious.
I was also confused by the writing style. This is set in 2017 but it reads much older, I constantly pictured everyone in pilgrim's era clothes and had to remind myself that they are driving in a car, this is set nowadays. But Alexis gives the novel a strong folkloric vibe, full of stories, legends and traditions. The described interactions and small town entanglements just never read very modern to me, more like myths, and I am sure that was intentional. An odd novel, with odd elements and a writing style I didn't always love but I honestly can see the right reader quite enjoying this. And the portrayals of these town's traditions was a big highlight, even though I didn't like this as a whole I feel like those moments, those fictional traditions and what they represent, that will stay with me, I thought that was brilliant.
2.5*
Along this trip there were moments that I liked a lot. We have a stop in a town that puts on an Indigenous Parade where one throws rotten fruit at actors portraying the racist forefathers but when actual Indigenous People start participating the town gets mad, another town has a law that forbade black people from talking in public (because after the white people were so proud of themselves for taking in fled slaves from the US they suddenly got worried the different way of speaking would corrupt the town's white culture) but in present day given the chance to abandon the law the black population votes to keep it since they established their own silent language and culture around the situation. There are a few similar, rather absurd situations with really interesting social commentary, I was engaged for these parts. But then things get weirder and weirder and like I said in the end this turns into an examination of faith that will change our protagonist in profound ways. The novel really lost me in its later parts (that whole werewolf dream thing???) and as an atheist I didn't get along with the turn the later chapters take. Though I am sure there are different ways of viewing the ending.
This is also part of Alexis' "Quincunx" series, apparently part five, but my understanding is that they are not connected by characters or plot but by themes. I mean, one of the previous novels, "Pastoral", is mentioned as a book here and we meet someone that inspired a character in said novel, supposedly dogs featured in a different novel reappear here. I think all of these novels contain some form of nature writing and apparently faith is a recurring topic, I didn't know that and maybe wouldn't have chosen this novel then because both can be a miss for me. I was here for the input of a Trinidadian-Canadian writer, the social commentary, I love road trips and the surrealism sounded intriguing. But by the end it was all a little too over the top and abstract and, yes, too religious.
I was also confused by the writing style. This is set in 2017 but it reads much older, I constantly pictured everyone in pilgrim's era clothes and had to remind myself that they are driving in a car, this is set nowadays. But Alexis gives the novel a strong folkloric vibe, full of stories, legends and traditions. The described interactions and small town entanglements just never read very modern to me, more like myths, and I am sure that was intentional. An odd novel, with odd elements and a writing style I didn't always love but I honestly can see the right reader quite enjoying this. And the portrayals of these town's traditions was a big highlight, even though I didn't like this as a whole I feel like those moments, those fictional traditions and what they represent, that will stay with me, I thought that was brilliant.
2.5*
April 3, 2022
So, I've made it through the Quincunx! And a great ride it was!
I found this novel the hardest of the five to carry on to the end, however, in part because the episodic form is not my favourite, especially as a type of Fantasia, even rooted in the classics as it is here, secondly because Alfie, though amazingly apt for the part, was not a character that won my sympathy easily, and lastly, because I took so much time looking up place settings and names of plants and their characteristics, etc., that it took me ages to get through, and I have far from exhausted the thoughts and references presented. These difficulties are totally subjective, though, and not the fault of Alexis at all. I am from the area, so it intrigued me to try and find out how he manipulated his tale with the actually places; so many little jokes! I'm not going to spoil it for the reader, but for example, Schomberg was originally called Brownsville, and was/is still predominately white settlers. Nobleton was known in the 1990s for having the best fireworks in the area, and there is no Bolton County. The list goes on and on, and it is a lot of fun to figure out.
This novel is rich, rich with allusion. The writers, ideas, and novels hidden in it can't begin to be discovered on one read-through. Alexis, although creating five stand alone novels, beautifully brings us to solid rendering of the quincunx. Well worth the effort.
I found this novel the hardest of the five to carry on to the end, however, in part because the episodic form is not my favourite, especially as a type of Fantasia, even rooted in the classics as it is here, secondly because Alfie, though amazingly apt for the part, was not a character that won my sympathy easily, and lastly, because I took so much time looking up place settings and names of plants and their characteristics, etc., that it took me ages to get through, and I have far from exhausted the thoughts and references presented. These difficulties are totally subjective, though, and not the fault of Alexis at all. I am from the area, so it intrigued me to try and find out how he manipulated his tale with the actually places; so many little jokes! I'm not going to spoil it for the reader, but for example, Schomberg was originally called Brownsville, and was/is still predominately white settlers. Nobleton was known in the 1990s for having the best fireworks in the area, and there is no Bolton County. The list goes on and on, and it is a lot of fun to figure out.
This novel is rich, rich with allusion. The writers, ideas, and novels hidden in it can't begin to be discovered on one read-through. Alexis, although creating five stand alone novels, beautifully brings us to solid rendering of the quincunx. Well worth the effort.
November 24, 2025
An interesting read for sure!
Days by Moonlight is a different read from my usual and I mean that in both good and confusing ways. The themes and delivery were a bit too layered for me at times, but there’s definitely something captivating about it.
The first part of the book is fun. A bunch of different southern Ontario towns each with their own surreal myths, traditions, and odd local culture is a highlight. Reading about Alfred and the professor navigate these strange places while chasing the legend of John Skennen is weird, imaginative, and slightly unsettling.
Once the journey shifts more toward the deeper myth of John Skennen, I found myself getting a bit lost. By the time the characters reach Feversham and the story takes on heavier themes about God and religion, I struggled to stay engaged. Not because of the subject matter, but because I wasn’t always sure what was happening or what I was meant to take from it.
I wouldn’t recommend this book to everyone, but I can see how readers who are more familiar with Alexis’s work might get a lot more out of it than I did. It’s a unique reading experience, just not one that fully clicked for me.
Days by Moonlight is a different read from my usual and I mean that in both good and confusing ways. The themes and delivery were a bit too layered for me at times, but there’s definitely something captivating about it.
The first part of the book is fun. A bunch of different southern Ontario towns each with their own surreal myths, traditions, and odd local culture is a highlight. Reading about Alfred and the professor navigate these strange places while chasing the legend of John Skennen is weird, imaginative, and slightly unsettling.
Once the journey shifts more toward the deeper myth of John Skennen, I found myself getting a bit lost. By the time the characters reach Feversham and the story takes on heavier themes about God and religion, I struggled to stay engaged. Not because of the subject matter, but because I wasn’t always sure what was happening or what I was meant to take from it.
I wouldn’t recommend this book to everyone, but I can see how readers who are more familiar with Alexis’s work might get a lot more out of it than I did. It’s a unique reading experience, just not one that fully clicked for me.
March 2, 2019
This is an odd book, but I quite liked it. I have only realized that Alexis' recent books have formed a series and I have read only two of the previous three. Before the final one is released, I would like to read the first novel Pastoral and re-read the others in order because apparently the final novel connects them all. One thing I really liked was the setting for the road trip where Alfie and Professor Bruno travelled, since most of the small towns where they stopped are just south of me. However, as I was reading, I became quite perturbed because the way that the people and traditions of those towns are presented is so absurd that I worried that readers who don't live in Southern Ontario would believe that the events depicted can be true. However, by the end, Alexis talks about reality and says that what is unreal can be presented in places that are. One of the oddest things in the novel is a poem, which had words that are printed upside down and backwards. Usually I can read upside down or backwards print, but to read both, I had to keep turning the book upside down to understand all of the words. I did eventually get the whole poem. I actually look forward to re-reading this novel after I have gone through the other three.
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