Some Thoughts After Listening to Steven Brust’s Agyar

Agyar is my favorite vampire book, despite the fact that I don’t think the word “vampire” is used anywhere in the book. The audio version is great because Steven reads it himself. I loved listening to him tell me this story. I first read this book probably within two years of it first being published (back in the early 90s). I have read it at least two other times, but it had been close to two decades since those readings when I decided to listen to it. 

When I revisit a book, I notice new things, or I react differently to the same things. It is not always about the content, either. Sometimes it is about the craft of writing. My writing teacher (also two decades ago) had hard and fast rules we were not allowed to break in her class. She also had some strong suggestions. One of those suggestions was that when referring to pop culture in your story, not to be specific. The name of the movie could date your book and make it feel less relevant, your reader may hate the song you reference and that turns them off from your main character, etc.  

I get it. I really do. But technology has changed so quickly in these last 20 years, that just about every story that is meant to be contemporary is likely to feel dated within just a couple of years. And for me, learning that an author I like likes a musician enough to mention them in their books, makes me want to listen to that artist. 

That rule can also rob you of great little moments that you would never expect. In Agyar, the main character, Jack, does not listen to contemporary music. He needs music to have been around for 50 years or so (his words) in order to pay attention to it. But his love interest is a college student, and one evening when he comes to visit her, she is listening to a contemporary artist. Jack notices it enough to comment that he expects he will like that artist in 50 years. 

Agyar came out in 1993, so 30 years ago. 

Why does any of this matter? On some level it does not. But the musician being referenced is Kate Bush, whose song, Running Up That Hill, had a renaissance this past summer, 40 years after it was released. 

Besides making Steven seem prescient, it added just this great little piece of real-life verisimilitude to the book, making me fall in love all over again with a favorite book, for a whole new reason.