Books like Night Lamp

it can be all about the journey, right? it can be about the things along the way, how a place works or how a people think, it can be about taking in the details and experiencing them slowly, at leisure. it doesn't have to be a whirlwind amazing race around the world, stops checked off of a list while on the way to figuring out the next puzzle, it doesn't have to be all about solving the mystery and reaching the final destination to collect whatever prize or face whatever doom is waiting there.Jaro Fath has some mysteries to solve about the start of his life and the absence of those memories, about who he is and where he came from. the mysteries will be solved eventually. but his life isn't all about that mystery - despite that being foremost in his mind. his life is also about living in his caring new parents' household while trying to be his own person; it is about his ambitions to be a spaceman and his deepening attraction to an intriguing girl and his navigation through a society obsessed with private clubs and other hierarchies. it is about how to deal with some threatening bullies and how to avoid being taken advantage of by a beautiful woman with a plan. it's all about his actual life and the world he lives in and the worlds he visits - it's not just about getting it all over with so that there is some sort of satisfying conclusion. all the stops and idles along the way to that conclusion are just as important.Jack Vance makes it easy to enjoy the journey. I loved every page of this splendid novel. the cunning wit and the sardonic characterization, the various vibrantly hued cultures on display, the sublime descriptive passages, the absorbing tales and side-trips recounted that are only tangentially connected to the main narrative, the hero and the girl and all of the supporting characters, the way the end sets the stage for new adventures. the way the ending made me want to flip back to the beginning and start the whole experience all over again!Books I Wanted to Re-Read As Soon As I Turned the Last Page:(view spoiler)[Jonathan Strange & Mr. NorrellThe Raj QuartetThe Graveyard BookAbsolute BeginnersTiganaA Song of Ice and Fire (all of them)The Bell at Sealey HeadDavid CopperfieldBellefleur and A Bloodsmoor RomanceTitus Groan and GormenghastHis Dark Materials (all of them) (hide spoiler)]