As an addendum (to that which was previously written) (in my journal earlier):

"This is me. All abridging remarks and other comments will be in this fancy italics type so you'll know. When I said at the start what I'd never read this book, that's true. My father read it to me, and I just quick skimmed along, crossing out whole sections when I did the abridging, leaving everything just as it was in the original MOrganstern.
This chapter is totally intact. My intrusion here is because of the way MOrganstern uses parentheses. The copy editor at Harcourt kept filling the margins of the galley proofs with questions: 'How can it be before Europe but after Paris?' And 'How is it possible that this happens before glamour when glamour is an ancient concept? See "glamour" in the Oxford English Dictionary.' And eventually: ' I am going crazy. What am I to make of these parentheses? When does this book take place? I don't understand anything. helllllpppppp!!!!!!' Denise, the copy editor has done all my books since Boys And Girls Together and she had never been as emotional in the margins with me before.
I couldn't help her:
Either Morganstern meant them seriously or he didn't. Or maybe he meant some of them seriously and some others he didn/t. But he never said which were the serious ones. Or maybe it was just the authors way of telling the reader stylistically that 'this is real; it never happened.' Thats what I think, in spite of the fact that is you read back into Florinese history, it did happen. The facts, anyway; no one can sayabout the actually motivations. All I can suggest to you is, if the parentheses bug you, don't read them. "
-William Goldmen on S. Morgansterns Classic tale of True Love and High Adventure: The Princess Bride

THis all to say, if my overuse of parentheses bugs you, don't read them. But read this book if you get a chance. It's on my top ten list of 'books you must read before you eat dinner.'