Wizardry and Wild Romance: A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Red Seas Under Red Skies - Scott Lynch
Storm Glass - Maria V. Snyder
Sea Glass - Maria V. Snyder
Spy Glass - Maria V. Snyder
The Hour of the Dragon - Robert E. Howard
The Blade Itself - Joe Abercrombie
*The Iron Dragon's Daughter - Michael Swanwick
The Brotherhood of the Wolf - David Farland
The Lair of Bones - David Farland
Soulless - Gail Carriger
Changeless - Gail Carriger
*All Time Favorite Authors
Showing posts with label reading journal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading journal. Show all posts
31 December 2011
03 December 2011
Back Again updates and news
Been really busy with a new job lately.
But I'm proud to say I've finished the 10th book of the year. That is the number of books I read last year. So, this year will be better!
Also note that I'm starting a couple new hashtag series on twitter. #
In #notmyline I'll share the worst lines I’ve found in published fiction. Some never consider how their words sound out of context, and I'll show them!
In #wishIwrotethat I'll share the best lines from published fiction that I've found. It is likely that these will come from authors I worship.
Scribings is now available!
But I'm proud to say I've finished the 10th book of the year. That is the number of books I read last year. So, this year will be better!
Also note that I'm starting a couple new hashtag series on twitter. #
In #notmyline I'll share the worst lines I’ve found in published fiction. Some never consider how their words sound out of context, and I'll show them!
In #wishIwrotethat I'll share the best lines from published fiction that I've found. It is likely that these will come from authors I worship.
Scribings is now available!
19 September 2011
Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself
I’m one of those people who likes to make lists to keep track of things I want to do, things I want to get, books I should read etc... (and sometimes I even just add things to lists so I can cross them off). So, I had this list of books that have really great action scenes, because my action scenes need a lot of work, and completely forgot about it, like I usually do. But I recently I found and reviewed it and a funny thing happened. Coincidence? Fate’s sarcastic ways? Who knows? The book I just finished reading, Joe Abercrombie’s THE BLADE ITSELF, was on there.
Here I was just about ready to write a mostly unsavory review for it, but then all of a sudden, I realized that yeah, I had some issues with the book, but the action scenes were not on that list. That’s what I can learn from Joe Abercrombie.
The book starts with an action scene, which are usually good hooks. I can see why Abercrombie would do this as it is one of his strengths and is known as an effective kick off. In the first lines of the book we have:
What a way to kick off a story. I got sucked right into this. What is going to happen to this dude?
Every step of the way is in very close POV. Things happen as a person would see them unfold.
I wonder if Abercrombie spent hours coming up with that one, had to revise it twenty times, or if it just fell out of his fingers into the keyboard.
Especially with Logen, all the action scenes painted him kind of a clumsy old washout who really wouldn’t survive without a lot of help or the similar ineptitude of his fellow men. This makes him feel more human by our standards, and helps us relate to him. But we also wonder how the hell he got his badass reputation. All the characters, too, when put in tight situations were very worried and not sure of what to do next. This is very human and relatable. No one knows the future or can be 100% sure of the result of their actions. Surprise is a frequent result of the action=reaction equation, at least for this girl.
So that was the beginning. Let’s quickly look at a fencing match in the middle.
Hmm ok, not too much action in this one at first glance…but it creates a sense of suspense, and we know that it is fencing, so that’s action right? I think that’s another of his tricks. He gets so down to the detail, using them to make readers see the concerns and holding off on the actual action, which is what makes the story move forward (ya know, people actually doing things). I also really like the description “fished around in the air with his long steel.” It’s a good action verb and imagery all in one.
And bear with me. One more action scene from the end. And this one really kicks ass! (spoiler haters be warned)
The talk was done. Stone-Splitter came at him with axe in one hand and mace in the other, great heavy weapons, though he used them quick enough. The mace swung across, smashed a great hole through the glass in one of the windows. The axe came down, split one timber of the table in half, made the plates jump in the air, the candlesticks topple. The Bloody-Nine twitched away, frog hopping, waiting for his time.
The mace missed his shoulder by an inch as he rolled across the table, cracked one of the big flat stones on the floor, split it down the middle, chips flying through the air. Stone-Splitter roared, swinging his weapons, smashing a chair in half, knocking a chunk of stone out of the fireplace, chopping a great gash in the wall. His axe stuck fast in the wood for a moment and the Bloody-Nine’s sword flashed over, broke the haft into splintered halves, leaving the Stone-Splitter with a broken stick in his paw. He flung it away and hefted the mace, came on even harder, swinging it round with furious bellows.
The biggest thing here? SHOWING. The strength of the enemy-risk. The effects of weapons on things other than people-risk and tension. Weapons breaking, building destruction-this is intense! “a broken stick in his paw,” the imagery again. Step by step unfolding of the mortal dance.
However, here, as it is the end of the book, it is less holding back and examining the details and more the full tilt ahead desperation of the time to win or die. It is just as rough and intense if not more so than at the beginning. Abercrombie’s energy does not flag. I think he wrote this entire book just so he could write this fight scene (I did not include all of it, and it does get better).
Aside from the action, I did learn a couple more things from this book. The way he handled his six main POVs (heh, you think this is an epic fantasy?) is rather interesting. All but one of them were usually in the same place at the same time. They were all overlapping witnesses to the same events, sometimes simultaneously, or from different times with different insights. It allows build up of tension and suspense as well as a sense of intrigue and gives the story a feel of space in a small setting. I like this, but haven’t seen it a lot in my reading and wish I could see it more than the usual display of all the different POV characters in a different part of the world as the story goes.
And then, there was always that POV thread out in the world letting us know what was on the horizon for the main clutch of characters.
This book is representative of a new voice who doesn’t follow all the rules, but at the same time you can tell this was his first work, or an early work, as it has an “unpolished” feel along with, or maybe because of, the newness. (But who am I to say anything about this?) It also works for the book’s noir, gritty feel.
I noticed a problem with hissing speakers. This word showed up numerous times as a speech tag, and not when any words ended in “s.”
There were a lot of exclamation points, but for some reason they didn’t bother me. Point for Abercrombie there.
The enemy-out-of-sight, the Shanka, are never really described very well, other than having the nickname “flatheads.” And as Abercrombie obviously has good imagery skills, I don’t know why he didn’t do this.
There was also a major reveal about a main character in the last twenty-or-so pages (totally done on purpose and I’m not sure I like it-maybe it just needed to be done more artfully) and the whole book was a set up for...the next one. Usually in epic fantasy, the first book in a trilogy resolves at least one semi-major plot arc. Nope, not here...“sorry, go buy the next book...” Good thing Borders is in its last weeks. Organization like this may be what makes me feel that this book is unpolished, or written by an inexperienced writer.
But in the end, the story is there and I cared about the characters, and of course, the action is full tilt all the way through.
Now how about you go and see if what I discovered above helps you improve your action scenes. I know it’s going to help mine.
Scribings is now available!
Submissions out (Sheesh... I don't even know what those are anymore!)
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Here I was just about ready to write a mostly unsavory review for it, but then all of a sudden, I realized that yeah, I had some issues with the book, but the action scenes were not on that list. That’s what I can learn from Joe Abercrombie.
The book starts with an action scene, which are usually good hooks. I can see why Abercrombie would do this as it is one of his strengths and is known as an effective kick off. In the first lines of the book we have:
Logen plunged through the trees, bare feet slipping and sliding on the wet earth, the slush, the wet pine needles, breath rasping in his chest, blood thumping in his head. He stumbled and sprawled onto his side, nearly cut his chest open with his own axe, lay there panting, peering through the shadowy forest.
The Dogman had been with him until a moment before, he was sure, but there wasn’t any sign of him now. As for the others, there was no telling. Some leader, getting split up from his boys like that. He should’ve been trying to get back, but the Shanka were all around. He could feel them moving between the trees, his nose was full of the smell of them. Sounded as if there was some shouting somewhere on his left, fighting maybe. Logen crept slowly to his feet, trying to stay quiet. A twig snapped and he whipped round.
There was a spear coming at him. A cruel-looking spear, coming at him fast with a Shanka on the other end of it.
What a way to kick off a story. I got sucked right into this. What is going to happen to this dude?
Good action verbs: Plunged, slipped, stumbled
Imagery: wet pine needles
What’s going on in the body: blood thumping, air rasping
Risk/loss: stumbling almost kills himself,
Uncertainty: doesn’t know where his friends are, doesn’t know where his enemies are
Every step of the way is in very close POV. Things happen as a person would see them unfold.
I wonder if Abercrombie spent hours coming up with that one, had to revise it twenty times, or if it just fell out of his fingers into the keyboard.
Especially with Logen, all the action scenes painted him kind of a clumsy old washout who really wouldn’t survive without a lot of help or the similar ineptitude of his fellow men. This makes him feel more human by our standards, and helps us relate to him. But we also wonder how the hell he got his badass reputation. All the characters, too, when put in tight situations were very worried and not sure of what to do next. This is very human and relatable. No one knows the future or can be 100% sure of the result of their actions. Surprise is a frequent result of the action=reaction equation, at least for this girl.
So that was the beginning. Let’s quickly look at a fencing match in the middle.
“Begin!”
They closed quickly this time, and exchanged a cut or two.
Jezal could hardly believe how slowly his opponent was moving, it was as if his swords weighed a ton each. Broya fished around in the air with his long steel, trying to use his reach to pin Jezal down. He had barely used his short steel yet, let alone coordinated the two. Worse still, he was starting to look out of breath, and they’d barely been fencing two minutes.
Hmm ok, not too much action in this one at first glance…but it creates a sense of suspense, and we know that it is fencing, so that’s action right? I think that’s another of his tricks. He gets so down to the detail, using them to make readers see the concerns and holding off on the actual action, which is what makes the story move forward (ya know, people actually doing things). I also really like the description “fished around in the air with his long steel.” It’s a good action verb and imagery all in one.
And bear with me. One more action scene from the end. And this one really kicks ass! (spoiler haters be warned)
The talk was done. Stone-Splitter came at him with axe in one hand and mace in the other, great heavy weapons, though he used them quick enough. The mace swung across, smashed a great hole through the glass in one of the windows. The axe came down, split one timber of the table in half, made the plates jump in the air, the candlesticks topple. The Bloody-Nine twitched away, frog hopping, waiting for his time.
The mace missed his shoulder by an inch as he rolled across the table, cracked one of the big flat stones on the floor, split it down the middle, chips flying through the air. Stone-Splitter roared, swinging his weapons, smashing a chair in half, knocking a chunk of stone out of the fireplace, chopping a great gash in the wall. His axe stuck fast in the wood for a moment and the Bloody-Nine’s sword flashed over, broke the haft into splintered halves, leaving the Stone-Splitter with a broken stick in his paw. He flung it away and hefted the mace, came on even harder, swinging it round with furious bellows.
The biggest thing here? SHOWING. The strength of the enemy-risk. The effects of weapons on things other than people-risk and tension. Weapons breaking, building destruction-this is intense! “a broken stick in his paw,” the imagery again. Step by step unfolding of the mortal dance.
However, here, as it is the end of the book, it is less holding back and examining the details and more the full tilt ahead desperation of the time to win or die. It is just as rough and intense if not more so than at the beginning. Abercrombie’s energy does not flag. I think he wrote this entire book just so he could write this fight scene (I did not include all of it, and it does get better).
Aside from the action, I did learn a couple more things from this book. The way he handled his six main POVs (heh, you think this is an epic fantasy?) is rather interesting. All but one of them were usually in the same place at the same time. They were all overlapping witnesses to the same events, sometimes simultaneously, or from different times with different insights. It allows build up of tension and suspense as well as a sense of intrigue and gives the story a feel of space in a small setting. I like this, but haven’t seen it a lot in my reading and wish I could see it more than the usual display of all the different POV characters in a different part of the world as the story goes.
And then, there was always that POV thread out in the world letting us know what was on the horizon for the main clutch of characters.
This book is representative of a new voice who doesn’t follow all the rules, but at the same time you can tell this was his first work, or an early work, as it has an “unpolished” feel along with, or maybe because of, the newness. (But who am I to say anything about this?) It also works for the book’s noir, gritty feel.
I noticed a problem with hissing speakers. This word showed up numerous times as a speech tag, and not when any words ended in “s.”
There were a lot of exclamation points, but for some reason they didn’t bother me. Point for Abercrombie there.
The enemy-out-of-sight, the Shanka, are never really described very well, other than having the nickname “flatheads.” And as Abercrombie obviously has good imagery skills, I don’t know why he didn’t do this.
There was also a major reveal about a main character in the last twenty-or-so pages (totally done on purpose and I’m not sure I like it-maybe it just needed to be done more artfully) and the whole book was a set up for...the next one. Usually in epic fantasy, the first book in a trilogy resolves at least one semi-major plot arc. Nope, not here...“sorry, go buy the next book...” Good thing Borders is in its last weeks. Organization like this may be what makes me feel that this book is unpolished, or written by an inexperienced writer.
But in the end, the story is there and I cared about the characters, and of course, the action is full tilt all the way through.
Now how about you go and see if what I discovered above helps you improve your action scenes. I know it’s going to help mine.
Scribings is now available!
Submissions out (Sheesh... I don't even know what those are anymore!)
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
13 July 2011
The Hour of the Dragon by Robert E. Howard
The Hour of the Dragon by Robert E. Howard
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book this old. And this book has been on my to-read list for a long time. A mentor in my MA program suggested I read some Robert E. Howard and so I got this book but I never quite got to it.
The Hour of the Dragon is Howard’s only novel-length story--the mass market paperback wasn’t even 300 pages. It was featured in installments in Weird Tales starting in 1935. Magic and betrayal, wizards, death and quests what’s not to love about this original sword and sorcery story?
While Howard had great stories to tell, I found myself cringing at the usage and style. Exclamation points everywhere, ill-placed Middle English, impossible names (yet not as impossible as his contemporary and friend H. P. Lovecraft). Every time I cringed, I had to remind myself how long ago this was written. Have tastes in prose changed so much? Or was that just the result of the cheaply produced pulps of the era?
Despite all that, delicious vocabulary crept among the purple prose on which 90’s Sword and Sorcery was built. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to look up a word while reading, and I think it’s a shame that I don’t have to do so more often. Maybe I’m just not reading the right stuff?
What about Conan himself? The character that people could not get enough of in his heyday? I can certainly see the draw to him. He was the strapping giant that no one could beat, he fought on the side of good and didn’t back down from confrontation. Despite being a little sexist by my own 21st century standards, he had respectable morals and philosophies. He also was intelligent. He had a mind for politics, even though he obviously hated them, and could strategize a battle--and Howard could write it well enough to draw out the suspense (this is probably the key to his success).
As I mentioned before, Howard created the original Conan character during the Great Depression. And now, the new movie for Conan the Barbarian is coming out, during this new depression we’re living through. Coincidence? What do you think?
Review cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book this old. And this book has been on my to-read list for a long time. A mentor in my MA program suggested I read some Robert E. Howard and so I got this book but I never quite got to it.
The Hour of the Dragon is Howard’s only novel-length story--the mass market paperback wasn’t even 300 pages. It was featured in installments in Weird Tales starting in 1935. Magic and betrayal, wizards, death and quests what’s not to love about this original sword and sorcery story?
While Howard had great stories to tell, I found myself cringing at the usage and style. Exclamation points everywhere, ill-placed Middle English, impossible names (yet not as impossible as his contemporary and friend H. P. Lovecraft). Every time I cringed, I had to remind myself how long ago this was written. Have tastes in prose changed so much? Or was that just the result of the cheaply produced pulps of the era?
Despite all that, delicious vocabulary crept among the purple prose on which 90’s Sword and Sorcery was built. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to look up a word while reading, and I think it’s a shame that I don’t have to do so more often. Maybe I’m just not reading the right stuff?
What about Conan himself? The character that people could not get enough of in his heyday? I can certainly see the draw to him. He was the strapping giant that no one could beat, he fought on the side of good and didn’t back down from confrontation. Despite being a little sexist by my own 21st century standards, he had respectable morals and philosophies. He also was intelligent. He had a mind for politics, even though he obviously hated them, and could strategize a battle--and Howard could write it well enough to draw out the suspense (this is probably the key to his success).
As I mentioned before, Howard created the original Conan character during the Great Depression. And now, the new movie for Conan the Barbarian is coming out, during this new depression we’re living through. Coincidence? What do you think?
Review cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
11 May 2011
Maria V. Snyder's Glass Series
I’ve just finished reading all of Maria V. Snyder’s Glass series. This includes, Storm Glass, Sea Glass and Spy Glass. Simply put, they are wonderful. I couldn’t put them down. That is part of the reason I’m reviewing the series and not each book. The other part of that reason is that each book picks right up where the previous left off, so it’s almost like one really long book.
In Storm Glass, we follow Opal, who we met toward the end of the Study books, through her last year at the Keep, that is at magic school. Except she’s an odd student with odd abilities and her education didn’t go smoothly, especially her last year. We hardly see her at school though. There is tons of action, tons of on-the-spot decision making, and characters that are easy to relate to. Opal is not the super hero that waltzes in and just saves everyone. She suffers, she sacrifices and she gets very upset by the things that happen to her. She also has to deal with the consequences of being a young person in an adult society.
The only unsatisfying thing for me about Storm Glass is the ending. (Mild Spoiler Alert) While the build up and action were great, it died for me after. Opal goes in, does her thing and just passes out. The others deal with the clean up, and I feel like I missed out on something, like she missed out on it. Sure it’s not important to her story, but by not seeing the payoff I almost feel like it didn’t happen.
Sea Glass sees Opal returning to school, only to have her story turned against her. Everything that happens to Opal always gets turned around on her. Her decisions are always questioned. But she is resolute to set things right. She gets closer to that in this book as she gets older and more experienced with the “joys” of the real world. Old enemies turn up, with more at stake and different agendas. Conflict twists around Opal and her abilities and reputation, constantly getting her into trouble. But she’s able to put smarts to use and depend on her trusted friends. This book did not let me down at all.
Spy Glass gives us a new Opal. She’s had so much happen to her in the first two books. This one shows how she recovers from the events up to now. She has a more hardened exterior, more smarts and knows a lot more about her enemies. But this still doesn’t make it easy for her. Her personal life is in a shambles and she’s working through the last few issues from all her previous exploits. But the way she tackles them now is the good result of all her previous trouble. I almost feel like a proud parent watching the ways she’s grown. (But I’m not a parent, and any parent in their right mind would never put their children through these things.)
Another thing I can laud about the book is introduction of “really cool stuff.” She shows us the processes of glassmaking as only someone who’s done it can, and not too many people have. She talks about diamonds and other gemstones (my other passion) with authority. This book is not the first time people have blackmarketed diamonds to fund a war. So bonus points for working in modern issues. Snyder has done her homework. And some things, like all the spy work, I really wonder how she describes it so well? Has she done some of that, or is that just the skill of her writing at hand?
This entry is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists.
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
The Making
In Storm Glass, we follow Opal, who we met toward the end of the Study books, through her last year at the Keep, that is at magic school. Except she’s an odd student with odd abilities and her education didn’t go smoothly, especially her last year. We hardly see her at school though. There is tons of action, tons of on-the-spot decision making, and characters that are easy to relate to. Opal is not the super hero that waltzes in and just saves everyone. She suffers, she sacrifices and she gets very upset by the things that happen to her. She also has to deal with the consequences of being a young person in an adult society.
The only unsatisfying thing for me about Storm Glass is the ending. (Mild Spoiler Alert) While the build up and action were great, it died for me after. Opal goes in, does her thing and just passes out. The others deal with the clean up, and I feel like I missed out on something, like she missed out on it. Sure it’s not important to her story, but by not seeing the payoff I almost feel like it didn’t happen.
Sea Glass sees Opal returning to school, only to have her story turned against her. Everything that happens to Opal always gets turned around on her. Her decisions are always questioned. But she is resolute to set things right. She gets closer to that in this book as she gets older and more experienced with the “joys” of the real world. Old enemies turn up, with more at stake and different agendas. Conflict twists around Opal and her abilities and reputation, constantly getting her into trouble. But she’s able to put smarts to use and depend on her trusted friends. This book did not let me down at all.
Spy Glass gives us a new Opal. She’s had so much happen to her in the first two books. This one shows how she recovers from the events up to now. She has a more hardened exterior, more smarts and knows a lot more about her enemies. But this still doesn’t make it easy for her. Her personal life is in a shambles and she’s working through the last few issues from all her previous exploits. But the way she tackles them now is the good result of all her previous trouble. I almost feel like a proud parent watching the ways she’s grown. (But I’m not a parent, and any parent in their right mind would never put their children through these things.)
Another thing I can laud about the book is introduction of “really cool stuff.” She shows us the processes of glassmaking as only someone who’s done it can, and not too many people have. She talks about diamonds and other gemstones (my other passion) with authority. This book is not the first time people have blackmarketed diamonds to fund a war. So bonus points for working in modern issues. Snyder has done her homework. And some things, like all the spy work, I really wonder how she describes it so well? Has she done some of that, or is that just the skill of her writing at hand?
This entry is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists.
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
The Making
03 April 2011
Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch
Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch
After I read the Lies of Locke Lamora, I knew I wanted to read its sequal… and I just got around to it now 2.5 years later. I’ll share that this is one of those books you don’t need to go back and read the first one so you know what is going on. Why the delay? Because I am a bad supporter of literature and don’t buy a lot of books. But I lent a friend Lies and then he went out and bought Red Seas and lent it to me in turn. Everything works out in the end.
But I’m blathering… I’m struggling to write a review of this book and I know why. I loved reading this book, and SPOILER it did not have a happy ending. It had a “reality sucks” ending. I hate that. To top it off, the third volume of the Gentlemen Bastards Sequence is still forthcoming-November 2011, just in time for my Birthday! So I can’t just go and find out what happens. Damned cliff hanger endings.
But anyway, Lynch did not disappoint in the middle volume of the Gentlemen Bastards. Jean and Locke ran amok and caused trouble, witty and clever as ever, though quite a bit darker in tone than before. I see it as their recovery from the ending of Lies. And in recovery, one must grieve and heal one’s ugly scars.
Through alternating between the present and the recent past, Lynch slowly exposes the Gentlemen in their preparation of their plans leading up to the present. But in his standard form, Lynch doesn’t reveal too much. He leaves out just enough, so we don’t suspect anything (unless we know better), but when the plan comes to fruition it came out of left field. Lynch is adept at this. I envy his tricksy plotting mind. This structure not only added to the suspense and impact of the end, but it also served to keep most of the story in the present, and not have to recap a long period of time--only the bits and pieces needed to lead us by the nose to the end.
Plotwise, Red Seas only has one tie to Lies, and that very tie didn’t get resolved here and will undoubtedly show up in the third volume. That being said, this feels like the kind of story that they will reference in the future, “Hey remember that time in Tal Verrar…” But to say that this 600 some odd page book was just filler content for a 7 volume series doesn’t seem right either, especially knowing Lynch’s plotting style.
As I said before, Jean and Locke were licking their wounds as they faced the tribulations brought to them this time around. We watched them try to distract themselves, and do a fine job of it, yet as they walked though this madness, I could only watch the desire for reprisal set more deeply in the brilliantly strategic mind of Locke. His gears are turning and the longer they turn the scarier the outcome will be down the road.
I admire Lynch’s work for more reasons than just his plotting. The voice, for one, is hilarious and gripping. No matter how dark the situation gets, the characters are sarcastic as ever. Beyond that, Lynch skillfully employs many craft techniques. He describes new places in ways that appeal to the senses via the characters. He uses the “swoop” when introducing something important to set it apart from the characters own experiences. His pacing is break-neck and he never slows it down, though sometimes I wish he would for some moments. Somehow, somehow he can make the plot and characters complex yet keep the story easy to read.
So I will be eagerly awaiting the release of book number three in the Gentlemen Bastards Sequence and the four following it as well.
Currently Reading
Storm Glass - Maria V. Snyder
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
The Making
After I read the Lies of Locke Lamora, I knew I wanted to read its sequal… and I just got around to it now 2.5 years later. I’ll share that this is one of those books you don’t need to go back and read the first one so you know what is going on. Why the delay? Because I am a bad supporter of literature and don’t buy a lot of books. But I lent a friend Lies and then he went out and bought Red Seas and lent it to me in turn. Everything works out in the end.
But I’m blathering… I’m struggling to write a review of this book and I know why. I loved reading this book, and SPOILER it did not have a happy ending. It had a “reality sucks” ending. I hate that. To top it off, the third volume of the Gentlemen Bastards Sequence is still forthcoming-November 2011, just in time for my Birthday! So I can’t just go and find out what happens. Damned cliff hanger endings.
But anyway, Lynch did not disappoint in the middle volume of the Gentlemen Bastards. Jean and Locke ran amok and caused trouble, witty and clever as ever, though quite a bit darker in tone than before. I see it as their recovery from the ending of Lies. And in recovery, one must grieve and heal one’s ugly scars.
Through alternating between the present and the recent past, Lynch slowly exposes the Gentlemen in their preparation of their plans leading up to the present. But in his standard form, Lynch doesn’t reveal too much. He leaves out just enough, so we don’t suspect anything (unless we know better), but when the plan comes to fruition it came out of left field. Lynch is adept at this. I envy his tricksy plotting mind. This structure not only added to the suspense and impact of the end, but it also served to keep most of the story in the present, and not have to recap a long period of time--only the bits and pieces needed to lead us by the nose to the end.
Plotwise, Red Seas only has one tie to Lies, and that very tie didn’t get resolved here and will undoubtedly show up in the third volume. That being said, this feels like the kind of story that they will reference in the future, “Hey remember that time in Tal Verrar…” But to say that this 600 some odd page book was just filler content for a 7 volume series doesn’t seem right either, especially knowing Lynch’s plotting style.
As I said before, Jean and Locke were licking their wounds as they faced the tribulations brought to them this time around. We watched them try to distract themselves, and do a fine job of it, yet as they walked though this madness, I could only watch the desire for reprisal set more deeply in the brilliantly strategic mind of Locke. His gears are turning and the longer they turn the scarier the outcome will be down the road.
I admire Lynch’s work for more reasons than just his plotting. The voice, for one, is hilarious and gripping. No matter how dark the situation gets, the characters are sarcastic as ever. Beyond that, Lynch skillfully employs many craft techniques. He describes new places in ways that appeal to the senses via the characters. He uses the “swoop” when introducing something important to set it apart from the characters own experiences. His pacing is break-neck and he never slows it down, though sometimes I wish he would for some moments. Somehow, somehow he can make the plot and characters complex yet keep the story easy to read.
So I will be eagerly awaiting the release of book number three in the Gentlemen Bastards Sequence and the four following it as well.
Currently Reading
Storm Glass - Maria V. Snyder
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
The Tribe that Laughed
The Making
16 February 2011
Wizardry and Wild Romance
I always love finding a good critical book about fantasy. I love reading fantasy and I love reading about it. I love hearing what authors and established critics have to say about the genre and its craft. That said, how could I not read Michael Moorcock’s WIZARDRY AND WILD ROMANCE: A STUDY OF EPIC FANTASY? I really had to read this. And I did.
Originally released in 1977, Monkeybrain Books re-released an updated version in 2004. This book did not go on about the forgotten greats of the genre, it commented on the best Epic Fantasy of then and now. It focused on what makes them great, and noted that the things that make books and authors great changes over time. This is a true study of Epic Fantasy.
Moorcock begins explicitly with a warning in his foreword. He is only writing these collected essays from his own opinion and observations of currently available romantic epic fantasy, he is discussing it and not defining it. He was wise to do so. I always get a little leery when anyone, even experts, start spouting about what they think is great without explaining themselves. As much as I want to take their well-learned word for diamonds, sometimes I only see dust.
Moorcock’s discussion is separated into six different categories: origins, landscape, heroes/heroines, humor, children’s books and genre deviations. Perhaps these are the most important craft elements of epic fantasy? In each section, Moorcock highlights the authors and books that represent the best work in each.
Despite being discussed in separate essays, his opinion is the same throughout. He asks for more. More attention to the landscape of a story, more attention to the characters, more consideration of humor. He lauds the authors who do it well, frequently the same people across the categories. And what is more, he provides excerpts! I wish more critical work about fantasy would do this. Moorcock says something is great and then says look at it for yourself so you can see how he formed his opinion of it. Nothing explains the quality of the words better than the words themselves.
While he mostly focuses on the strongest examples of the literature, he frequently reminds that there are hoards of imitators out there, looking to get rich from an easy, formulaic story and diluting the good reads. These are the authors who pay little or no attention to the above categories. He occasionally provides excerpts of these as well, for contrast.
By the end of the book, Moorcock has shown a timeline of the life of the genre within this book. Beginning as riffs on the gothic novels and chivalric romances, squalling through Sword and Sorcery, finding a firm foothold on the Tolkienian other-world stories, and coming into maturity within the walls of urban settings. At each point, Moorcock describes the genre’s historic connection to humanity, be it reactionary to a war or a specific artistic movement.
Where will epic fantasy go after the city? Out to space? Or even further back, to the dinosaurs? One thing is for sure, literary forms frequently change, but good craft will always hold a book together.
this review is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
Originally released in 1977, Monkeybrain Books re-released an updated version in 2004. This book did not go on about the forgotten greats of the genre, it commented on the best Epic Fantasy of then and now. It focused on what makes them great, and noted that the things that make books and authors great changes over time. This is a true study of Epic Fantasy.
Moorcock begins explicitly with a warning in his foreword. He is only writing these collected essays from his own opinion and observations of currently available romantic epic fantasy, he is discussing it and not defining it. He was wise to do so. I always get a little leery when anyone, even experts, start spouting about what they think is great without explaining themselves. As much as I want to take their well-learned word for diamonds, sometimes I only see dust.
Moorcock’s discussion is separated into six different categories: origins, landscape, heroes/heroines, humor, children’s books and genre deviations. Perhaps these are the most important craft elements of epic fantasy? In each section, Moorcock highlights the authors and books that represent the best work in each.
Despite being discussed in separate essays, his opinion is the same throughout. He asks for more. More attention to the landscape of a story, more attention to the characters, more consideration of humor. He lauds the authors who do it well, frequently the same people across the categories. And what is more, he provides excerpts! I wish more critical work about fantasy would do this. Moorcock says something is great and then says look at it for yourself so you can see how he formed his opinion of it. Nothing explains the quality of the words better than the words themselves.
While he mostly focuses on the strongest examples of the literature, he frequently reminds that there are hoards of imitators out there, looking to get rich from an easy, formulaic story and diluting the good reads. These are the authors who pay little or no attention to the above categories. He occasionally provides excerpts of these as well, for contrast.
By the end of the book, Moorcock has shown a timeline of the life of the genre within this book. Beginning as riffs on the gothic novels and chivalric romances, squalling through Sword and Sorcery, finding a firm foothold on the Tolkienian other-world stories, and coming into maturity within the walls of urban settings. At each point, Moorcock describes the genre’s historic connection to humanity, be it reactionary to a war or a specific artistic movement.
Where will epic fantasy go after the city? Out to space? Or even further back, to the dinosaurs? One thing is for sure, literary forms frequently change, but good craft will always hold a book together.
this review is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Cemetery
05 January 2011
A Celebration of Poetry
I am still reveling in the afterglow of Sandra Kasturi’s collection of poems, The Animal Bridegroom.
I have forgotten how much I enjoy poetry, and I think, my roots in poetry along with that. When I was working on my BFA in writing I took a lot of poetry workshops and really developed a likening of the compressed meaning, the careful arrangement of words, and particularly enjambment in good poems. I mostly love the short lined poems with lots of punch. In fact my favorite poems have been but a few lines, poignantly spaced with masterful diction, like The Primer by Christina Davis (which can be found here).
Most of my exposure to poems came when I worked as an Editorial Assistant at Alice James Books. For two years, I was constantly exposed to tons of award winning poetry. But… But, almost none of it focused on the mythology that I loved, the fantastical visions and traditions that were firmly lodged in my mind. When I left that job, I found very little poetry that even caught my interest (I was also in grad school, which might have had something to do with it).
Then, one day when I was checking out ChiZine news I found it pimping The Animal Bridegroom (Sandra is on their staff). So, I like a lot of stuff this magazine/publisher puts out. The cover was intriguing to me. Two colors, sepia with white text and image: a frame of wild flowers and woodland creatures around a bride and groom. The Bride in traditional/folk garb and the groom a wolfman or foxman with a nice tailed-coat. So I clicked on the link to amazon and read some of the poems. I thought they were fantastic. But it cost about $13 so I put it in my favorites list for when I got a gift card or someone looked there for my birthday.
I didn’t have to wait that long. Short after my discovery and longing for these poems, my eyes spied that gorgeous cover at the ChiZine table at Readercon. I made a beeline for it. I was so focused on it; I almost missed the fact that Sandra herself was manning the table at the time.
So to get the embarrassment over quickly, I gushed in fannish glee for about two minutes while she signed my book (which was not $13 bucks at the table).
I kept the book in my to-read stack, which was on my desk and rather close at hand. So, for the last six months or so, I’d periodically thumb through and read a poem or a few lines. I enjoyed that, some quick hits of a good thing. I’d like to note here that it’s not so easy to do that with a novel.
But towards the end of 2010 I thought I should read it cover to cover, net it into my year. So I did.
The Animal Bridegroom is full of everything I love about poetry with all the mythological and folkloric references I could hope for. Short lines pried meaning out of folk archetypes applied to modern day. Old characters exemplified the harsh qualities of modern life. Fantastic images asked questions about humanity. There was even a poem about the gemstone amber, one of my favorite “stones.” One even asked some serious questions about what happened to Hansel and Gretel after they grew up. And others, well, I’d like to be friends with some of those characters.
I am still reveling in the afterglow of Sandra Kasturi’s collection of poems, The Animal Bridegroom.
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
The Tribe that Laughed
I have forgotten how much I enjoy poetry, and I think, my roots in poetry along with that. When I was working on my BFA in writing I took a lot of poetry workshops and really developed a likening of the compressed meaning, the careful arrangement of words, and particularly enjambment in good poems. I mostly love the short lined poems with lots of punch. In fact my favorite poems have been but a few lines, poignantly spaced with masterful diction, like The Primer by Christina Davis (which can be found here).
Most of my exposure to poems came when I worked as an Editorial Assistant at Alice James Books. For two years, I was constantly exposed to tons of award winning poetry. But… But, almost none of it focused on the mythology that I loved, the fantastical visions and traditions that were firmly lodged in my mind. When I left that job, I found very little poetry that even caught my interest (I was also in grad school, which might have had something to do with it).
Then, one day when I was checking out ChiZine news I found it pimping The Animal Bridegroom (Sandra is on their staff). So, I like a lot of stuff this magazine/publisher puts out. The cover was intriguing to me. Two colors, sepia with white text and image: a frame of wild flowers and woodland creatures around a bride and groom. The Bride in traditional/folk garb and the groom a wolfman or foxman with a nice tailed-coat. So I clicked on the link to amazon and read some of the poems. I thought they were fantastic. But it cost about $13 so I put it in my favorites list for when I got a gift card or someone looked there for my birthday.
I didn’t have to wait that long. Short after my discovery and longing for these poems, my eyes spied that gorgeous cover at the ChiZine table at Readercon. I made a beeline for it. I was so focused on it; I almost missed the fact that Sandra herself was manning the table at the time.
So to get the embarrassment over quickly, I gushed in fannish glee for about two minutes while she signed my book (which was not $13 bucks at the table).
I kept the book in my to-read stack, which was on my desk and rather close at hand. So, for the last six months or so, I’d periodically thumb through and read a poem or a few lines. I enjoyed that, some quick hits of a good thing. I’d like to note here that it’s not so easy to do that with a novel.
But towards the end of 2010 I thought I should read it cover to cover, net it into my year. So I did.
The Animal Bridegroom is full of everything I love about poetry with all the mythological and folkloric references I could hope for. Short lines pried meaning out of folk archetypes applied to modern day. Old characters exemplified the harsh qualities of modern life. Fantastic images asked questions about humanity. There was even a poem about the gemstone amber, one of my favorite “stones.” One even asked some serious questions about what happened to Hansel and Gretel after they grew up. And others, well, I’d like to be friends with some of those characters.
I am still reveling in the afterglow of Sandra Kasturi’s collection of poems, The Animal Bridegroom.
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
The Tribe that Laughed
03 January 2011
The Etched City
One fantastic book after another! Whatever I read next has some tough shoes to fill...
I finished reading K. J. Bishop’s The Etched City at quarter past eleven on New Year’s Eve. I captured the whole experience in 2010. Truth is I wanted to finish this book and add it to my list for 2010, but in the end, I just couldn’t put it down!
I loved being a fly on the wall in this dark, hungry city--watching the ugly world do its worst and the people do what they could to survive. This is no tale of good versus bad. In fact the good get nothing, and the bad only get worse. The language itself was beautiful; the prose carefully written to fully expose the dark underbelly of a city that I don’t think had a lighter side. Instead of racing through this volume, I read it slow (when I could) to enjoy the images and emotions evoked by the story.
Survival, redemption, faith, ethics, biological experimentation, conscience, the extremes of artistic expression are all explored in a city of corruption. This city is Ashamoil (the word reminds me of toil, which is what its inhabitants do). Yet the city is many worlds between which only few people seem to travel. It is an industrialized factory-driven place with thriving remnants of the old ways. We rarely see the factories, what we do see is a surreal, wonderfully disturbing, yet rich tapestry of life and walking myth and only enough magic used to make it that much more hopeless. The place is what the characters made it, and what they made of it.
Bishop spins this tale from characters who are under a shadow, and who may have never known light: they murder, indulge in all the vices (whores, opium, booze, drugs), steal, slave, etc. For this, the story reveals things of darkness in many shades of gray. There seems to be nothing a “good” person could do in Ashaoil to improve their lives. The few who seek to improve their lot do so by dying or by leaving Ashamoil.
I found an interesting use of Point of View characters in The Etched City. Different main characters were prominent in different parts of the book. Raule, the good-doctor-to-the-poor, was most prominent at the beginning. But, later, Gwynn, the remorseless mobster and gunslinger bore more attention. Going between these two, we got the whole view of the city, gold to gutter. And periodically, we got snippets of the tale through the eyes of others in the middle, who knew some things we needed to know. This is not something I see very much in fiction. Bishop does it well, we knew who all the characters were before we jumped into their heads. Bishop used this method of switching POV to evoke a maximum of suspense, and it worked on me.
The art, and the hunger of this corrupted city charmed me. To put it in perspective, I'll say that a friend loaned it to me, and I’m going to go out and buy it for myself, in paper format.
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
The Tribe that Laughed
I finished reading K. J. Bishop’s The Etched City at quarter past eleven on New Year’s Eve. I captured the whole experience in 2010. Truth is I wanted to finish this book and add it to my list for 2010, but in the end, I just couldn’t put it down!
I loved being a fly on the wall in this dark, hungry city--watching the ugly world do its worst and the people do what they could to survive. This is no tale of good versus bad. In fact the good get nothing, and the bad only get worse. The language itself was beautiful; the prose carefully written to fully expose the dark underbelly of a city that I don’t think had a lighter side. Instead of racing through this volume, I read it slow (when I could) to enjoy the images and emotions evoked by the story.
Survival, redemption, faith, ethics, biological experimentation, conscience, the extremes of artistic expression are all explored in a city of corruption. This city is Ashamoil (the word reminds me of toil, which is what its inhabitants do). Yet the city is many worlds between which only few people seem to travel. It is an industrialized factory-driven place with thriving remnants of the old ways. We rarely see the factories, what we do see is a surreal, wonderfully disturbing, yet rich tapestry of life and walking myth and only enough magic used to make it that much more hopeless. The place is what the characters made it, and what they made of it.
Bishop spins this tale from characters who are under a shadow, and who may have never known light: they murder, indulge in all the vices (whores, opium, booze, drugs), steal, slave, etc. For this, the story reveals things of darkness in many shades of gray. There seems to be nothing a “good” person could do in Ashaoil to improve their lives. The few who seek to improve their lot do so by dying or by leaving Ashamoil.
I found an interesting use of Point of View characters in The Etched City. Different main characters were prominent in different parts of the book. Raule, the good-doctor-to-the-poor, was most prominent at the beginning. But, later, Gwynn, the remorseless mobster and gunslinger bore more attention. Going between these two, we got the whole view of the city, gold to gutter. And periodically, we got snippets of the tale through the eyes of others in the middle, who knew some things we needed to know. This is not something I see very much in fiction. Bishop does it well, we knew who all the characters were before we jumped into their heads. Bishop used this method of switching POV to evoke a maximum of suspense, and it worked on me.
The art, and the hunger of this corrupted city charmed me. To put it in perspective, I'll say that a friend loaned it to me, and I’m going to go out and buy it for myself, in paper format.
Currently Reading
Fantasy:
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
The Tribe that Laughed
31 December 2010
2010 Reading List
Below is the list of books that I read in 2010. I'm fairly certain it's accurate, as I was pretty good about updating this log when I finished a book. I also put links to the reading journal posts where applicable. The last two reviews are coming soon as I just finished them.
The Chronicles of the Black Company - Glenn Cook
The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Little, Big - John Crowley
The Runelords - David Farland
Spellwright - Blake Charlton
The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Brotherhood of the Wolf - David Farland
Moonwise - Greer Gilman
The Etched City - K.J. Bishop
The Animal Bridegroom, Poems - Sandra Kasturi
So, I only read 10 books in 2010. 10 books in a year is just shameful! Well, I'm not going to shoot for 11 books read in 2011. I'm going to have to aim higher than that.
The Chronicles of the Black Company - Glenn Cook
The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Little, Big - John Crowley
The Runelords - David Farland
Spellwright - Blake Charlton
The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Brotherhood of the Wolf - David Farland
Moonwise - Greer Gilman
The Etched City - K.J. Bishop
The Animal Bridegroom, Poems - Sandra Kasturi
So, I only read 10 books in 2010. 10 books in a year is just shameful! Well, I'm not going to shoot for 11 books read in 2011. I'm going to have to aim higher than that.
13 December 2010
A Reading Experience
This is going to be more of a description of my reading experience with Greer Gilman’s Moonwise. The basic story is simple, but experiencing the text is utterly magical. This is why fantasy is my chosen genre. Reading it transports you, the prose effects a wonder that strikes at my heart. And this book did that so well that I am going to talk more about that than anything else. If you want a book review go find one at Amazon. If you want to find out what it’s like to read Greer Gilman, read on.
Moonwise is Greer Gilman’s first book, originally published in 1991. It won the Crawford award in 1992, and was nominated for the Tiptree and Mythopoeic awards. It was released in hardcover by Prime books in 2005 and reissued by Wildside books in 2006.
I know she wrote this book over the course of 10 years on a typewriter with no outline, and no plan for it. For this, the work was well edited (though I did find a few line errors). I know going back through this much text and making sure everything is in the right place is difficult to say the least, and the business-savvy side of me screams of inefficiency, but I only have the most respect for a mind that can successfully wrangle with that.
I’d heard so many great things about Gilman, and I’d seen her participate in various panels at Readercon and Boskone. She is a brilliant folklorist and wildly creative woman. But after hearing her read, or more accurately perform (from another of her stories), I just had to read her books. But it was hard to find through my normal channels (used). So I was thrilled when I found it at Readercon last July and was able to have it signed.
So, with great anticipation I finally picked it up, appropriately, in September (the story takes place in fall and winter). But it’s December now. Yes, it took me a long time to read. The prose was just as dense and challenging as the literature I studied in college. I took my time with it, savoring the lines, references and double meanings like I savored those of Dickens. Even though I read it cover to cover and followed the arc of the story, I can’t help but think I’ve missed a lot of...something in the writing.
Suffice it to say, I wasn’t instantly in love with the book. It had a slow, kind of boring start with a few dead ends and little hope of clews. And I didn’t expect the story to be what Farah Mendlesohn describes in her book, Rhetorics of Fantasy, as a “portal quest” story, in which the characters go through a portal from the normal world to another. Moonwise started in contemporary times with two girls, Sylvie and Ariane, who see the same world I see.
I prefer my fantasy untouched by the modern world. I usually don’t like contemporary fantasy stories as much because the main characters are my filter to the world, and I’d rather see it through the eyes of a native than someone like me.
Yet, I can hardly say Sylvie and Ariane are like me. Although they are denizens of the 20th century, if I met one of them in person, I might describe them as otherworldly. They were a promise of what was to come: enchantment, folkloric references and skillful world creation. These things charmed me and kept me examining page after page.
After the story got going, Gilman always keeps the suspense and tension up. One way she did this was by making the world never comfortable. I’d pity the characters and wonder at their survival. They were always freezing and wet and sleeping on rocks, or even when they found a welcoming home, it was bad news and holding out the suspense and dread of what is to come.
I’ve finished this story once, but I know I’ll come back to it and go find her other books. With its wonder, it has wakened sleepy and tired spots in my brain that I had forgotten, it has opened up new parts of my brain, and it has filled them with possibilities--nature abhors a vacuum.
This blog entry is cross posted at Wandering Around the Words.
This blog entry is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Etched City - K. J. Bishop
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: On Fate's Waiting List
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Graveyard
Moonwise is Greer Gilman’s first book, originally published in 1991. It won the Crawford award in 1992, and was nominated for the Tiptree and Mythopoeic awards. It was released in hardcover by Prime books in 2005 and reissued by Wildside books in 2006.
I know she wrote this book over the course of 10 years on a typewriter with no outline, and no plan for it. For this, the work was well edited (though I did find a few line errors). I know going back through this much text and making sure everything is in the right place is difficult to say the least, and the business-savvy side of me screams of inefficiency, but I only have the most respect for a mind that can successfully wrangle with that.
I’d heard so many great things about Gilman, and I’d seen her participate in various panels at Readercon and Boskone. She is a brilliant folklorist and wildly creative woman. But after hearing her read, or more accurately perform (from another of her stories), I just had to read her books. But it was hard to find through my normal channels (used). So I was thrilled when I found it at Readercon last July and was able to have it signed.
So, with great anticipation I finally picked it up, appropriately, in September (the story takes place in fall and winter). But it’s December now. Yes, it took me a long time to read. The prose was just as dense and challenging as the literature I studied in college. I took my time with it, savoring the lines, references and double meanings like I savored those of Dickens. Even though I read it cover to cover and followed the arc of the story, I can’t help but think I’ve missed a lot of...something in the writing.
Suffice it to say, I wasn’t instantly in love with the book. It had a slow, kind of boring start with a few dead ends and little hope of clews. And I didn’t expect the story to be what Farah Mendlesohn describes in her book, Rhetorics of Fantasy, as a “portal quest” story, in which the characters go through a portal from the normal world to another. Moonwise started in contemporary times with two girls, Sylvie and Ariane, who see the same world I see.
I prefer my fantasy untouched by the modern world. I usually don’t like contemporary fantasy stories as much because the main characters are my filter to the world, and I’d rather see it through the eyes of a native than someone like me.
Yet, I can hardly say Sylvie and Ariane are like me. Although they are denizens of the 20th century, if I met one of them in person, I might describe them as otherworldly. They were a promise of what was to come: enchantment, folkloric references and skillful world creation. These things charmed me and kept me examining page after page.
After the story got going, Gilman always keeps the suspense and tension up. One way she did this was by making the world never comfortable. I’d pity the characters and wonder at their survival. They were always freezing and wet and sleeping on rocks, or even when they found a welcoming home, it was bad news and holding out the suspense and dread of what is to come.
I’ve finished this story once, but I know I’ll come back to it and go find her other books. With its wonder, it has wakened sleepy and tired spots in my brain that I had forgotten, it has opened up new parts of my brain, and it has filled them with possibilities--nature abhors a vacuum.
This blog entry is cross posted at Wandering Around the Words.
This blog entry is cross posted at Greater Portland Scribists.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Etched City - K. J. Bishop
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: On Fate's Waiting List
Agent: 0
Workshoping:
Beyond the Graveyard
22 August 2010
The Magicians--Lev Grossman
Quick review today...
Overall, I loved reading this book. Grossman’s style is impressive as is his vocabulary. He strings words and phrases and paragraphs together to create admirable passages.
So this lovely writing was pretty much what let me get through the book itself. Think Holden Caulfield meets Harry Potter. Except our MC is no prophesied hero who is going to save the world. He’s just your normal person, who happens to be able to do magic, trying to get through life.
We have our emo, smarty pants high school student, Quentin Coldwater, whose every wish is granted when he is transported to a college where he will study magic. That part of the book I related to. I went to college and it was pretty much the same kind of thing for Quentin--except there was magic. Watching college kids learn to handle magic was indeed entertaining.
But when he graduates the book takes a major downturn. Quentin is confused about what to do after college when he no longer has a curriculum to follow, is no longer under the institutional umbrella. This is the standard quarter life crisis problem. I went through that too, but he reacts to the situation very poorly. He never grows up; never faces the challenge of living his life and it makes me kind of hate him.
Then, when it gets so bad that he does have to grow up and deal with life, he pretty much gives up and sits there doing nothing with his life until his friends come and save him.
One thing the story left me out of was “the Narnia thing.” Grossman made the characters obsessed with C. S. Lewis’ Narnia stories, but calling it Fillory instead because of permissions issues. I never read these stories, a shame I know, so all of the references were lost to me.
While I didn’t like what Quentin what doing, it fit his character and the circumstances making the whole work cohesive. Grossman tied the beginning to the end and wrapped it up neatly.
I finished reading the book for the great style, and the rest of the characters. They reminded me of many people I’ve known and they didn’t react to “Real Life” as badly as Quentin did.
So if you like to watch other people suffer, or just love to be sympathetic toward them, this is an excellent book in every way.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: Brotherhood of the Wolf - David Farland
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Overall, I loved reading this book. Grossman’s style is impressive as is his vocabulary. He strings words and phrases and paragraphs together to create admirable passages.
So this lovely writing was pretty much what let me get through the book itself. Think Holden Caulfield meets Harry Potter. Except our MC is no prophesied hero who is going to save the world. He’s just your normal person, who happens to be able to do magic, trying to get through life.
We have our emo, smarty pants high school student, Quentin Coldwater, whose every wish is granted when he is transported to a college where he will study magic. That part of the book I related to. I went to college and it was pretty much the same kind of thing for Quentin--except there was magic. Watching college kids learn to handle magic was indeed entertaining.
But when he graduates the book takes a major downturn. Quentin is confused about what to do after college when he no longer has a curriculum to follow, is no longer under the institutional umbrella. This is the standard quarter life crisis problem. I went through that too, but he reacts to the situation very poorly. He never grows up; never faces the challenge of living his life and it makes me kind of hate him.
Then, when it gets so bad that he does have to grow up and deal with life, he pretty much gives up and sits there doing nothing with his life until his friends come and save him.
One thing the story left me out of was “the Narnia thing.” Grossman made the characters obsessed with C. S. Lewis’ Narnia stories, but calling it Fillory instead because of permissions issues. I never read these stories, a shame I know, so all of the references were lost to me.
While I didn’t like what Quentin what doing, it fit his character and the circumstances making the whole work cohesive. Grossman tied the beginning to the end and wrapped it up neatly.
I finished reading the book for the great style, and the rest of the characters. They reminded me of many people I’ve known and they didn’t react to “Real Life” as badly as Quentin did.
So if you like to watch other people suffer, or just love to be sympathetic toward them, this is an excellent book in every way.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: Brotherhood of the Wolf - David Farland
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
04 July 2010
Spellwright by Blake Charlton
So this one is not quite a classic. I needed to take a break from the classic fantasy literature and get into some fresh work by someone new. Well, I may have decided that after hearing about this book. I came across it during the Amazon/Macmillan kerfuffle at the beginning of the year. As this book was set to release in March, it was used as an example of how Amazon was hurting the authors more than the publishers. Charlton is a new author so having Amazon pull his publishing house near the release date would really hurt his numbers if it wasn't resolved quickly.
So I took a look at the book. The cover was intriguing, it had great blurbs from trusted sources and, and the title was a pun. Yes I love puns, deal with it. But the pun didn’t just end with the title, it extended throughout the book in a beautiful conceit. It was a high fantasy to boot, something that is losing steam in the publishing industry. This book was something I had to read. And a few months later, I checked it out of my local library. I can’t afford to go and buy hardcovers these days, and read it cover to cover blowing off the other things I should have been doing…
There aren’t just puns! There are also many fun linguistic twists that really tickled my love of language. The magic system is entirely based on language, so Charlton had many opportunities for word-play that he took advantage of.
I liked more than just the language of this cute, quick read of a book. The fantasy tropes were used in a fresh way. The main character, Nicodemus, is prophesied to save language but something wasn’t quite right. He has a language disability, what we’d call dyslexia, which affects his magical abilities in profound ways. Like I said in my last post, I really like when prophecies are used differently. “There was this prophecy, but it’s wrong and we can’t use it to guide our steps.” The notion brings a very realistic flair to the lives of our main characters and makes me appreciate their problems much more.
Much of the story is rooted more in the local and broad politics and religion of Nicodemus’ world. This is a complex and full world. On all levels, different powers have different magical languages and they all have their own political agendas. Charlton expertly weaves a complex political web, letting characters represent different factions and letting the conflicts center in one small place. The political, religious and academic factions cross paths seen from the front row inside a small wizard’s school. Yet this is no Harry Potter. Nicodemus must win a war to save language, but first he must overcome his own limitations.
Charlton also pulls from mythological traditions. As far as I could tell, Norse, Celtic and Greek. And then he pushes them around and alters them for his own uses. These gods are not just figureheads in stories, they are real beings and are seeking their own ends, but they must first get by the humans who oppose them. They are not all powerful and they have their own rules to live by. This makes them interesting and complex characters, and another layer of conflict.
Charlton’s style is smooth and I really didn’t have too many complaints about the story. If I have to put one in this post it would be about the pacing. It felt to me that he had the most tension built up for a turning point in the story as opposed to the final denouement, and the end didn’t wrap up nicely, but dragged out a little bit (hello sequel?).
I think I will buy the paperback when it comes out because I know I will want to re-read this book, and lend it out as well.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
So I took a look at the book. The cover was intriguing, it had great blurbs from trusted sources and, and the title was a pun. Yes I love puns, deal with it. But the pun didn’t just end with the title, it extended throughout the book in a beautiful conceit. It was a high fantasy to boot, something that is losing steam in the publishing industry. This book was something I had to read. And a few months later, I checked it out of my local library. I can’t afford to go and buy hardcovers these days, and read it cover to cover blowing off the other things I should have been doing…
There aren’t just puns! There are also many fun linguistic twists that really tickled my love of language. The magic system is entirely based on language, so Charlton had many opportunities for word-play that he took advantage of.
I liked more than just the language of this cute, quick read of a book. The fantasy tropes were used in a fresh way. The main character, Nicodemus, is prophesied to save language but something wasn’t quite right. He has a language disability, what we’d call dyslexia, which affects his magical abilities in profound ways. Like I said in my last post, I really like when prophecies are used differently. “There was this prophecy, but it’s wrong and we can’t use it to guide our steps.” The notion brings a very realistic flair to the lives of our main characters and makes me appreciate their problems much more.
Much of the story is rooted more in the local and broad politics and religion of Nicodemus’ world. This is a complex and full world. On all levels, different powers have different magical languages and they all have their own political agendas. Charlton expertly weaves a complex political web, letting characters represent different factions and letting the conflicts center in one small place. The political, religious and academic factions cross paths seen from the front row inside a small wizard’s school. Yet this is no Harry Potter. Nicodemus must win a war to save language, but first he must overcome his own limitations.
Charlton also pulls from mythological traditions. As far as I could tell, Norse, Celtic and Greek. And then he pushes them around and alters them for his own uses. These gods are not just figureheads in stories, they are real beings and are seeking their own ends, but they must first get by the humans who oppose them. They are not all powerful and they have their own rules to live by. This makes them interesting and complex characters, and another layer of conflict.
Charlton’s style is smooth and I really didn’t have too many complaints about the story. If I have to put one in this post it would be about the pacing. It felt to me that he had the most tension built up for a turning point in the story as opposed to the final denouement, and the end didn’t wrap up nicely, but dragged out a little bit (hello sequel?).
I think I will buy the paperback when it comes out because I know I will want to re-read this book, and lend it out as well.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
20 June 2010
Been Doing Some Reading :)
The Runelords by David Farland
I've really been trying to step up my reading. And hey, two books in a month, next I know it'll be three! Also, I’ve been busy lately with a new project, which I’ll talk about another time, so this is going to be a fairly simple review.
Premise:(From the back of the book)
The very Earth is in pain. Its wounds must be healed. There must arise a new king: the Earth King must be reborn. Only then will humanity have a chance to survive.
The Runelords takes you for a fun. ride It offers a few things that most fantasies don’t--as far as I’ve read anyway. It has a very medival culture feel to it, but is not set in the landscape of Europe as we know it. So Farland definitely did his research for this one, and some creative work to boot. Tossed into this culture is a new concept, that of the Runelords themselves. These kings use a magical process using runes and branding (I love Scandinavian mythology so it’s almost automatic for me to like this idea) to take the best qualities donated from their loving or purchased from broke subjects theoretically to rule better but we know better than that, someone will twist this benign practice and we will get a story.
In the runelords, old traditions have changed over time and when a war unlike anything these people have ever seen marches into Rofehaven the only answer is to go back to the old ways, to follow the Earth King for this war is much more than it seems.
3 Things I liked:
• An existing prophecy doesn’t happen the way it is supposed to--now the men don’t have their guide, their script to play out. Kind of refreshing. It makes you feel like the characters don’t know what they are doing they are shooting in the dark just like real people.
• Characters fail, and fail hard and then they feel the guilt for it and have to find other answers. They see that they could have done a million things differently but they didn’t and have to cope with that and go on with life.
• They beautiful princess loses all her physical beauty, the common peasant girl becomes beautiful. It’s interesting to see how this affects them.
3 Things I didn’t like:
• The endowments sound too much like stats in role playing games. Quantifying one’s strength, speed and brains as concretely as Farland does here seems so unnatural to me.
• If I could give David Farland one piece of advice about improving the writing of this book it would be R.U.E. Resist the Urge to Explain. Some explanations are necessary for world building and catching up on previous events, but he does a great job of showing many actions and conclusions but then clutters the pages with loads of telling.
• Sloppy proofreading--I could nitpick little things extensively. This bothers me the most, for two reasons. For the last ten years or so I’ve trained myself to pick up on continuity errors in my own writing and in workshops, and I know that as an unpublished writer, one mistake like that could get my entire manuscript rejected but it’s fine for him (or his editor?) to mar his work with imperfections because he’s a big name author. Second, letting those little things through feels like taking a sharpie and squiggling lines on, say a da Vinci painting or some other masterwork. Does he have no pride in his work?
anyway, I'll get to reading the three remaining volumes of this series but I think I'll let this review stand for them all. Like I said, I'm a bit busy working on a new project. More coming on that soon.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: Spellwright - Blake Charlton
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
I've really been trying to step up my reading. And hey, two books in a month, next I know it'll be three! Also, I’ve been busy lately with a new project, which I’ll talk about another time, so this is going to be a fairly simple review.
Premise:(From the back of the book)
The very Earth is in pain. Its wounds must be healed. There must arise a new king: the Earth King must be reborn. Only then will humanity have a chance to survive.
The Runelords takes you for a fun. ride It offers a few things that most fantasies don’t--as far as I’ve read anyway. It has a very medival culture feel to it, but is not set in the landscape of Europe as we know it. So Farland definitely did his research for this one, and some creative work to boot. Tossed into this culture is a new concept, that of the Runelords themselves. These kings use a magical process using runes and branding (I love Scandinavian mythology so it’s almost automatic for me to like this idea) to take the best qualities donated from their loving or purchased from broke subjects theoretically to rule better but we know better than that, someone will twist this benign practice and we will get a story.
In the runelords, old traditions have changed over time and when a war unlike anything these people have ever seen marches into Rofehaven the only answer is to go back to the old ways, to follow the Earth King for this war is much more than it seems.
3 Things I liked:
• An existing prophecy doesn’t happen the way it is supposed to--now the men don’t have their guide, their script to play out. Kind of refreshing. It makes you feel like the characters don’t know what they are doing they are shooting in the dark just like real people.
• Characters fail, and fail hard and then they feel the guilt for it and have to find other answers. They see that they could have done a million things differently but they didn’t and have to cope with that and go on with life.
• They beautiful princess loses all her physical beauty, the common peasant girl becomes beautiful. It’s interesting to see how this affects them.
3 Things I didn’t like:
• The endowments sound too much like stats in role playing games. Quantifying one’s strength, speed and brains as concretely as Farland does here seems so unnatural to me.
• If I could give David Farland one piece of advice about improving the writing of this book it would be R.U.E. Resist the Urge to Explain. Some explanations are necessary for world building and catching up on previous events, but he does a great job of showing many actions and conclusions but then clutters the pages with loads of telling.
• Sloppy proofreading--I could nitpick little things extensively. This bothers me the most, for two reasons. For the last ten years or so I’ve trained myself to pick up on continuity errors in my own writing and in workshops, and I know that as an unpublished writer, one mistake like that could get my entire manuscript rejected but it’s fine for him (or his editor?) to mar his work with imperfections because he’s a big name author. Second, letting those little things through feels like taking a sharpie and squiggling lines on, say a da Vinci painting or some other masterwork. Does he have no pride in his work?
anyway, I'll get to reading the three remaining volumes of this series but I think I'll let this review stand for them all. Like I said, I'm a bit busy working on a new project. More coming on that soon.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: Spellwright - Blake Charlton
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
01 June 2010
another one done
John Crowley-Little, Big
I have to preface this entry by saying I’m a little biased about this book. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about it: It’s so awesome, Oh my god you have to read it, If you want to start reading fantasy start with this one, this book is so great and so on. So I dove into the pages with high expectations. I thought, if they think it’s so great, I should also think it is so great.
I should have known better. What others like is not what I like. I know I like high fantasy and epic fantasy. I like other world fantasy, including futuristic. Urban and Contemporary rarely does it for me, though rural can work sometimes. I like clever and witty narrative and dialog.
I should have quizzed these people more on what they like before I thought I’d like this monumental work of fantasy literature. But I can respect Crowley for what he did in this book.
Going into it blind, I thought it would be about a peculiar family and the house or estate they live on. But in the end, not so much. It’s about what is done to them. So the whole book is getting us familiar with their tale, with them. Making us get attached to them and feeling for them when the standard bumps of life show up in their lives. This book is about 500 pages long, and covers about five generations. Every time he jumped into a new one I got bored and agitated with it. So there were many people to whom I was supposed to empathize and develop a relationship with.
Meanwhile there are hints dropped and heavy handed (I think) foreshadowing--I actually rolled my eyes at the most prominent instance. To be blunt, it’s dodging of the fantastic annoyed me. The questioning and uncertainty irked me. And the two most main characters never even entertained the possibility. That certainly adds tension, but one makes me feel left out and two makes me want to be in someone else’s head more. There are a few brief respites though, like Crowley wanted to give us some glue or something.
The thing I disliked the most was dialog. They spoke in a halting and staggered fashion. A word, a descriptive phrase, then the rest of the sentence. People do not speak like that. Sometimes they might, but not ALL THE TIME. So he was trying to pass these people off as eccentric, sure, but I think my blood pressure went up when certain characters were speaking.
But none of that really matters in the big picture. Roz Kaveney said in a review she wrote in 1982 for “Books and Bookmen” that this is one of the few stories that reconcile humans and fairy, which it does. And I couldn’t put my finger on why I didn’t like it until I read that. The characters in this book seemed so askew for “normal” people. They’d have to be to do that job. So they didn’t appeal to me on the front of normal people exposed to fairy, or occupants of a fairy land who happened to be in our world. To me they were awkward, with a very exclusive feel, but not pretentious (otherwise I wouldn’t have bothered).
So hearing Ms. Kaveney’s conclusion, and having read “From Homer to Harry Potter,” I can easily classify this story as literature of fairy. This fantasy pulls very strongly from traditional “this world” beliefs and doesn’t take it to another world. I’ve always held stories that deal with actual Faerie slightly apart from the other fantasy I read. Usually when I refer to fantasy, I’m thinking of epic or high, or even some urban and contemporary if the fantastical elements are strong enough.
So, maybe I read it wrong, or just missed something. I don’t feel the need to read the rest of Crowley’s work to see what is particular about this book or just him. But as I’ve said above, much of this story didn’t grab me.
Okay, so what did I like about this book? Why did I read all of it? There are a few reasons. I’m a little obsessive about finishing what I start. It’s a highly influential work. I hoped it would get better. And after I got about a quarter into it and didn’t like it, I wanted to at least be able to say why honestly.
On another note... hopefully I'll have another story out for sub soon.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Runelords - David Farland
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
I have to preface this entry by saying I’m a little biased about this book. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about it: It’s so awesome, Oh my god you have to read it, If you want to start reading fantasy start with this one, this book is so great and so on. So I dove into the pages with high expectations. I thought, if they think it’s so great, I should also think it is so great.
I should have known better. What others like is not what I like. I know I like high fantasy and epic fantasy. I like other world fantasy, including futuristic. Urban and Contemporary rarely does it for me, though rural can work sometimes. I like clever and witty narrative and dialog.
I should have quizzed these people more on what they like before I thought I’d like this monumental work of fantasy literature. But I can respect Crowley for what he did in this book.
Going into it blind, I thought it would be about a peculiar family and the house or estate they live on. But in the end, not so much. It’s about what is done to them. So the whole book is getting us familiar with their tale, with them. Making us get attached to them and feeling for them when the standard bumps of life show up in their lives. This book is about 500 pages long, and covers about five generations. Every time he jumped into a new one I got bored and agitated with it. So there were many people to whom I was supposed to empathize and develop a relationship with.
Meanwhile there are hints dropped and heavy handed (I think) foreshadowing--I actually rolled my eyes at the most prominent instance. To be blunt, it’s dodging of the fantastic annoyed me. The questioning and uncertainty irked me. And the two most main characters never even entertained the possibility. That certainly adds tension, but one makes me feel left out and two makes me want to be in someone else’s head more. There are a few brief respites though, like Crowley wanted to give us some glue or something.
The thing I disliked the most was dialog. They spoke in a halting and staggered fashion. A word, a descriptive phrase, then the rest of the sentence. People do not speak like that. Sometimes they might, but not ALL THE TIME. So he was trying to pass these people off as eccentric, sure, but I think my blood pressure went up when certain characters were speaking.
But none of that really matters in the big picture. Roz Kaveney said in a review she wrote in 1982 for “Books and Bookmen” that this is one of the few stories that reconcile humans and fairy, which it does. And I couldn’t put my finger on why I didn’t like it until I read that. The characters in this book seemed so askew for “normal” people. They’d have to be to do that job. So they didn’t appeal to me on the front of normal people exposed to fairy, or occupants of a fairy land who happened to be in our world. To me they were awkward, with a very exclusive feel, but not pretentious (otherwise I wouldn’t have bothered).
So hearing Ms. Kaveney’s conclusion, and having read “From Homer to Harry Potter,” I can easily classify this story as literature of fairy. This fantasy pulls very strongly from traditional “this world” beliefs and doesn’t take it to another world. I’ve always held stories that deal with actual Faerie slightly apart from the other fantasy I read. Usually when I refer to fantasy, I’m thinking of epic or high, or even some urban and contemporary if the fantastical elements are strong enough.
So, maybe I read it wrong, or just missed something. I don’t feel the need to read the rest of Crowley’s work to see what is particular about this book or just him. But as I’ve said above, much of this story didn’t grab me.
Okay, so what did I like about this book? Why did I read all of it? There are a few reasons. I’m a little obsessive about finishing what I start. It’s a highly influential work. I hoped it would get better. And after I got about a quarter into it and didn’t like it, I wanted to at least be able to say why honestly.
On another note... hopefully I'll have another story out for sub soon.
Currently Reading
Fantasy: The Runelords - David Farland
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
19 April 2010
The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
I’ve just completed Patrick Ford’s The Mabinogi, a translation of medieval Welsh folk tales and mythological cycle. Reading this book lets me tick off one more on my list of reading to catch up on non-Greek mythology. I can say, with some embarrassment, that I have never heard of any element of these stories before, so when someone in my office glanced at the title of the book I was reading and commented, “obscure Welsh literature, great,” I felt a little absolved.
When I was just getting into the book, I was a little disappointed in the story telling. The story arcs rambled, and changed seemingly without explanation. Story lines ranged far beyond the interest point. And the laundry lists of heraldic titles and accomplishments; tasks and quests made for really dull reading. There was practically NO SHOWING. But that is what was recorded in the original manuscripts, which were written down by someone who heard someone else tell the oral story. Would the people back then simply “understand” all the tactile imagery that was possible when the characters go riding across the land? Had they done it all themselves, in an uneventful journey? The author of this book could only decipher what his modern day learnings let him to reach back and translate the Mabinogi.
The author, Patrick K. Ford is the Margaret Brooks Robinson Research Professor of Celtic Languages and Literatures at Harvard University. Needless to say he wrote this book with academic interests and not story telling in mind. Despite being very sparse, with little imagery and barely three dimensional characters the stories serve to give us 21st century denizens a peek into the ways of old cultures. However I can see how each of these 6 – 40 page stories could be turned into a rich novel, however dark.
These tales aren’t for the weak-of-stomach. From crushing skulls barehanded, stealing, rape, murder, torture to animal cruelty they show the worst of human nature. They show what people do to get what they want: woman, money, power, land, respect, honor and revenge. And sometimes people do terrible things to breach hindrances.
My favorite story was that of “Manawydan son of Llŷr.” Even though this story is rangy, and the events a little jerky we see magic, trouble, rescue, punishment by social decree and then the wrongs are righted. I just love happy endings; well I like it more when the jerks who were wrong get what’s coming. Mainly I like the story line where a group of people are displaced from their own land and must wander to find a new place, yet no matter how hard they work, they cannot find a place they fit in. And after some time they return home and break their curse. I like this because they didn’t give up. They didn’t sit idly waiting to find a way. Even when they weren’t trying to break the curse, they were working hard, trying to get by because they had to.
That's it for now. Maybe someday I'll come back to these tales for story fodder, or for further study.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Little, Big - John Crowley
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
When I was just getting into the book, I was a little disappointed in the story telling. The story arcs rambled, and changed seemingly without explanation. Story lines ranged far beyond the interest point. And the laundry lists of heraldic titles and accomplishments; tasks and quests made for really dull reading. There was practically NO SHOWING. But that is what was recorded in the original manuscripts, which were written down by someone who heard someone else tell the oral story. Would the people back then simply “understand” all the tactile imagery that was possible when the characters go riding across the land? Had they done it all themselves, in an uneventful journey? The author of this book could only decipher what his modern day learnings let him to reach back and translate the Mabinogi.
The author, Patrick K. Ford is the Margaret Brooks Robinson Research Professor of Celtic Languages and Literatures at Harvard University. Needless to say he wrote this book with academic interests and not story telling in mind. Despite being very sparse, with little imagery and barely three dimensional characters the stories serve to give us 21st century denizens a peek into the ways of old cultures. However I can see how each of these 6 – 40 page stories could be turned into a rich novel, however dark.
These tales aren’t for the weak-of-stomach. From crushing skulls barehanded, stealing, rape, murder, torture to animal cruelty they show the worst of human nature. They show what people do to get what they want: woman, money, power, land, respect, honor and revenge. And sometimes people do terrible things to breach hindrances.
My favorite story was that of “Manawydan son of Llŷr.” Even though this story is rangy, and the events a little jerky we see magic, trouble, rescue, punishment by social decree and then the wrongs are righted. I just love happy endings; well I like it more when the jerks who were wrong get what’s coming. Mainly I like the story line where a group of people are displaced from their own land and must wander to find a new place, yet no matter how hard they work, they cannot find a place they fit in. And after some time they return home and break their curse. I like this because they didn’t give up. They didn’t sit idly waiting to find a way. Even when they weren’t trying to break the curse, they were working hard, trying to get by because they had to.
That's it for now. Maybe someday I'll come back to these tales for story fodder, or for further study.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Little, Big - John Crowley
Scholarly: Wizardry & Wild Romance, A Study of Epic Fantasy - Michael Moorcock
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
07 March 2010
sticking to it
Even though I haven't posted here, in my reading/writing blog for some time, I'm sticking to it. I'm coming back and journaling my most recently finished book, which I've had finished for a few weeks, but have not had the time to blog it.
Glen Cook
The Chronicles of the Black Company
Omnibus of the first three books in the Black Company series
I read this book in a strange circumstance. I read the second omnibus (last three books) before this one. So I already knew the characters, and what would happen to them in the future. Cook so dutifully referenced and explained many of the events of the first book in the second, I could say to myself, “ah yes, I remember this,” as I came across new scenes. This is a rather disappointing way to read a book. So I’m chalking up my less-than-thrilled reaction to that.
While not making for good reading, reading out of order made for good studying. I could see how he dips back to describe old events in the here-and-now later on--the amount of detail and action he needed to evoke the memory but not to go off on too much of a tangent.
Reading out of order also presented another odd reaction in me. I liked the characters more, and quicker upon starting the second book than the first. I also thought they were more fully introduced and described going into the second than the first. I would have thought this would be the other way around. But again, I got a lesson from this. Cook had probably gotten more into the characters’ heads after three books, and better knew how to introduce them later on. And also, he didn’t stop popping in insights and descriptions of them no matter how far into the story he got.
Another theory on my more intense character attachment later in the series is that they started different, more important roles in the beginning of the second book. One thing Cook is known for is telling stories from the point of view of the common man instead of kings, princes and heroes. In the first book, the characters are all no-ones in a mercenary outfit, however they are doing important things. Yet by the second book, they all of a sudden take on new, more important roles. I don’t want to put in spoilers here, so I won’t be specific. I’d almost argue that they aren’t “the common man” anymore. Yes they still have their roots in peasantdom, but they have considerable power over others via reputation, which draws them up in society. This seems just a little contrary to the “common man” motif Cook is known for.
So after reading the middle through the end, and then the beginning to the middle, I felt a little let down by the end of the first book. This was a major turning point in the series, and their world too. There was build up, and foreshadowing tension and suspense throughout the book, and I knew what was coming. But what I was interested in was how it would happen. And, I’ll say again, it didn’t seem like much. I think he could have written it “bigger.” What it boils down to is two, or three people fighting, be they gods or beggars, it still kinda looks the same. When you watch, or read about, an even match, it doesn’t look like much. What makes it impactful is the sense of importance the author imbues in it, which is directly related to the buildup of suspense/tension. What will happen if the good guys win? The bad? What are the implications? We knew what these were, but didn’t really see, at the end of the book, what the fallout was.
Recalling the beginning of the second book, that is where the fallout occurred. Cook structured his books, his six book series, to keep the readers buying. But for me, who read them out of order, it just made it fell flat.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Little, Big - John Crowley
Scholarly: The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
Glen Cook
The Chronicles of the Black Company
Omnibus of the first three books in the Black Company series
I read this book in a strange circumstance. I read the second omnibus (last three books) before this one. So I already knew the characters, and what would happen to them in the future. Cook so dutifully referenced and explained many of the events of the first book in the second, I could say to myself, “ah yes, I remember this,” as I came across new scenes. This is a rather disappointing way to read a book. So I’m chalking up my less-than-thrilled reaction to that.
While not making for good reading, reading out of order made for good studying. I could see how he dips back to describe old events in the here-and-now later on--the amount of detail and action he needed to evoke the memory but not to go off on too much of a tangent.
Reading out of order also presented another odd reaction in me. I liked the characters more, and quicker upon starting the second book than the first. I also thought they were more fully introduced and described going into the second than the first. I would have thought this would be the other way around. But again, I got a lesson from this. Cook had probably gotten more into the characters’ heads after three books, and better knew how to introduce them later on. And also, he didn’t stop popping in insights and descriptions of them no matter how far into the story he got.
Another theory on my more intense character attachment later in the series is that they started different, more important roles in the beginning of the second book. One thing Cook is known for is telling stories from the point of view of the common man instead of kings, princes and heroes. In the first book, the characters are all no-ones in a mercenary outfit, however they are doing important things. Yet by the second book, they all of a sudden take on new, more important roles. I don’t want to put in spoilers here, so I won’t be specific. I’d almost argue that they aren’t “the common man” anymore. Yes they still have their roots in peasantdom, but they have considerable power over others via reputation, which draws them up in society. This seems just a little contrary to the “common man” motif Cook is known for.
So after reading the middle through the end, and then the beginning to the middle, I felt a little let down by the end of the first book. This was a major turning point in the series, and their world too. There was build up, and foreshadowing tension and suspense throughout the book, and I knew what was coming. But what I was interested in was how it would happen. And, I’ll say again, it didn’t seem like much. I think he could have written it “bigger.” What it boils down to is two, or three people fighting, be they gods or beggars, it still kinda looks the same. When you watch, or read about, an even match, it doesn’t look like much. What makes it impactful is the sense of importance the author imbues in it, which is directly related to the buildup of suspense/tension. What will happen if the good guys win? The bad? What are the implications? We knew what these were, but didn’t really see, at the end of the book, what the fallout was.
Recalling the beginning of the second book, that is where the fallout occurred. Cook structured his books, his six book series, to keep the readers buying. But for me, who read them out of order, it just made it fell flat.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Little, Big - John Crowley
Scholarly: The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
06 December 2009
The Books of the South, Glen Cook
When I read a book I tend to focus on an author's craft, especially the elements in which I am weak. I've been trained to learn this way for the last decade or so. During this time, naturally, my weaknesses have changed. So when I read Glen Cook's The Books of the South, my major foci were structure, characterization, setting and plot.
The Books of the South is the second collection in Cook's Black Company series. The book is separated into three stories, telling what happened to a few of the people who fought in a mercenary outfit(the Black Company) after a major war.
The first and second books follow basically the same plot, and are told from two different POVs. Both of which were in the first story. So when I got to the third section and found no familiar characters I was a little confused and disappointed. But it makes sense. When I remembered this a follow up to the first book, in which Cook introduced all the characters from the first, second and third stories. The jump however, was quite large. Spending 2/3rds of a book on one set of characters then jumping to another set, who actually trace the first set of characters, and show what's going on in their wake is a little disconcerting to me. I would have worked the third story into the rest of the book. However, I think my distaste lies in the fact that I read an omnibus, where all the novels are right in it together. When each story is considered as its own novel, with a separate cover and back, the distinction is clearer.
As far as story structure is concerned, Cook jumps around a lot. Using different POVs to show different angles of the story can help build suspense. We readers know stuff the characters don't. We know what they're walking into, or what their enemies are throwing against them. Interestingly, Cook spends large chunks of story on the protagonists, and only very small sections on the antagonists. We do get glimpses of them, but not too much. This is necessary, I think, because the first person is so limited. Were this story written in third omniscient, the jumping around would be unneeded. An example of Form Following Function.
A great deal of the characterization comes from the POV of these stories. Cook tells the stories of the Black Company in first person from the POV of soldiers in very plain, soldiery language with lots of individual flair. It's not just they way they speak though, each character is very ordinary, could be anyone you walk by on the street, with no delusions of grandeur (except some of the antagonists). One of the characters for instance, Lady, used to be an empress of unsurpassed power. That's not all that easy to relate to for most people. However, when we follow her, she has lost all her power, doesn't know anything about where she is, has few friends and has just lost her lover. Now that kind of thing we know about. There is more. The first two books, I thought were great. However, in the last story, The Silver Spike I had a few issues. One problem with telling the story from the POV of the soldiers is that it is easy to have too many similar characters. This story falls prey to that condition. The not-so-great, I'm just a normal guy character that Cook is famous for become a little hard to distinguish between. So I got a little confused on a couple of occasions as to which character was going through the "tough" situation with their less than super hero capabilities.
I can't help but say a few words about the setting. There are many references to a lot of cultural landmarks from Our World and its history. I could tell what parts of the world influenced Cook's settings at most junctures. Another thing Cook employed to connect to readers was the use of many modern descriptives and objects. However nice it is to see familiar things in a strange place (a fantasy novel) anachronisms just jerk me right out of the story. I wonder, "how does someone there know about that?" It doesn't fit and to me, it denotes sloppy world-building or at least sloppy disclosure of the world an author built. But here, it is done so much, I think it must have been intentional... but why I don't know.
Plot will be difficult to discuss as this "book" that I read is comprised of three different books. So I'll just touch on a few generalities. Cook has plot down pat. Even while traveling, all events are tied into the unfolding of the end, or in building important characterizations that are necessary later. I wonder if he layers those in as I do, or if he puts them in as he goes, laughing at what will come. Either way, he uses all the track of the STORY to thicken it. In this way, he keeps the pace up. Something is always happening, and when it's not, characters are drawing connections between events.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Chronicles of The Black Company - Glen Cook
Scholarly: The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
The Books of the South is the second collection in Cook's Black Company series. The book is separated into three stories, telling what happened to a few of the people who fought in a mercenary outfit(the Black Company) after a major war.
The first and second books follow basically the same plot, and are told from two different POVs. Both of which were in the first story. So when I got to the third section and found no familiar characters I was a little confused and disappointed. But it makes sense. When I remembered this a follow up to the first book, in which Cook introduced all the characters from the first, second and third stories. The jump however, was quite large. Spending 2/3rds of a book on one set of characters then jumping to another set, who actually trace the first set of characters, and show what's going on in their wake is a little disconcerting to me. I would have worked the third story into the rest of the book. However, I think my distaste lies in the fact that I read an omnibus, where all the novels are right in it together. When each story is considered as its own novel, with a separate cover and back, the distinction is clearer.
As far as story structure is concerned, Cook jumps around a lot. Using different POVs to show different angles of the story can help build suspense. We readers know stuff the characters don't. We know what they're walking into, or what their enemies are throwing against them. Interestingly, Cook spends large chunks of story on the protagonists, and only very small sections on the antagonists. We do get glimpses of them, but not too much. This is necessary, I think, because the first person is so limited. Were this story written in third omniscient, the jumping around would be unneeded. An example of Form Following Function.
A great deal of the characterization comes from the POV of these stories. Cook tells the stories of the Black Company in first person from the POV of soldiers in very plain, soldiery language with lots of individual flair. It's not just they way they speak though, each character is very ordinary, could be anyone you walk by on the street, with no delusions of grandeur (except some of the antagonists). One of the characters for instance, Lady, used to be an empress of unsurpassed power. That's not all that easy to relate to for most people. However, when we follow her, she has lost all her power, doesn't know anything about where she is, has few friends and has just lost her lover. Now that kind of thing we know about. There is more. The first two books, I thought were great. However, in the last story, The Silver Spike I had a few issues. One problem with telling the story from the POV of the soldiers is that it is easy to have too many similar characters. This story falls prey to that condition. The not-so-great, I'm just a normal guy character that Cook is famous for become a little hard to distinguish between. So I got a little confused on a couple of occasions as to which character was going through the "tough" situation with their less than super hero capabilities.
I can't help but say a few words about the setting. There are many references to a lot of cultural landmarks from Our World and its history. I could tell what parts of the world influenced Cook's settings at most junctures. Another thing Cook employed to connect to readers was the use of many modern descriptives and objects. However nice it is to see familiar things in a strange place (a fantasy novel) anachronisms just jerk me right out of the story. I wonder, "how does someone there know about that?" It doesn't fit and to me, it denotes sloppy world-building or at least sloppy disclosure of the world an author built. But here, it is done so much, I think it must have been intentional... but why I don't know.
Plot will be difficult to discuss as this "book" that I read is comprised of three different books. So I'll just touch on a few generalities. Cook has plot down pat. Even while traveling, all events are tied into the unfolding of the end, or in building important characterizations that are necessary later. I wonder if he layers those in as I do, or if he puts them in as he goes, laughing at what will come. Either way, he uses all the track of the STORY to thicken it. In this way, he keeps the pace up. Something is always happening, and when it's not, characters are drawing connections between events.
Currently Reading:
Fantasy: Chronicles of The Black Company - Glen Cook
Scholarly: The Mabinogi - Patrick K. Ford
Writing:(I'm slacking here)
Submissions out:
Flash: 0
Short: 0
Agent: 0
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