Now reading: Song of Ice and Fire

Have been indefinitely sidetracked by George R.R. Martin...

Third book lined up already...all neatly wrapped still. But won't be for long :-)

Now reading: Ash

I typically use awards that books have received as a gauge to decide whether I would buy and read a book, or not.

So saying, Malinda Lo's Ash was a shoo-in for my book pile.

I soon realized that it was a completely different configuration of the Cinderella trope. I have always loved the re-telling of fairy tales. This is why Robin McKinley's Beauty and Rose Daughter are among my best-loved stories of all time. When I picked up Ash, I loved the idea of introducing the element of a fairy, that is, a sidhe, into the story of Cinderella.

The book had a fresh take on the development of the heroine. Simply put, the love interest is another girl. In stories of this genre, the author has a very challenging task, indeed, to walk that fine line between revelation and critique, on the one hand, and repackaging something and calling it new. I was interested to see how the character playing the love interest in the story re-structures questions of power, strength, weakness, love, and identity. I mean, is she an actual female character, or will her gender formulation in the story, when unravelled to the core, would simply reveal a man?

If you're reading Ash for the first time, know that you are entering a lyric, mesmerizing landscape. However, the story would require more soul-searching and insight in terms of what it means to be a woman. It's a different kind of soul work and  recasts questions about identity and sexuality than what Graceling posed, or even The Blue Sword.

On another matter, I have just discovered a new book by one of my favorite authors, Franny Billingsley. The title is Chime , and I am curious to see if it truly lives up to the glowing reviews I've read about it. I've waited for her to write another book after falling in love with her The Folk Keeper years ago. And with a long vacation coming up, I'm excited to have found what promises to be a delicious book to fall headlong into.

Well hello Lord Sunday!

What do you know? I bumped into Garth Nix's Lord Sunday (2010) so unexpectedly today. This book concludes the Keys to the Kingdom series which began with Mr. Monday.

The series is the story of 12-year-old Arthur Penhaligon and his adventures in saving the House and his own world. At the beginning of the story, he was pulled into the Kingdom at a critical point in his life. Arthur was asthmatic and  frail and he was about to die. One could say that his being pulled into the Kingdom was godsend: he became stronger physically. Also, as the Heir, he became the wielder of powers via the different Keys. Of course, the downside was that he became less human and more of a Denizen with each use of his power. Indeed, by the time the story reached the end of Superior Saturday, Arthur has become too far gone to return to being just a mortal.

The books in the series are named after days because these represent the seven Trustees assigned by the Architect to do her Will. They are collectively known as the Morrow Days. Each has been assigned a Key which has unique powers. When the Morrow days rebelled against the Architect, it was revealed that each has taken on anaspect of the seven Mortal Sins,  i.e. greed, pride, envy, etc. Each Trustee rules on the day that bears his or her name, and so the start of the books usually begins on the midnight when the power of the next Trustee takes effect. So to my mind, Arthur has to be one of the most hard-pressed and hard-working heroes ever because his headaches have barely passed when the next set appears.

Naughty me has actually read the resolution of the series in Wikipedia. But that will not stop me from reading the book from start to finish. Good thing, too, that my memory tends to conveniently forget key parts of the plot which means that I'll be able to thoroughly enjoy this last book.

*****
(2 days after inhaling the book, and after our internet connection was restored, AND when B. finally relinquished his spot in front of my laptop...)

And enjoy it I did. Unlike the previous books when a lot of things seem to be happening at once, and when the sub-plots were distracting (and frustrating me) me from the main storyline, Lord Sunday was an easy straightforward read. I also loved the way Garth Nix concluded Arthur's story. He is one of those authors who just knows how tie up loose ends. Still, I could see some possibilities of a sequel.

Keys to the Kingdom is on a different level from The Abhorsen series in terms of character development, but it is no less rich and thought-provoking. I wouldn't mind re-reading the entire series over again. I give the book  3.5 out of 5 stars, and the series 4 out of 5 stars.

Forever

I must have been seriously under a rock. How could I have missed this?

http://www.maggiestiefvater.com/shiver/forever.php

Best books of 2010

I can't resist. Do check these books out. They're worth every penny and every second...and book shelf space.

Next, and next, and next...

I have to find a way to temper myself.

I started this blog to share my favorite books, primarily young adult fiction, but lately I seem to be reading more, and sharing less.

Let me track where I have been in the last two weeks.

The beginning
There is something so comforting about encountering an old book--one you have spent pleasurable hours with, as you wandered around its unique world and peered over the shoulders of its characters as they battled monsters, and wielded fantastic magic. It's like meeting an old friend, and then sitting down over cups of coffee (or tea) to talk about old times.

 However, I wasn't so certain if I wanted to start my summer with A Wizard of Earthsea (Ursula Le Guin), though. It's not an easy friend. There's too much darkness in Ged's world, and  --superstitious me -- I didn't want that to foreshadow my summer.

A master storyteller, nonetheless, has the power to pull you in the tale whether you like it or not. And so before long, I was once again at Roke and at Earthsea meeting familiar characters, and re-tracing familar and forgotten paths. At the end of the Ged's reckoning with his shadow, I was glad to have re-read the book again.

The book follows a familiar story archetype of the outcast, flawed hero coming to terms with himself. Since Ursula Le Guin comes from that era of 'classical' fantasy writers in the ilk of J.R.R. Tolkien, Ged's reflections and internal struggle appear deeply philosophical to the modern reader. In short, do not expect stream-of-consciousness rantings from Ged.

What to me makes this book a classic is how it explores that universal experience of having committing a seemingly irreparable mistake. And then upping this a hundred times. After all, what can be worse than loosing an unknown dark creature in the world and not having the power to vanquish it?

As to its ending: I like it that Le Guin carefully reveals things to the reader that leads up to the eventual realization of what must be done. You begin to have an inkling of what to do, but you're not quite sure about it, until the denouement. Beautiful pacing. I hate it when some authors treat readers as dumb spectators and spring obvious "revelations" and resolutions on them.

So after A Wizard of Earthsea, I knew I was in for a good start on my summer reading.


The Blue Sword

(to be continued)

Going Zonkers

Ok, just so I could put everything in perspective just before I zonk out from my flu medicine, here are my current pre-occupations, and items for investigation:
1. Pegasus by Robin McKinley -- will get complete book
2. I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore -- amazing and highly enjoyable movie! Can't wait for the sequel and can't wait to get the books
3. Halo -- to get or not to get
4. Warm Bodies-- a good read they say, but a zombie romance? makes me hesitate just thinking about the first kiss
5. The Abhorsen series -- MUST write about these books because they're really amazing. Another long-overdue project
6. Beauty by Robin McKinley -- magic, books and a handsome prince. Need I say more?
7. Angelfire by Courtney Moulton -- I hope I don't waste my money here

Ok, that's about all I can handle right now.

The Graveyard Book

This was another book I practically inhaled. But with a Neil Gaiman work, it's actually impossible to do that because you always end up entranced. So you slow down to take in the scenery. In this case, a beautiful, slightly creepy graveyard.

Bod is the main character in the book and he has been given the Freedom of the Graveyard when two resident ghosts, and a guardian, took him in when he was a baby. His family had just been killed by a mysterious assassin and Bod had the good fortune to toddle out of the house on his own and wind up in the graveyard. He reminded me of the Luck Child at this part of the story.

Hi grows up learning about Fading, Haunting, opening Ghoul gates, and in general being a better person than your average child would be. He gets into one adventure after the other, usually because he is also quite stubborn and very curious -- a very lethal mix.

His last adventure is when he leaves the grave finally. But even then, I would like to read more about this extraordinary boy called Nobody Owens.

Mockingjay

This is way overdue.

I waited months on end for the final book in the trilogy, and when Mockingjay was finally released, one would expect me to have posted my reaction right away.

So where was I?

Or, some would wonder, was the book THAT bad?

To answer the second question first, no, the book was worth the wait. But I would have to say that it was not as likable as the first two books were. In the first few chapters of Mockingjay, you get the feeling that something is being set-up and developed. I re-read Hunger Games and Catching Fire to put my finger on why I felt the beginning of Mockingjay dragged. Well, I found out that there were some twists in the plot that needed time to stew. My advise to those who would read the book is to consider it in the light of the entire trilogy. It is more effective and less heartbreaking this way.

My only beef here is that Peeta so much less likable. It was as though Suzanne Collins drew up this perfect hero, and then just when all you ever wanted was to have someone like Peeta in your life, she tears him all apart. Suzanne redeems him in the end, but then you know that he isn't perfect anymore.

But I guess that is the exact point of Suzanne Collins. No one who has to go through what Katniss and Peeta and the rest of the characters did could end up alright. At best, you could have Haymitch. In fact, you could even call him the best-balanced mentally of the lot. The worse you could have is Annie, broken and mad, but redeemed in the end with a beautiful baby.

And I guess, that's the second point: no matter how life batters you, there is still some hope in the end, a point of redemption, a dandelion that lets you know that rebirth is possible.