*sneaks in quietly*

I have finished reading the next three books of Megan Whalen Turner's (I keep wanting to call her Margaret for some reason) Thief series and have thus far enjoyed them although I enjoyed A Conspiracy of Kings most of all. The plot twist in Queen of Attolia surprised me...even horrified me a bit given the events that preceeded it, but I came to accept and even appreciate it as the series rolled on. There is a huge degree of romance in said plot line although it is a terrible romance (not terrible as in bad but terrible as in momentous in its unique fusion of distress, sincerity, and shock value).

I won't call it a gripe about the books rather than a weakness on my part, or perhaps I just don't have the savvy or mental acuity to keep up with it, but court intrigue and Machiavellian power plays tend to go right over my head, and since each of the books is absolutely saturated in it there were times when I wasn't really sure what was happening. Each character's every move or statements need to be monitored carefully and missing even one seemingly inconsequential conversational detail will result in some confusion when things happen in the book. In many cases I'm still not sure what happened other than the fact that

I rather liked A Conspiracy of Kings best of the 3 post-Thief tomes in large part because I feel I can relate to Sophos much better than many of the other characters. He has trouble grappling with court intrigue too so we both sort of stumbled through the events of the book together . I suspect I'm going to need to run through the series again to pick up on the many details I probably missed (and I feel like a total idjit for admitting to it).

I just got A Conspiracy of Kings from the library. I was still finishing some other books, so I let my younger brother read it first (my two brothers and I are rereading the series together. Or at the same time, really). I'm such a good sister.

Lately I've read the Attolia books (I pretty much feel the same way about the romance this time around. It's just so :/ [there is probably something wrong with me, that I have to resort to emoticons to explain how I feel. THE INTERNET HAS BROKEN ME]), some of the used books I had bought a while back and hadn't read yet, such as a sort of Regency(?) mystery called Lyonesse Abbey that wasn't as quite as sappy/bad as I thought it'd be, an Everyman's Library book of Love Poems (it's such an adorable little book, in bright red cloth hardcover with a red ribbon bookmark), and the three Hunger Games books. Augh, those are so violent and sad-making but really good, still, in a way. After that I needed some light reading, so I checked out a "mythological dating guide" (personality types are mythological creatures, such as wood nymphs and giants. Silly stuff but fun to read ) and read the last two Princess Diaries books. I found them ok and remembered why I lost patience with the series. There isn't a whole lot of substance to them, and they're too casual about sex. I was suprised by how I felt after I finished the tenth and last one, though; it was like, "wow, my adolescence really is over." Although it's been over for like five years now. Oh well. I'm currently reading a poetry anthology of 12 of the majorest poets (they included a few I don't find important; I wish they'd swapped them out for Christina Rosetti and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, or maybe Pablo Neruda or something other than Dead White Guys ), and I have The Dreamer by Pam Muñoz Ryan and Peter Sís waiting for me. It has the prettiest cover, don't you think? Well, it looks pretty on the book itself since it's metallic and glossy.

Link time!
Interesting article comparing the journeys to the underworld in The Silver Chair and the Aeneid
optical illusion (?) bookshelves art
A silly song about one of our favorite things
I got this from Aravis Narnia: an online quiz to test your vocabulary from Merriam-Webster
Periodic Table of Fictional Materials
Periodic Table of Storytelling
How E.B. White Spun Charlotte's Web fantastic article. I sort of want to read that book.

I doubt that this long poem is a book in its own right, today. The Man born to be king, written by William Morris, was something that we were supposed to study at school, and by now I had almost forgotten what it was about. For a good yarn, somewhat like Prince Caspian in Narnia, even more like Shasta in HHB, and also a little like Harry Potter, it doesn't hurt to revisit this Victorian era tale, told in verse.

For those who want a Christian slant, and are dubious about prophecy or magic, this poem is a must.

Bless, me if I haven't left the point out altogether! Wasn't William Morris in some way associated with Christina Rosetti, and a whole romantic moviement in literature and art?

*clicks on every link mar_girl provided* I knew all the words on that vocabulary test. I also put the book about Charlotte's Web on hold at the library because it sounded interesting.

Also on the vocabulary front... maybe... I finished The Sable Quean by Brian Jacques and I'm just confused. A trip to the dictionary explains quean, but why did he write rabbit as rabbet? Was it supposed to be dialect? I don't think so, because even the hares repeated it that way. No explanation, no nothin', despite other parenthetical information dumps. I wasn't all that impressed with the book as a whole, either. There is a sad trend in the recent books for the 'good guys' to be grouchier and more querulous or randomly malicious. There also seems to be an increase in random pointless violence for some of the deaths--especially in this one. Yet... it did have the bones of being a promising story, with hints of interesting character dynamics and an unusual plot. I did like the illustrations, which was one bright spot in an otherwise uninspiring read.

I stumbled upon a treasure trove yesterday.

For starters my mom was going through her books and organizing them. I was giving her a hand and found she had the Movie Tie in edition of LWW that she never told me about. She said I could keep it to because she was going to give it away anyway.

Then we went up to Lake George and Warrensburg just for a family day trip and a Book Store in Warrensburg was having a Book Sale (3 Paperbacks for 2 dollars). There I found Mere Christianity, All three books in The Space Trilogy, and the Revised American Editions of LWW, PC, VDT, SC, and MN. All 9 books for 6 dollars .

The only downers was that they didn't have HHB or LB. Also they were used so they have some minor damage (LWW is missing the title page) ...and I never got a chance to look for any of the Dragonriders of Pern books which I was also hoping to find...

In the last week I've read a couple of shorter fantasy books that were good, but not the usual fare for the genre.

The first was Land of Dreams by James P. Blaylock. Apparently Blaylock is good friends with Tim Powers, whose novel was part of the inspiration for the most recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie. I had to hand it to Blaylock, he can certainly write poetic fiction. Throughout most of the book I was struck by his word choices and glimpses into human nature (in this case, teenage human nature). The story centers around three teenagers in a small coastal town in California during an event known as the Solstice, which occurs every 12 years in the area. The Solstice is never fully explained; rather it's simply a period of strangeness which allows the plot to move forward. Along the way we meet giants, ghosts, sociopaths and shapeshifters. There's a soul-eating carnival reminiscent of that in Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes but despite the opening and the blurb on the back cover, this book has few similarities to Bradbury's. I found Land of Dreams to be a diverting read if a somewhat less than enthralling one. I give it 3.75 out of 5 stars.

The other book I read was Ursula Le Guin's The Tombs of Atuan which I found to be good but not quite as enjoyable as its predecessor. Where Wizard felt like an interesting take on magic, particularly with regard to names, Tombs is more like an experiment in darkness (not unlike some of Le Guin's other stories). Its main character is a girl who serves the Nameless Ones, the Powers of the Dark who live deep in the earth. I spent a large portion of the book wondering when Sparrowhawk would make his appearance, and once he had, wondering how it all fit with the previous book (which it has admittedly been some years since I read). However, once the main character chooses to act and follow Sparrowhawk's lead, I found the book quite enjoyable, particularly the wizard's exhortations regarding light and darkness. I would say that this book is a successor to A Wizard of Earthsea in almost every way, including Le Guin's pseudo-spiritual ideas on light and dark (which I believe are present throughout the Earthsea books). I am surprised it was a Newberry Honor book, but I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

I'm starting to re-read A Series of Unfortunate Events, for the very first time!! I really love the books, depressing though they are, and I'm enjoying them a lot this time. I've only read the first 3 so far, and they've been actually making me laugh out loud. Such good books!!
And I read 3 L.M. Montgomery books on my trip, as well. Jane of Lantern Hill, and two collections of short stories. I pretty much have the same opinion as before, but I liked them.

ela: glad you like The Series Of Unfortunate Events because I couldn't stand them. I'm too compassionate I guess. and I hate it when nothing good ever happens for those poor kids the uncle creeps me out I only got through the first book (barely) and halfway through the second book, at which time I flung it across the room with a cry of, "AHHHHHHH!"

yeah. not my favorite books

That series was merely okay, which is disappointing, especially since some of the earlier books were very enjoyable. It just went on too long. I mean 13 sombre books is a far too many when there's not enough story or interesting things happening to the children. Book 13 was a major disappointment. The ending was rubbish, inconclusive and there wasn't a thread of hope. Blah.

I adored A Series of Unfortunate Events. Especially the later ones, which involved the VFD plot. The 13th book is rather vague, but the ending of their story is explained further in The Beatrice Letters. A lot of things which remained mysteries are also revealed in secret codes hidden throughout the series. It was great fun looking for them, and I think I found most of them.

I loved the creative style, the humor, the mystery and intrigue of the secret organization. Great books for kids.

~Riella

I also really, really liked the later books - they're what really made me fall in love with the series. I know, they're very difficult to read because of how depressing they are (though my family and friends seem to find them mere hilarity - is that a word? ), and how there is never any hope of it getting better. And though I hate those unsatisfying, incomplete endings, they leave a greater impression of good writing, on me. It is SO cool how everything starts fitting together as you read all the books.
I don't think I appreciated them enough, the first read through. I didn't laugh, or feel like laughing, the entire time. I enjoyed them, but for a different reason. This time I'm realizing how really hilarious they are.
And there is some inappropriate stuff in some of the later books, but for the most part, I agree with Ithie - wonderful books for kids, who are old enough.

Ithilwen, there were secret codes throughout the books? Where do you find them and then how do you go about working them out? Sounds like I should try reading The Beatrice Letters too.

Ithilwen, there were secret codes throughout the books? Where do you find them and then how do you go about working them out? Sounds like I should try reading The Beatrice Letters too.

Yes, I remember looking over those books every day for about two years, finding lots of secret codes, hidden clues, and other little Easter Eggs secretly wedged between the pages of that series. There's so much more to it than meets the eye. The Beatrice Letters and especially The Unauthorized Autobiography are the key to understanding almost everything that happens in the main 13 books. I found a lot of hidden things, and secrets to finding hidden things. I've forgotten a lot of it, since the last time I read those books was back when the final volume was released years ago. But I do still remember a little. There are these sort of "trigger words" or even "trigger sounds" that indicate a code or clue is to follow. One, if I remember right, was "Baticeer". Someone mentioning "being good to their mother" is another. "The World is Quiet Here". Also, the howling of a wolf, any mention of green wood or dairy products/farms. The most common one was the word "ring" or just a simple ringing sound, such as made by a phone or a bell, that someone in the book hears. For example, in this passage from The Penultimate Peril. Read the bold words (Boldness added by me.), and also the passage as a whole:

"Ring!" cried either Ernest or Frank. "Ring! I shouldn't have to tell you the bell's your signal. We can't keep our guests waiting for even an instant. You can tell which guest is ringing by the number on the bell. If the number on the bell was 469, for example, you would know that one of our Portuguese guests required assistance. Are you paying attention? The bell marked 674 indicates our associates in the lumber industry, as the number 674 means lumber processing or wood products in the Dewey Decimal System. We can't make enemies out of important guests! The number 371 indicates educational guests. Please be nice to them, too, although they're much less important. Respond to all of our guests whenever you hear that ring!"
"But what does that unmarked bell refer to?" Klaus asked. "The Dewey Decimal System doesn't go higher than 999."
The manager frowned, as if the middle Baudelaire had given him the wrong answer.

There is often more than meets the eye. Especially when you see one of the key words or elements, or even just a passage that sounds worded a little oddly. It's often worded oddly because it has a clue or code within it.

Even things about characters can give clues as to who they are. Their interests and occupations, such as people who work at a dairy farm, or in a lumber business, are usually connected to VFD somehow, even if it's not made obvious to the reader in the main 13 books. Even the first letter of their name can clue you in. For example, The relationship Olaf had with Kit would be mirrored somehow by the distance of space between O and K in the alphabet (same goes with every other character and letter).

There are also tons of clues hidden within the Index of The Unauthorized Autobiography. I'll give you a made-up example. Let's pretend there are two characters in the main 13 books named, oh... we'll say John and Peter. You might look up "Peter" in the Index. It'll give you the page numbers of all the parts mentioning Peter, but it might also say "See Disguises. See Also John." Which indicates that John and Peter, who we thought were two seperate characters, are actually one character who sometimes disguises himself and becomes the other character. And you'd never know if you hadn't found it in the Index.

There were so many weird facts I found hidden in those books. Things you would never suspect. I don't remember all of them. But I remember a few things that were either proven or seemingly indicated by the codes were:

What's even weirder is, not only are there clues hidden within the books, the books are made so that it also appears there are clues in books written by other people.

For example --

You'll remember I said, in A Series of Unfortunate Events, one of the secret code triggers is the mention of "being good to one's mother".

Also, in A Series of Unfortunate Events, one of the VDT agents is desribed as having neatly trimmed gray hair, a moustache that turned up at the ends, and clothes that looked like they were from all different stores or a rummage sale, such as a flowered shirt, striped tie, tweed coat, and plaid pants.

In the book Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary, young Ramona is, in a restaurant, confronted by a man who fits that description. He asks her if she's been good to her mother. She thinks it strange and doesn't reply. The man watches Ramona mysteriously while she eats, then winks and salutes her before leaving. Who the man is is never explained by Beverly Cleary. It seems almost like Beverly Cleary wrote it that way on purpose to tie it to A Series of Unfortunate Events... but that would be impossible, since Beverly Cleary's book was written first. It was very creepy. And even more odd because:

And there are more examples in other classic books as well.

That's what I love about those Lemony Snicket books. They're so odd, mysterious, even somewhat creepy, and brilliant... You never know what's going to happen, or what you'll find if you just look a little closer.

The author is writing more Lemony Snicket books, by the way.

~Riella

The very coolest thing about A Series of Unfortunate Events, in my opinion, is Snicket's impeccable style. He has a flair for writing with great technical skill that is seen only rarely in children's books. That's what makes them stand out to me-- that he echoes the tradition of great authors such as Dickens in that he pays attention to technique of writing as well as the story.

To reiterate, Snicket does not only write so that he may tell a story: He writes with flair and style, using that writing to tell a story. The writing is not only a plain pipe by which the reader learns the author's tale. The writing is just as beautiful as the story it means to convey, perhaps even more so.

Those are really interesting clues, Riella. I never noticed them before! It fits in with what I noticed about his attention to technique, but I hadn't noticed the depth of how he weaves the details together.

Oh my gosh, Ithie!! I never knew any of that stuff - there certainly is more than meets the eye in those books!! Goodness!! You must be very, very smart.