The Iron Ring is one of my all-time favorite fantasy novels! It is so underrated; I'm glad to see it getting some love. I first read it when I was 12 or so and my attachment to the characters hasn't waned since. (Garuda! ) Plus, the language used throughout is so much fun to learn - rolls off your tongue when you say it out loud.

I just love literary coincidences! I picked this up a week ago at a library booksale. I'm not sure that Kierkegaard is doctrinally sound in all areas, however. It will be interesting to read. What do you think of it so far?

It's a total mind-trip. Have you read much Kierkegaard prior? I've only recently started working my way through his stuff, but what I love about him is that he refuses to discuss these dilemmas with the sort of airy detachment that most philosophers employ - you know, where real, difficult, human conflict gets reduced to a "concept" and is parried around without any emotional consequence. In discussing Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, Kierkegaard makes the point that we can't begin to understand what was really happening in that situation until we allow ourselves to be moved/scandalized/terrified by what God asked - we have to struggle with it before we can see it clearly. There are so many complex things happening in us at once when we take (or attempt to take) these huge steps of faith. Much like Thomas Merton he is great at putting a microscope to the self. I don't always agree with his conclusions, but boy does he make me think!

I think my favorite character in The Iron Ring is Ashwara, although I also really like Rajaswami, Tamar, Mirri, and Jaya himself. I collected some thoughts in review form last time I read it.

Along with A Conspiracy of Kings, I've really been enjoying my French fairytales collection recently. So far, I think my favorite of the new tales is "The Adventures of Finette," mostly because of the heroine. Give me a fairy-tale princess who can defend herself with a hammer and then send the villain down the latrine. Oh yeah.

*a shadowy figure from page 45 reappears* College was busy, and then summer's been summer, and, uh, I don't have a good excuse. Can I come back anyways?

Anyways, I have been lurking about this thread, but I shan't attempt a catchup.

A brief overview of the interesting things I've read since January.

Lot o' Mckillip:
~The Bell at Sealy Head which I adored.
~Alphabet of Thorn I loved the weaving of this plot; as Nepenthe was pulled into her alphabet, I was pulled into Mckillip's world. The character's were not all that lovable, but the world was and I greatly enjoyed this book.
~Ombria in Shadow took me two days to devour. I was a bit confused by the ending and how (not really a spoiler, but. . .)

~Winter Rose took me one long day. I enjoyed it, and didn't have any major problems with following the plot, but that may have been due to my fast pace.
~In the Forests of Serre. Malkah, thank you, thank you, thank you! I loved this tale. It had mixtures of Grimm and other fairy tales (at least tones, if not direct allusions) in it. I loved.

Other authors
~Beauty by Robin McKinley. I'd heard it tossed around here often enough that I knew I needed to give it a go. I really enjoyed it. Loved the library.
~Cotillion by Georgette Heyer. After hearing Ly rave about it, I had to try it. I loved it. The plot was rather guessable, but the characters were great fun. Any suggestions on other Heyer's to try?
~The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope. Another one I've heard thrown about for a while. Very much enjoyed. Though, I was a bit disappointed with the Tam Lin concept of

But that's minor and I loved everything else. Especially Kate and Christopher.
~*The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. I'd heard Collins on here, but never read anything of his, so when I stumbled across the book for a song at one of my local used shops, I had to get it. And I'm so glad I did. The story was one that I kept thinking I had figured out. . . and then someone died/said something/did something/or otherwise uprooted my plots.I loved all the different characters voices, well done. Highly recommended.
~Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. I'd listened to this on audiotape at, eh, 12-ish? I remembered a whole lot more on this read through then I thought I had. The slimy ogre-ese is sealed in my memories; as are several distinct imagined "snapshots" of the book: when Ella runs away from the funeral, the candelabra trees, and the banister sliding, to name a few. (Am I the only one who does that? Forms an image of a point in a book, then rereads that passage and wonders if I made that up or saw it in a movie or picture or something?)

I am currently reading Till We Have Faces (well, and Northanger Abbey's sitting on my shelf with a bookmark halfways through it. . .) and debating what to start next. I'm thinking I'll go with a reread of the Narnia books. One can never have too much Lewis.

Wow, lots of great reads there, Lady! Had you read any McKillip before this batch? I can't remember. I agree with your assessments of the novels that I've read too. About Ombria,

I've only read one other Heyer, Lady of Quality, and I wouldn't particularly recommend it - but wisewoman has read many and she's recommended Friday's Child to me, so that will be my next of hers.

And I definitely remember some books in snapshots too, and often come back to find them inaccurate. This seems to happen more in fairy-tales than in anything else. But that rocks, because then I can retell the fairy-tale MY WAY!

I made out like a bandit at one of our big, quarterly library book-sale today. Here are my acquisitions:

# Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst - I love her blog, so how could I turn down one of her books for 25 cents?

# Five Complete Novels: Red Harvest, The Dain Curse, The Maltese Falcon, The Glass Key, and the Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett - I already have a beautiful old copy of The Maltese Falcon, but I was interested in some of his other stuff two, and this five-in-one-volume was too good a deal to pass by.

# Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier - I've had my eyes on this one for quite some time, plus everybody's been reading it recently. Glad to have my own copy.

# The Dragon's Son by Sarah Thompson - a pretty good Arthurian book I read a while back: not great, mind you, but good enough for me to make sure I had a chance to read it a few more times. The Mordred and Morgana sections are fairly sub-par, but this has the best retelling of Owain's romance EVER in it.

# King Arthur: a Military History by Michael Holmes - fairly self-explanatory. I may use it as research for a future novel.

# The Road by Cormac McCarthy - evidently McCarthy is the "new big thing" in American literary fiction; everyone's been telling me I need to read either this or Country for Old Men. It doesn't look like my usual fare, but I think I'll give it a try. Plus, the movie has Viggo in it.

# Edwin of the Iron Shoes by Marcia Muller - we actually read excerpts from this in my Advanced Composition class. It's a mystery novel featuring one of the first female P.I.'s.

# My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier - this was the big find of this sale, along with the Durst and Marillier. I've wanted to make this my next du Maurier for a while but could never find a copy. When I saw it I think I made a little "Eep! noise (dreadfully embarrassing and unmasculine, I know) and snatched it up before any of the other booksalers could even lay their eyes on it. Mwahahaha!

Probably 50 pages have passed since I posted in here but even though I have read each post, I simply haven't been able to keep up with responses. However, I have made a few notes, and will forthwith expound. Wish I could cover everything, but alas, time, again, doesn't permit.

But first, nice haul, lysander!

Back to page 65, @ narnian_at_heart: I love how you love The LotR. ♥ And about John Grisham, my husband and one of our sons have enjoyed some of his books over the years, but I, myself, have never read any.

Bottom of the same page, @ equustel and 7chronicles re Here, There Be Dragons: I read James Owen's book a few years ago and thought the idea was very adventurous and fun, but I had a few small issues as to how the characters were portrayed. Saying no more, because I don't want to give away

It is definitely worth one read, possibly two.

Jumping to page 69, to Mel's post: the copy you linked to on LibraryThing is the copy we've had for years. Yes, it has the original text.

Liberty Hoffman on page 85: Our boys loved Gordon Korman's books. I'd hear them laughing uproariously from the living room where they were reading and thought right away "it must a Korman".

ww on page 86: some dot-jots ...
*Spiritual Depression is a Martyn Lloyd-Jones book. We have a copy of it somewhere, but I remember reading it years ago and found it very solid at that time. (Not that it would have changed. ) Still, Lloyd-Jones was a writer with integrity in Biblical-soundness, focusing on the exposition of Scripture.

*You mentioned The City of God, one of Augustine's I've been curious about for quite awhile.

*Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress is a long-time favourite of mine. A dead-on and powerful allegory! And always a hurrah for anything Dickens.

I've been reading and re-reading the Harry Potter books to try and fully take in the story. Plus, our daughter and I are reading Deathly Hallows aloud, aiming to finish it prior to the first film in November. We also want to re-read The Voyage of the Dawn Treader aloud before December 10th. (Anyone heard of that wonderful book? ) And we just finished The Hobbit a short while ago, hoping all the while that the film(s) will actually be made sometime in the next ten years!

Aaaand, I'm still reading Heaven by Randy Alcorn. I'm taking it very slowly, as I like to digest each section: I will put it down for lengths of time to ponder and read other things, then pick it up again.

I am also enjoying from the Christian Encounters series Winston Churchill. His biography, alone, is really interesting, but adding in the spiritual dimension makes it all the more appealing. I like how the author doesn't try and 'make' Churchill a Christian, but honestly and openly explains, particularly from the Bulldog's own quotes, how he viewed God and Christianity. Well worth the read! I can't get over how many times he should have been killed in his various escapades, and yet God spared his life. Just wish he had made more than a verbal assent to God in his long, adventurous, and very high-profile life; rather his trust and confidence remained in himself. Sad.

Also on the go is John MacArthur's Anxious for Nothing, which I am just beginning. Much of my reading lately has been articles and interviews on various subjects.

Lys, I'm curious what you think of The Road. I've seen the movie and it's quite slow, but still interesting.

I finished most of what I was reading.

*is disappointed, because The Kestrel is her favourite of the Westmark trilogy*

For a long time after I first read the trilogy, I really disliked the third book, The Beggar Queen because, first of all, it didn't quite fit the story I had imagined from hearing the title and reading the first two books. Also, I think that I like the ending of The Kestrel better--

A lot of that impression came from forgetting over half the book, and have a quarter of the rest go over my head the first time I read it. On the other hand, even appreciating it more in the recent re-read didn't change its position in the overall ranking either.

Yes, it has the original text.

Oh, that's good to know! I have two of the other books with that style cover. (Also, this Voyage of the Dawn Treader sounds like a fascinating book. What's it about? )

In light of the recent P&P&Zombies discussion, let me link you to Hark! A Vagrant's take on the phenomenon.

I don't have the link, but I also recently read a list of the top fifteen heroes with a destiny and I suppose this is as good a place as anyway to whine about it. Belgarion beat out Frodo for the eleventh spot? I... can't quite wrap my head around that one. If it were a list of top fifteen wizards (which I'm sure exists ) and Belgareth had beat out Gandalf... I wouldn't want to swallow it (and I'd be rooting for Beldin) but I could picture it happening... *bets no one else knows what she's talking about*

Are you going to read the third book, Lady Haleth? It's not quite as bloody and hopeless as the second. Personally, though, I really enjoyed The Kestrel when I was a kid. I thought it was gloriously tragic.

I'm almost done with A Conspiracy of Kings now. Turner writes the best, most original characters to be found today in YA fiction.

I love how all the old Books thread people are coming out of the woodwork suddenly (myself included )

Thanks for the info on [Spiritual Depression, QS and Jo-Anna! I've heard that name before and I think our church library might have a few books by Lloyd-Jones. Will have to keep an eye out. And yes, I can't recommend When People Are Big And God Is Small enough. What a great perspective on relationships — starting with the most important relationship with God through Christ. We are finishing our study this Wednesday and I'm sad it's going to be over.

Ah yes, I wasn't a big fan of Wildwood Dancing. But then I think Marillier really lost her touch after her first three Sevenwaters books (one might even argue her first two); everything after that has been very recycled. I do recommend Daughter of the Forest first, lys, but be warned there are some graphic scenes in it. I can give you more details via PM or something when you get closer to starting it, if you like.

I really like the Westmark books, but it's been awhile since I've read them. The barricades reminded me of Les Mis.

*also likes The Iron Ring*

It's a total mind-trip. Have you read much Kierkegaard prior? ... In discussing Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, Kierkegaard makes the point that we can't begin to understand what was really happening in that situation until we allow ourselves to be moved/scandalized/terrified by what God asked - we have to struggle with it before we can see it clearly.

No, I haven't read anything by him. I've just heard of him in several discussions here on NWeb. The things you're bringing up about the book are fascinating. God does shock us out of our nice little moralities sometimes, doesn't He? But I'm not sure I would want to focus on the emotional response we have to Him. I don't think the Bible emphasizes that, though it certainly doesn't discount it. Hmm.

Lady Liln, you're reading some fantastic books! I agree with you about the plotting of Alphabet of Thorn; it's just so well done. And yay, you liked Cotillion! I suppose it *is* predictable, but it was first Heyer and I had no idea what was coming next (plus I was listening to it on audiobook). I found it thoroughly satisfying . And lys is right, Friday's Child is another good one. I also listened to that one on audiobook and I would highly recommend it. Phyllida Nash reads it and she's great with all the voices, especially the men's (which female narrators often struggle with).

lys, you did make out like a bandit! I did not like The Road; have you seen my review on LT? Maybe read the book first (though I didn't get too spoilery). And ooh, enjoy My Cousin Rachel! It has the same feel of Jamaica Inn and Rebecca.

*wants to read The Maltese Falcon*

I love how HP holds up to rereads. I see myself rereading the series once every year or two

I have more to say but I have to go. Until next post!

johobbit: yes, my mom often finds me reading and laughing and knows I'm reading Gordon Korman! she actually likes some of the books! her favorite is The Island trilogy!

I'll try to find the last one, and I'll finish The Kestrel

I liked Westmark better, though. Its like the books sort of changed tone. Still, not my favorite of Alexander's books (Prydain forever!)

In light of the recent P&P&Zombies discussion, let me link you to Hark! A Vagrant's take on the phenomenon.

Oh goodness, the second one...

...seriously, what is up with females today going all crazy over "brooding hunks"? It's like half the reason everyone likes Darcy is for the very reason that turns off all the in-book characters (and readers at that time) to him...

Although, in general, people seem to get the wrong idea about Darcy. Take, for example, Dating Mr. Darcy: The Smart Girl's Guide to Sensible Romance, which happens to be one of those "Christian dating" books that no doubt took off like wildfire once a certain Josh Harris unleashed his carefully-trained beast out into the wild:

Any girl who has seen Pride and Prejudice or read the Jane Austen novel knows that the much misunderstood Mr. Darcy is the ideal gentleman. But is it possible to find your own Mr. Darcy in today's world of geeks and goons? With smart tips, spiritual insights, and discussions of Jane Austen's popular stories and movies, best-selling author Sarah Arthur equips young women to gauge a guy's Darcy Potential (DP) according to his relationships with family, friends, and God.

Not having read this book, I'm not sure what kind of "Darcy Potential" this book is thinking of, but it better not involve a lot of his early-book dealings, full of insults, miscommunications, bad assumptions, and overall bad socializations. I mean, here I thought part of the book's theme was changing oneself to become better people...

Ah well. At least it's not as bad as how some people want the couples in Mansfield Park to change up... that easily gets on my list of Top 10 Shipping Movements That Make No Sense Whatsoever.

Mel: simulpost! I agree that The Beggar Queen is probably the weakest of the trilogy, but I still liked it a lot. And yes, it doesn't have as happy an ending as you might expect from an Alexander book, but I really do think it was a less depressing book overall - or at least a less gruesome one -than The Kestrel. All those books are wonderful, though; I really need to reread them (and Prydain).

ww, I may be a bad boy and actually read Wildwood Dancing before Daughter of the Forest. I have several reasons for this: (a) a good friend would like to read Wildwood Dancing once I'm done with it, so I feel obligated to get to it pretty quickly; (b) it is the shorter of the two; (c) it isn't the beginning; and (d) I will probably be less likely to be disappointed in it if I haven't read Daughter of the Forest beforehand. That said, I am perfectly open to you talking me out of taking this dreadful step.

Yes, I have read your review of The Road (more than once ). I was pretty resistant to reading it when I first heard about it, but many other people whose reading tastes I usually trust have recommended McCarthy, so I thought I'd better read at least one of his. This one presented itself.

Its like the books sort of changed tone.

Yes, the first one is more of a light-hearted adventure; in The Kestrel especially, the stakes are much higher. But that's what I liked most about that book: it was so unexpected.

Well, I finished A Conspiracy of Kings, and I loved it! More thoughts coming later. I'm not sure what I'm going to read next ... I really ought to finish The Princess and the Goblin, but I feel MacDonald won't look his best right after I've read a Turner.

*waves at mara* Delightful to see you around. *tips hat*

One of my best friends just posted this on my Facebook wall. He knows me too well.

*waves back, curtseys* Thanks! That picture is amazing; nay, Full of Win. I saved it immediately. And I'm highly enjoying being reintroduced to the Book-A-Minute recaps and your posts. I shall once again try to use "go roast a squirrel" in my daily conversation as much as possible.

*saves Meltintalle's notes about Robin Hood for a friend of hers*

As for The Once and Future King, I liked the first part (Pellinore is funny!) and the very end, but a lot of what was in-between was...mature.

Yup. That's what I was talking about earlier. Enjoy The Enchanted Castle; I really liked that one!

On a sort of related note: I reread Half Magic, which I had received from BookMooch a while back, and the children struck me as being astoundingly well-read. In the beginning of the book they're reading The Enchanted Castle (which I read for the first time in college; my only childhood Nesbit was Five Children and It), and they have references to Romantic poets and Dickens (David Copperfield, which I also didn't read until college for my Dickens class). When I was eight I read Edward Eager and similar chapter books. They're the sort of books that don't hold up quite as well when you read them as an adult, personally. The children feel catty and pert and overly smart; not like real kids. Nesbit's didn't, but then Eager is copying her (well, paying her homage/writing in the style of, etc.); he most likely suffers from over-self-awareness. Nesbit, since she is the original, is more unselfconscious. Ah well, they (the books) are still rather enjoyable.

Ooh, enjoy the Attolia books, Queen Susan! I still need to read A Conspiracy of Kings. A friend told me I needn't reread all three of the ones that come before, just The Thief since the main characters in ACOK are the ones that are important in TT but not the others. It would save me a lot of time… What do you guys think?

Great reads, equustel! Let me know how you like them.

(Castor and Pollux blow me to Bermuda!)

HA!! Love this. XD Oh, and I echo The Iron Ring recommendations. I remember really liking that one.

As for Wildwood Dancing, I'd advise going into it not expecting too much. I'm trying to remember what exactly I wrote about it, but I had a friend paint it in pretty glowing terms and I don't consider it to be quite as amazing as she did. That is, I enjoyed it a lot, but I don't think it was the best fairytale retelling I've ever read (although strictly speaking, it's not any one particular fairytale that's being retold, so maybe that doesn't apply) as she seemed to consider it. I'd hate to say it's fantastic and then have it not live up to your expectations, so hopefully this doesn't reduce your desire to read it too much, because it was still quite good.

Hmm, yes, I agree with you. It was good (and the cover art is soooooooooo pretty), but it didn't do a lot for me. I was kind of frustrated at some of the things at the end. I dunno. Oh, it's mainly a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses. And also

Along with A Conspiracy of Kings, I've really been enjoying my French fairytales collection recently. So far, I think my favorite of the new tales is "The Adventures of Finette," mostly because of the heroine. Give me a fairy-tale princess who can defend herself with a hammer and then send the villain down the latrine. Oh yeah.

<3 I so want to read that now. What's the title, for future reference?

*a shadowy figure from page 45 reappears* College was busy, and then summer's been summer, and, uh, I don't have a good excuse. Can I come back anyways?

Hee! This is basically my reason for being gone for so long, too.

And I definitely remember some books in snapshots too, and often come back to find them inaccurate. This seems to happen more in fairy-tales than in anything else.

Oh, great way of putting it; same here. For example, I remember the adventures in the Edward Eager books taking way longer when I first read them than they did last week. Sigh.

# Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst - I love her blog, so how could I turn down one of her books for 25 cents?
# My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier - this was the big find of this sale, along with the Durst and Marillier. I've wanted to make this my next du Maurier for a while but could never find a copy. When I saw it I think I made a little "Eep! noise (dreadfully embarrassing and unmasculine, I know) and snatched it up before any of the other booksalers could even lay their eyes on it. Mwahahaha!

Ooh, I really loved that one! Let me know what you think. I thought it was a really cool take on fairy tales. I love Durst's blog too, and still need to read Out of the Wild. And HAHAHAHA about your bookshopping "Eep!". I do that all the time too!

In light of the recent P&P&Zombies discussion, let me link you to Hark! A Vagrant's take on the phenomenon.

OH that was great. All those books annoy me (the zombiefied versions, not the originals, of course). I shall share other literary comic gems of hers with you all, just you wait.

That Dating Mr. Darcy book sounds very… , stardf29. Mr. Darcy never struck me as the Epitome of Hottness. Not like in an OMGBBQFANGIRL kind of way, anyway. It works for me when I'm reading the book, but I'll still be like, jeez, lighten up, rudester! Anyway, at least it isn't Dating Edward Cullen.

Oh, yes, what i'm reading... I finished and enjoyed Tea Time for the Traditionally Built. Very cute. Think of those little old English ladies who sit around and sip tea all old-fashionedly and solve mysteries; very Polite. But set in Botswana (and not that old, actually). Good breezy comfort reads. My lender says she'll get more for me. Undoubtedly they will be out of order. lol

I had mentioned Half Magic already... I also reread a later Nesbit/Eager-influence, The Penderwicks (perfect easy summer read). Like Eager, the children seemed a bit overly self-assured/mature, but they felt like real kids since they otherwise acted like it and also dealt with real issues (it's set in modern times). Recommended. Oh, and I've also started Robert Frost's In the Clearing (book of his poems). I like him very much.

Book links! These, thanks to Meltintalle, will be all the literary Hark! A Vagrant! comics I've collected during my absence.
St. Francis de Assisi He wrote a book, yes? Or at least was the subject of several. So he is relevant, yes? Anyway, I found this one funny.
Short comics about book covers The Kierkegaard one is relevant due to recent discussions about him. And I have that cover of The Woman in White. Er, sorry about the Hamlet/Oedipus one.
More lit short comics Sorry about the Hagar the Horrible one. The character's title is at least honest.
And here's a video of the great Watson/Sherlock Holmes comic. There are others you can click on in the sidebar. I'm partial to the Dude Watchin' with the Brontës one, but I haven't linked to it since it has some indelicate language. It's still pretty hilarious, though.

I've found several lovely book quotes as well. Here's one:

Being a reader is like playing tricks with time. You turn the page of the fictional story while an hour of your own passes. The characters breathe, laugh and cry, and so do you. When you finish their tale, you close the book and set it aside, dreaming of their ever-after, while stepping out into yours.

I so want to read that now. What's the title, for future reference?

I thought you'd be interested in that. The story is "The Discreet Princess, or the Adventures of Finette." The translation/collection is by Jack Zipes, and is called Beauties, Beasts, and Enchantments: Classic French Fairy Tales. It's out of print, but my dad found a cheap copy on AbeBooks, I think. Oh, and it's also featured in Zipes' The Great Family Tradition, if that's easier to find. I think Zipes' may be the only English translation of the tale.