Mastiff by Tamora Pierce

Goodreads ( Beka's head looks like it's on backwards)

Oh Tamora Pierce, you've done it again! It's no secret that Tamora Pierce is probably the author that has most influenced me. I started seriously writing fiction after reading (and re-reading and re-reading) The Song of the Lioness books. I made my mom wait in a bookstore line while I was...somewhere, I can't remember now...to get my copy of Wild Magic autographed (Thanks, Mamacita!).

The books of Tortall have been massively important to me, and I'm so pleased to have grown up along with the stories. I'm not going to talk much specifically about Mastiff except to say that in Farmer, Pierce has done what I thought was nigh impossible -- give me a character to replace Numair as my favorite! Well, almost. Sadly, we only get this one book with Farmer, and according to Pierce's website, a series about Numair will debut in 2013. Squeeeee!

Also, I am not happy with the twist in Mastiff. I won't even give you a hint. I was totally caught off guard, and I shouted at the book when the twist was revealed. The thing is, I was unhappy as a reader with the twist because it put favorite characters in peril, but as a writer, I admire Pierce's choice. It's not something I've managed to pull off in my own writing -- serving the story despite the fall out for the characters. I get so attached to my characters, goodies and baddies alike, but people die, people turn, people stumble and fall and make spectacularly bad decisions, even the goodies. Until I'm willing to do this hard work of the story, my fiction isn't going anywhere. And even though I'm not writing the sort of stories Pierce writes, her lesson is one I need to really take to heart.

The first Tortall book was published in 1983, and while I still count it as one of my favorite books, it's been interesting to follow Pierce's growth as a writer as I've grown as a reader. Alanna's books are very much focused on a girl power theme, neatly feminist with nods to racial diversity. As the series grew and as the market expanded, the diversity of the world opened up, and now her stories include all manner of characters, including some significant queer characters. I suspect that Pierce would have included a broader cast of characters in her earlier books (totally a hunch, no basis in research or anything), but in the early 80s teen book market, I'm not sure that would have been accepted. What is important, though, is that Pierce has expanded her writing as the times have progressed, and that she always pushed at the boundaries of stereotypes. I am constantly recommending her stories to the teens who come into the library. I hope I have a daughter someday, because you can be sure I will share these books with her.

And please, Ms. Pierce, write more about mages. And lots about Numair. He is my favorite.

More on Authorship/Anonymous/Ben Jonson Fangirling

Thanks to Mr. Shakespeare Geek for passing along this article by Eric Idle on the authorship question.

And since it's Monday, and since I'm sick, and since I'm staring down an unpleasant evening of hashing out my theater paper, and since whatever, dude is fly:

I'll probably get sick of this soon. Probably.

Also, I suppose in the spirit of Mr. Idle's article, now would be the time to admit that I'm really a disposed monarch from a tiny Balkan state you've never heard of and will never visit.

Snuff by Terry Pratchett

My first blog post, a review of Snuff by Terry Pratchett, is up on Guys Lit Wire! I will be posting over there once a month, so do check out my posts and the other awesome contributions.

And just because I am totally crushing on our man Ben... You're Welcome.

A. Nony Mouse

Why yes, I did see Anonymous tonight, and you know what? It was a brilliant movie. It had fight scenes, it had poetry, it had conspiracies (in theory and in practice).

Symbolism Alert!

It had smooches, it had poetry being recited while smooches occurred, it had some righteous hair-dos.

It's good to be queen.

It had a beheading and it had a grody little plot twist worthy of a soap opera, worthy of a Greek tragedy, worthy of a Shakespeare play.

Hello Nurses!

But what it did not have was evidence that Edward de Vere wrote the plays attributed to William Shakespeare. And I don't even care.

Shakespeare: Coining Words and Inventing Crows Surfing

Because this isn't a documentary. It's a feature film. It's got sex and violence. It's got some pretty rad special affects as far as scene painting of Renaissance London is concerned. It's got a load of excellent actors (hey, Rafe Spall! Call me!) and a pretty good script. Also, dude playing Ben Jonson was a stone cold fox.

Forget Will. I'd like some Poet Laureate Action, please.

The fact is, the history of scholarship -- from literature to science, math to art -- is full of changes. Scholarship is a conversation, not a closed book. So maybe de Vere did write the plays. So what? Until some solid documentary evidence surfaces, we'll just keep the authorship question open, because the fact remains -- we are privileged to have a body of literature available for study and enjoyment and whether they were penned by a glove maker's son or a disgraced earl, their beauty and power remain undiminished. Knowing definitively the author(s) of these plays and poems may be an unsolvable mystery, but what will never diminish are the power of those words. In truth, we know whose words are anthologized, memorized, analyzed and love. They are our words. They are not of an age, but for all time. And isn't that enough?

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Knights Brave and Ladies Fair, or The Philosophical Debate of Nail Polish

From Stories from Chaucer: Told to the Children (1906)

 

 

Sorry for the radio silence (so to speak) the last couple weeks. School, man, it's got me down. I don't know if any of you have studied literature and critical theory and the like, but the last couple weeks have been a serious look at gender construction theory, and one side affect has been a distinct loss of feeling fun. When I buy nail polish, I stop and ask myself whether I'm buying it because I like it or because greater cultural forces say I should like it. In the end, I buy the damn polish and grumble about who comes up with stupid names like "Haze of Love" (mauve polish) or "Steel Her Heart" (graphite colored). I mean really.

I've also been spending a lot of time looking at Victorian and contemporary adaptations of Chaucer, written for children. It's fascinating stuff. In the original, Chaucer's tales are complex, polyphonic stories in which multiple readings can be found (as in, there are several, often contradictory, ways to look simultaneously at a tale). These adaptations select and fix a single reading based on the mores and values of the translator's day. Most of the time. I'm finding a surprising amount of complexity and "modern" readings in the Victorian anthologies. AND I get to work with some of the original books, one from 1882! And today I picked up one of the books from ILL and was all, yeah, this book is from 1906, all nonchalant and such. And then it dawned on me -- published in 1906 means the book I'm holding in my hot little hands is 105 years old! Thank goodness I didn't get a coffee.

One last bit of news. I am one of the new contributing bloggers on Guys Lit Wire, a blog helping connect teen boys to awesome books. I'm really excited. My first post goes up tomorrow! Be sure to check it, and all the awesome contributions, out.