Month: February 2014

Questing Books from Oz

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Juvenile, ReviewsLeave a comment

I’ve been slowly rereading the Oz books by L. Frank Baum, reviewing a few at a time as I go.  Most of the books have fallen neatly into sets in numerical order, but the two I want to look at today are more random in series placement, but paired in focus: The Patchwork Girl of Oz (#7) and The Tin Woodman of Oz (#12), The Quest Duet.

Oz 7 and 12**********

The Patchwork Girl of Oz, despite its title (Oz titles rarely signify much), focuses on Ojo the Unlucky, who has grown up in the Blue Forest with Unc Nunkie.  Unluckiness strikes in force when Unc Nunkie is accidentally turned to stone.  Ojo sets out on a quest for the ingredients needed to create a cure, which are scattered all over Oz.  He’s accompanied by the Patchwork Girl, a woman made from a quilt, and the Glass Cat.  They’re soon joined by the Shaggy Man, and make their way to the Emerald City and meet numerous other familiar characters there.

Baum’s favorite device is to send his characters on a journey, and I like the focus Ojo’s quest gives to this journey.  The aimlessness of some of the other Oz books has bothered me; this one has clear stakes and a goal.  Ojo is a fairly typical young-boy-hero, though his determination to rescue his uncle at any cost lends him more depth.  The Patchwork Girl is delightfully zany (even for an Oz character), and becomes part of one of the very few romances in the series; the Patchwork Girl and the Scarecrow manage to flirt a bit, which does make a certain amount of sense.  Cotton and straw could be compatible…

I enjoy the Glass Cat especially, one of the few not-perfectly-nice characters in Oz.  She’s not a villain but she is terribly conceited, frequently inviting people to admire her pink brains, visible through her glass head (“you can see ‘em work”).

As is not unusual, there’s something of a deus ex machina ending, and the ruling party of Oz is a little heavy-handed…but on the whole this is an engaging journey with enough focus to make it a proper quest.

**********

The Tin Woodman of Oz has a surprisingly relevant title, and explores the backstory of the title character.  Woot the Wanderer, a Munchkin boy in the same mold as Ojo, comes to call on the Tin Woodman, finding him visiting with his old friend the Scarecrow.  The Tin Woodman tells the story of how he became tin, cursed by the Wicked Witch of the East who disapproved of his romance with her servant, Nimee Amee.  Although his heart, designed for kindness, doesn’t allow him to love, he decides it would be an act of kindness and honor to go in search of Nimee Amee and marry her now.  All three set off, encountering obstacles including Mrs. Yookoohoo and her transforming magic along the way.

I have the strange feeling that this should be one of my favorite books in the series, and yet it isn’t.  I don’t know that there’s any especial reason for that.  On the positive side, we get history filled in for one of the major characters, the book has a clear focus to its quest, and there are genuine obstacles to get in the way.  I think perhaps if the book falters anywhere it’s that there isn’t quite enough whimsy.  Often it’s isolated moments and bits of magic that appeal to me most in the Oz books, and somehow nothing much stands out (and this may be completely just me) in this installment.

The best part of the book is the ending, which utterly up-ends the expectations of the characters, and gives the Tin Woodman a thoroughly deserved comeuppance.

**********

Neither of these books fall into my particular favorites, but they’re both solid installments in the series.  On a purely plot-level, they’re among the best, and the characters are engaging.  There may be some indefinable spark of greatness missing here, but they do achieve the status of good!

Stay tuned for a review of the remaining three Oz books soon. 🙂

Other reviews:
Kara Kreative
Story Carnivores (Patchwork Girl and Tin Woodman)
Cavalcade of Awesome
Anyone else?

Buy them here: The Patchwork Girl of Oz and The Tin Woodman of Oz

Favorites Friday: Romantic Couples, Revisited

On By cherylmahoneyIn Favorites Friday7 Comments

I was planning to finish up my Wrath of Khan spoof this week…but then it occurred to me that Valentine’s Day fell on Friday, and it just didn’t seem appropriate.  A couple years ago I did a post on Favorite Romantic Couples, and since I’ve read some wonderful romantic stories in recent years, I thought another list would be in order!

I don’t think any of these are big surprises within their books, but if you’re particular about spoilers, this post will give away everything about who ends up with whom.  I warned you!

Heir to SevenwatersClodagh and Cathal, Heir to Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier

Marillier is one of my favorite authors for truly lovely romances.  And this book features a romance between two of my favorite archetypes: the dark hero with a good heart, and the “ordinary” woman who has to find her strength.  Besides being good characters individually, these two simply fit together so beautifully.

Return of the King

Eowyn and Faramir, Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien

It shocks me that Tolkien got a couple on this list.  But I love these two characters–and to be honest, after the whole trilogy with barely a woman in sight, Tolkien had set the bar low.  The fact that he spent any time on the romance was thrilling.  And, well, the credit should really probably go to Peter Jackson, since the extended edition of the movie features the world’s most beautiful forty-eight second love story.  It works because I’m assuming this isn’t their first conversation–and because both characters are so beautifully developed and complex that I can see why they belong together without needing to be told.

Magicians and Mrs. QuentThe Magicians and Mrs. Quent by Galen Beckett

This is the extraordinarily rare book (trilogy, for the full picture) with a love triangle where I actually managed to get enthusiastic about both romantic pairings.  Details feel more spoilerific here than for the other books, so perhaps I’ll just leave it there…

Northanger AbbeyCatherine Morland and Mr. Tilney, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

I know everyone’s favorite is supposed to be Mr. Darcy–but Mr. Tilney actually smiles!  And is witty and personable!  And has a first name (Henry) that comes up more than once!  And I suppose I just like a romance between two people who meet, like each other and go on liking each other.  Sure, there’s a fight in there, but basically, they just like each other.  It’s refreshing.

Gryphon's EyrieJoisan and Kerovan, The Crystal Gryphon Trilogy by Andre Norton

On the other hand, even though these two so clearly need each other and belong together, they still take an entire trilogy to quite sort things out.  However, even if I find Catherine and Mr. Tilney refreshing, I suppose I also have a soft spot for romances between two people who both care about each other but need to do some growth as individuals and as a couple before getting to the happily-ever-after part.

Thrawn TrilogyHan and Leia, Star Wars

I don’t usually think of romance when I think of Star Wars, but I just read the Thrawn Trilogy and Han and Leia really are a wonderful couple.  Typically, books seem to focus on the falling-in-love part.  This trilogy, and other Star Wars Extended Universe novels, give us that rare story, a happily married couple!  And there’s also the aspect of Leia being so amazing, and Han being so unthreatened by that.  He remarks at one point in the book trilogy that some men might be uncomfortable with a wife who can think faster than they can, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.  AWW!

Your turn–what romantic stories do you like?  Any suggestions on ones I should read?

A Visit to the Night Circus

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Reviews6 Comments
The cover doesn't do it justice
The cover doesn’t do it justice

Erin Morganstern wrote a letter for NaNoWriMo a year or two ago, about how her novel, The Night Circus, began.  It started as a NaNo project, and when she got stuck, she sent the characters to a mysterious circus…which then took over the story.  Having finally read the book, I can easily imagine why!

The novel centers around Le Cirque des Reves (Circus of Dreams), and a contest of magic.  The two participants are Celia, the illusionist, and Marco, the founder’s assistant.  Both were entered into the contest as children by powerful and unscrupulous men; neither fully understands the rules, or has any guess at the consequences.  The circus becomes the venue, each one trying to outdo the other with more elaborate feats, more impressive tents—until the contest becomes more like a collaboration, and then finally a love story.  Woven through their story is the story of Bailey, a young man drawn to the circus in a way he can’t explain, and to Poppet and Widget, twins born backstage the same night the circus opened.

By all logic, the circus should be the backdrop for the contest and the romance—but in many ways, I think the contest and the romance are really just a framework for the circus.  This is a marvelously magical and surreal book, centered on a marvelously magical and surreal circus. In style it reminds me most of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, with its vague lines between dream and reality.

Grounded in circus traditions, like contortionists and acrobats, Le Cirque de Reves takes it all to a new and dizzyingly level.  The circus is a maze of tents, with always something new to discover–an illusionist who changes books into birds, a climb through clouds or a walk through an ice garden, the Wishing Tree with its branches full of candles, or the tent full of bottles where every scent tells a story.

One thread of the story is the reveurs, an informal society made up of people who love the circus.  They follow it from place to place, visiting favorite tents or discovering new ones, and sharing stories with each other about what they have found and what it means to them.  In many ways, every reader is invited to be a reveur.  We’re following the stories of Celia, Marco and Bailey, but for me at least, I was really following Le Cirque des Reves

Celia and Marco do fall in love eventually, but it’s a long way into the book before it happens, so don’t come into this expecting it to be primarily a romance.  Mostly, this is a trip to a very special circus.

Author’s Site: http://erinmorgenstern.com/

Other reviews:
The Literary Bunny
Literary Traveler
Read Write Run Mom
Anyone else?

Buy it here:The Night Circus

Life in Austen’s England…sort of

On By cherylmahoneyIn Reviews9 Comments

Midnight in AustenlandI first got interested in Austenland by Shannon Hale because I’ve enjoyed her fantasy novels so much.  The movie’s release helped push me to finally pick up the book (though I still haven’t watched the movie…)  One of my goals this year is to read sequels, so I recently read Midnight in Austenland too.  Consider this a two-fer review!

Both books are set in Pembrook Park, which promises a true Austen experience to devoted fans.  Women (it’s all women) come to the manor house for two weeks, where they dress up in period clothing, assume a character and interact with actors hired to entertain–and romance (in an Austen-appropriate way, of course).

Austenland centers on Jane, perennially unlucky in love and slightly too obsessed with the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice.  She sees the trip to Pembrook Park as a kind of immersion therapy to finally kick the habit and move on.  Once she arrives, though, she begins to wonder where the line between pretend-romance and real-romance actually lies (hint: not where she thinks it does!)

Midnight in Austenland takes a Northanger Abbey spin, bringing in a murder mystery to liven (deaden?) things up.  The heroine this time around is Charlotte, trying to cope with her divorce (from her lying, cheating, remarried-to-his-mistress husband).  She finds comfort in Austen’s novels, and hopes that a bit of pretend will help ready her for living real life again.  But then Charlotte thinks she finds a real dead body–and the question becomes whether there could be a real murder behind a pretend-mystery.  And there’s some romance too, of course!

I enjoyed both of these books quite a bit, but surprisingly enough I have to say I preferred the sequel!  Of course, Northanger Abbey is my favorite Austen novel…

The first book focuses almost exclusively on Jane’s romances, which is entertaining but still a somewhat thin thread.  There are also some themes around acting and reality.  One of the biggest arcs is about letting go of unhealthy fantasies but the ending, well, up-ended that message completely, and left that all rather confusing.  Leaving us pretty much with a light romance.  Still, a fun if somewhat slight book.

And then we get to Midnight in Austenland.  And there’s murder, and ghost stories, and a seriously brooding hero and a rather witty hero, and two truly unpleasant anti-heroes, and Charlotte’s struggle to find her confidence–which she does.  Spectacularly, I might add.  The romance was slightly out-of-left-field, but was sweet enough when it came that I’ll take it.

A few characters return from the first book, gaining more depth and becoming more sympathetic in the process.  Pembrook Park itself got much more interesting too.  Jane’s experience convinced me that I would be unutterably bored in Austen’s England (probably true).  Guests during Jane’s visit primarily sit around, drink tea, and do needlepoint.  Charlotte gets to play parlor games and go riding and take an excursion to a ruined castle.  So much more fun!

I think you could probably pick up the sequel before the first one without too much trouble, though reading them in order will explain a few points in the second book.  They’re really both worth reading anyway.  I can’t figure out from Hale’s website if she’s planning a third book, but I hope so–maybe a send-up of Persuasion, with two former lovers meeting at Pembrook Park?  I’d read it!

Author’s Site: http://www.squeetus.com/

Other reviews:
PG CWWN
Diary of an Eccentric
The Page Sage
Anyone else?

Buy them here: Austenland and Midnight in Austenland

Fiction Friday: The Wrath of Khan, Spoofed (Part Two)

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fiction Friday1 Comment

My recent experience with The Great Khan Adventure reminded me of a long-ago spoof I wrote of The Wrath of Khan.  Read Part One here.  Today the adventure continues.  I do not claim to own Star Trek, any of the characters, etc.

By the way, I’m much fonder of Kirk than this spoof occasionally implies…consider it lovingly poking fun!

[Upon the Enterprise‘s arrival at Regula I, all attempts to hail the scientists fail.  Kirk decides he should beam down, and wants to bring McCoy, for vague reasons.  Saavik insists on coming along.  They board the research center, only to find the scientists are dead.  They continue exploring.]

McCoy: Jim, I’m getting life signs!  In this large container over here.

Kirk: Let’s open it up!  Sure, it might be a trap laid by Khan, but we’ll just take that risk.

[They open the container, and find Chekov and Terrell.  They seem dazed.]

Chekov: Admiral…it was Khan…

Kirk: Duh.  Are you all right?

Chekov: Do I look alright?!  We’ve been controlled by Khan, who took over our ship and stuck slugs in our ears!  We are not alright!

Kirk: Uh…I’m sorry.

Chekov: Thank you, I appreciate the thought.

Terrell: Khan…he was on Ceti Alpha V.

Kirk: Sure, I put him there, remember?

Terrell: But we beamed to Ceti Alpha VI, which was actually Ceti Alpha V, and no one knows why we couldn’t tell the difference between Ceti Alpha V and Ceti Alpha VI, but there he was.

Kirk: Wait, wait, Ceti Alpha V was really Ceti Alpha VI, and Khan migrated from Ceti Alpha IV to Ceti Alpha VII, and—

Terrell: No, no, Ceti Alpha III…no, Ceti Alpha VI, or was it Ceti Alpha V?  Maybe Ceti Alpha VII was really Ceti Alpha…oh, who cares, he was there!

Kirk: Got it.  Continue. Continue reading “Fiction Friday: The Wrath of Khan, Spoofed (Part Two)” →