Author Appreciation Week: Peter S. Beagle
Last week on twitter, Heidi (author of up-coming novel Sea, 2010) had a terrific idea! She thought that this week we should all pay tribute to the authors that have inspired us to greatness. Anyone can play. All you have to do is post and link your posts on twitter with #AAW and @HeidiRKling. Mon-Fri you can post one or two authors a day.
My Monday author is someone that I have admired since before I knew I wanted to be a writer. There were still thoughts of paleontology or neurosurgery swirling in my wee mind. In fact, at one point I may have wanted to be a dinosaur neurologist. The brain fascinated me and walnut-sized brains even more so. Too bad soft tissue doesn't stand the test of time, or I'd be nattering on about that instead of posting about awesome books here. >:D
Peter S. Beagle
One day, my uncle (who owned enough movies to start his own Blockbuster twenty years ago!) asked if I had ever seen The Last Unicorn. At the time, my family enjoyed Disney & Bluth films, but we'd never seen this one. It only took one viewing to get me completely and utterly hooked.
Synopsis for those unfamiliar with the movie/book:
The story's told from that of a female unicorn who believes herself to be the last after overhearing a conversation between two hunters in her wood. She then embarks on a hero's journey to find out if she truly is the last. Her quest is joined by the incompetent (though well-meaning) magician, Schmendrick, and a down-on-her-luck woman, Molly Grue. After the fierce Red Bull attacks the party, Schmendrick transforms the unicorn into a human woman. She takes on the name Lady Amalthea when they stay at King Haggard's castle. Lady Amalthea, feeling more human than unicorn, begins to fall for Prince Lir and forgets her quest. Even when King Haggard accuses her of being a unicorn, sent to free those he's trapped in the sea, her eyes go from remembering her wood to simply reflecting King Haggard's face. Molly and Schmendrick won't let her become human, and they help her remember who she is and what she's come to do.
Immediately, I checked the book out from the library. I remember their copy. Its spine was showing through a ratty cover. The pages had been dog-eared in certain places, with dirty fingerprints along the edges. There were numerous stains inside. All the signs of a well-read book.
I read and re-read that book 3 or 4 times in the weeks I had it checked out. When I finally had to return it, I felt like I was parting with an old friend. These were the days before amazon.com or bn.com. The local bookstore didn't carry the title; the news shocked me. How could such a beloved book be so hard to find? I spent days sifting through used bookstores in the hopes of finding my own copy. The store owner told me that it was a hard book to keep on the shelf because so many people requested it.
For years I went without my own copy, returning again and again to the library's copy. Until one fateful trip when I discovered that the person who had last checked it out never returned it. My little teenage heart broke right then and there; however, the internet was starting to take a hold in my life. Suddenly, I found website dedicated to not only The Last Unicorn, but also a dozen other books by Mr. Beagle that I'd never heard of or read. The world opened up exponentially.
That first book, The Last Unicorn, was sent in a purely fantastical world. It was probably the first fantasy book I'd ever read, and certainly the first I'd loved as much as I did/do. It's been a habit of mine to re-read it every couple of years. I think when I get home tonight I'll pull it out and start the adventure all over again.
The resurgence of this book's popularity and the secondary story, Two Hearts (set in the same world with familiar characters), has made finding the book for purchase that much easier. I now am the proud owner, not only of the 25th year anniversary edition, but also my very own copy. (Photo above.)
You can read more about Peter S. Beagle on his homepage or follow him on twitter.
My Monday author is someone that I have admired since before I knew I wanted to be a writer. There were still thoughts of paleontology or neurosurgery swirling in my wee mind. In fact, at one point I may have wanted to be a dinosaur neurologist. The brain fascinated me and walnut-sized brains even more so. Too bad soft tissue doesn't stand the test of time, or I'd be nattering on about that instead of posting about awesome books here. >:D
Peter S. Beagle
One day, my uncle (who owned enough movies to start his own Blockbuster twenty years ago!) asked if I had ever seen The Last Unicorn. At the time, my family enjoyed Disney & Bluth films, but we'd never seen this one. It only took one viewing to get me completely and utterly hooked.
Synopsis for those unfamiliar with the movie/book:
The story's told from that of a female unicorn who believes herself to be the last after overhearing a conversation between two hunters in her wood. She then embarks on a hero's journey to find out if she truly is the last. Her quest is joined by the incompetent (though well-meaning) magician, Schmendrick, and a down-on-her-luck woman, Molly Grue. After the fierce Red Bull attacks the party, Schmendrick transforms the unicorn into a human woman. She takes on the name Lady Amalthea when they stay at King Haggard's castle. Lady Amalthea, feeling more human than unicorn, begins to fall for Prince Lir and forgets her quest. Even when King Haggard accuses her of being a unicorn, sent to free those he's trapped in the sea, her eyes go from remembering her wood to simply reflecting King Haggard's face. Molly and Schmendrick won't let her become human, and they help her remember who she is and what she's come to do.
Immediately, I checked the book out from the library. I remember their copy. Its spine was showing through a ratty cover. The pages had been dog-eared in certain places, with dirty fingerprints along the edges. There were numerous stains inside. All the signs of a well-read book.
I read and re-read that book 3 or 4 times in the weeks I had it checked out. When I finally had to return it, I felt like I was parting with an old friend. These were the days before amazon.com or bn.com. The local bookstore didn't carry the title; the news shocked me. How could such a beloved book be so hard to find? I spent days sifting through used bookstores in the hopes of finding my own copy. The store owner told me that it was a hard book to keep on the shelf because so many people requested it.
For years I went without my own copy, returning again and again to the library's copy. Until one fateful trip when I discovered that the person who had last checked it out never returned it. My little teenage heart broke right then and there; however, the internet was starting to take a hold in my life. Suddenly, I found website dedicated to not only The Last Unicorn, but also a dozen other books by Mr. Beagle that I'd never heard of or read. The world opened up exponentially.
That first book, The Last Unicorn, was sent in a purely fantastical world. It was probably the first fantasy book I'd ever read, and certainly the first I'd loved as much as I did/do. It's been a habit of mine to re-read it every couple of years. I think when I get home tonight I'll pull it out and start the adventure all over again.
The resurgence of this book's popularity and the secondary story, Two Hearts (set in the same world with familiar characters), has made finding the book for purchase that much easier. I now am the proud owner, not only of the 25th year anniversary edition, but also my very own copy. (Photo above.)
You can read more about Peter S. Beagle on his homepage or follow him on twitter.