I'm a little sad that there's no "Yes, I finished it for the nth time!" option. ^-~
I can't say one way or the other, but while this book mostly carries the feel of a medieval-esque world, there are moments that jar you and make you wonder.
Aye, definitely. The magazine throws me every time too. It's just so... unexpected and out of place in the rest of the book.
(Can I suggest you don't read The Line Between second? I did that and it nearly made me give up on Beagle's work. Tamsin, by the by, is lovely. I think you might be a little disappointed by the lack of ghost-cat in it, but if you're like me, you'll find it just right all the same. ^-~)
That out of the way... My introduction to this book was much like yours, only I think I found out it was a book sooner. My parents gave it to me when I was seventeen. The movie I'd watched and loved since I was about three years old.
I watched it in the old Dutch dub (which is gorgeous. The new one is rubbish.), but I could still tell which lines came directly from the book. (And that
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A question about THE LINE BETWEEN: did that throw you because of it being nothing but short stories, and perhaps you prefer novels, or did you just not like the stories?
I don't recall having any questions about the events in the movie. I'd thought about re-watching it for the sake of the challenge, and to compare and contrast, but I really didn't have the time and my hubby wasn't in the mood to watch it with me anyway (I think when we watched it on DVD it came close to tarnishing his memories of it as a kid), and it's no fun watching stuff by myself. :) So I can't really answer that question. I did like how the book expanded the world beyond what I knew from the movie, particularly in the example you gave of just how long they stayed in the castle. :) That was interesting to note, and more realistic in developing the love story between Lír and Amalthea.
I'm really glad you got a chance to read it again, though. I'm not sure if or when I'll re-read it for myself, but it'll be a while down the road.
The short answer is: I didn't like any of the stories (save Two Hearts).
The long answer is more complicated. I never connected to the stories, never felt that same magic and essence that makes TLU such a beautiful book.
Part of that is down to bias. I find it very hard to get into first person, even when it's as well written as it is in Two Hearts and Tamsin, and most of the stories are in that pov. I really, really wish I could just chalk up all my reaction to that bias, but I can't. A large part of it, but not all. If it were, by rights I should have disliked Two Hearts and Tamsin just as much and I don't. *ruffles hair* I'm sorry I don't have too many details for you. It's been a while since I read the anthology and the burbling I wrote when I'd finished it isn't really helping me narrow down the other reasons (without risking prejudicing you incredibly
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Re: THE LINE BETWEEN: fair enough. That's exactly what I was poking for, to be honest. :) I've got no issues with the first person POV, so I'll be in good shape. :)
And thanks for explaining what you meant. I can what you mean now, with the prophecy and Lír having to die and all. Good stuff. :)
I there, here from bookish, and I love this book, too. :)
I've read another Black Unicorn, this one by Tanith Lee, and it's part of a trilogy that continues with Gold Unicorn (which I've read) and Red Unicorn (which I haven't). The only reason I didn't read Red Unicorn is because I didn't know until recently it even existed.
Yes, she's a favorite of mine too. I love most of all her Silver Metal Lover, a scifi coming of age story, and Red as Blood, a short-story collection of adult retellings of fairy tales.
Gah! I have to leave for work soon, so I can't fully participate in the conversation just now. However! I wanted to add some unicorn books to the mix:
There's John Lee's five-book, I think, unicorn series starting with The Unicorn Quest.
Then there's Tanith Lee's books, very interesting: Black Unicorn, Gold Unicorn, and Red Unicorn.
And Last Mountain by Robert C. Fleet.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head, besides the recent Rampant by Diana Peterfreund.
Also, re: the anachronisms in the text, PSB did say they were also intentional and a stylistic homage. It's in the interview too, but I must rush away and can't look up who he's imitating.
When he's talking about deliberately emulating other writers while writing The Last Unicorn, PSB says: "The anachronisms, those come from T.H. White." I just figured that covered the magazine as well as the taco.
I remember that, but I haven't read White and I thought Beagle was referring to style. Does White seriously put such modernisms as magazines and tacos in his work?
Ooo! Oooh! Why, yes.cywrainDecember 31 2009, 17:27:39 UTC
I can indeed recommend some other unicorn stories.
About the same time I first read The Last Unicorn, I read The Birth of the Firebringer by Meredith Ann Pierce and The Black Unicorn by Tanith Lee -- of the two, I love Firebringer the most. Both are firsts in a series.
There's also Michael Bishop's Unicorn Mountain, an adult-fiction standalone that I haven't read yet but do intend to someday.
Bruce Coville's written a lot of juvenile books about unicorns, and there are quite a few anthologies of unicorn short stories that I remember as quite excellent. I remember Jack Dann's Unicorns!! particularly fondly.
Re: Ooo! Oooh! Why, yes.cywrainDecember 31 2009, 17:57:58 UTC
Vaughn needs to publish a collection of her short stories. Because I say so. You know how long I've been trying to track down some of the magazine issues wherein her stories have their sole publication? YEARS.
I've read a couple of urban fantasy novels with evil vampires as the book's scary monster. Someone already mentioned Peterfreund's Rampant (which was actually very good) and there was Peter Ball's Horn (which I had to look up in order to remember the author and title, which speaks enough about the book, I think).
What age group would you suggest as appropriate for The Last Unicorn?
I'm about to really confuse myself: what do scary monsters as evil vampires have to do with unicorns? :)
Age group? Hell, I think as soon as a kid is able to sit down with a chapter book (and has the stamina to read something that's 200 pages long), they can pick this one up. And there's no age max either. I enjoyed this very much, even though I'm a grumpy cynic. :)
...that's not you confusing yourself, that's me doing three things at once and then neglecting to read over my comment before posting it. Evil unicorns as the monster. As opposed to vampires or werewolves or what have you. Bet that makes more sense now, hmm?
Heh, I read YA all the time so I'm not concerned with a max age. I have a six-year-old who we're reading with, though. She likes Roald Dahl, but Alice in Wonderland is at times difficult for her to grasp.
I haven't read Alice in Wonderland, so I can't compare. Do you read to her? If so, I bet reading THE LAST UNICORN would work well (says she who does not have children and therefore has no clue). :)
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I can't say one way or the other, but while this book mostly carries the feel of a medieval-esque world, there are moments that jar you and make you wonder.
Aye, definitely. The magazine throws me every time too. It's just so... unexpected and out of place in the rest of the book.
(Can I suggest you don't read The Line Between second? I did that and it nearly made me give up on Beagle's work.
Tamsin, by the by, is lovely. I think you might be a little disappointed by the lack of ghost-cat in it, but if you're like me, you'll find it just right all the same. ^-~)
That out of the way... My introduction to this book was much like yours, only I think I found out it was a book sooner. My parents gave it to me when I was seventeen. The movie I'd watched and loved since I was about three years old.
I watched it in the old Dutch dub (which is gorgeous. The new one is rubbish.), but I could still tell which lines came directly from the book. (And that ( ... )
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I don't recall having any questions about the events in the movie. I'd thought about re-watching it for the sake of the challenge, and to compare and contrast, but I really didn't have the time and my hubby wasn't in the mood to watch it with me anyway (I think when we watched it on DVD it came close to tarnishing his memories of it as a kid), and it's no fun watching stuff by myself. :) So I can't really answer that question. I did like how the book expanded the world beyond what I knew from the movie, particularly in the example you gave of just how long they stayed in the castle. :) That was interesting to note, and more realistic in developing the love story between Lír and Amalthea.
I'm really glad you got a chance to read it again, though. I'm not sure if or when I'll re-read it for myself, but it'll be a while down the road.
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The long answer is more complicated. I never connected to the stories, never felt that same magic and essence that makes TLU such a beautiful book.
Part of that is down to bias. I find it very hard to get into first person, even when it's as well written as it is in Two Hearts and Tamsin, and most of the stories are in that pov. I really, really wish I could just chalk up all my reaction to that bias, but I can't. A large part of it, but not all. If it were, by rights I should have disliked Two Hearts and Tamsin just as much and I don't. *ruffles hair* I'm sorry I don't have too many details for you. It's been a while since I read the anthology and the burbling I wrote when I'd finished it isn't really helping me narrow down the other reasons (without risking prejudicing you incredibly ( ... )
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And thanks for explaining what you meant. I can what you mean now, with the prophecy and Lír having to die and all. Good stuff. :)
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I've read another Black Unicorn, this one by Tanith Lee, and it's part of a trilogy that continues with Gold Unicorn (which I've read) and Red Unicorn (which I haven't). The only reason I didn't read Red Unicorn is because I didn't know until recently it even existed.
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There's John Lee's five-book, I think, unicorn series starting with The Unicorn Quest.
Then there's Tanith Lee's books, very interesting: Black Unicorn, Gold Unicorn, and Red Unicorn.
And Last Mountain by Robert C. Fleet.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head, besides the recent Rampant by Diana Peterfreund.
Also, re: the anachronisms in the text, PSB did say they were also intentional and a stylistic homage. It's in the interview too, but I must rush away and can't look up who he's imitating.
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About the same time I first read The Last Unicorn, I read The Birth of the Firebringer by Meredith Ann Pierce and The Black Unicorn by Tanith Lee -- of the two, I love Firebringer the most. Both are firsts in a series.
There's also Michael Bishop's Unicorn Mountain, an adult-fiction standalone that I haven't read yet but do intend to someday.
Bruce Coville's written a lot of juvenile books about unicorns, and there are quite a few anthologies of unicorn short stories that I remember as quite excellent. I remember Jack Dann's Unicorns!! particularly fondly.
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[/dark mutterings]
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What age group would you suggest as appropriate for The Last Unicorn?
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Age group? Hell, I think as soon as a kid is able to sit down with a chapter book (and has the stamina to read something that's 200 pages long), they can pick this one up. And there's no age max either. I enjoyed this very much, even though I'm a grumpy cynic. :)
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Heh, I read YA all the time so I'm not concerned with a max age. I have a six-year-old who we're reading with, though. She likes Roald Dahl, but Alice in Wonderland is at times difficult for her to grasp.
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I haven't read Alice in Wonderland, so I can't compare. Do you read to her? If so, I bet reading THE LAST UNICORN would work well (says she who does not have children and therefore has no clue). :)
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