Yuuuuuuletide
Happy Boxing Day from this timezone! In addition to watching a lot of Fifth Generation Chinese cinema and Adventure Time I have also been eating many things. On Christmas Eve my family and I went out for Peranakan food; on Christmas morning I made pita pockets from scratch for breakfast, which were a huge success if I may say so myself; and in the evening there was the traditional dinner party at my mother's best friend's house where there was turkey and ham but also AMAZING SUCKLING PIG and about two hours of cleanup afterwards. Today, I'm meeting an old schoolfriend for Turkish food! Om nom nom.
Enough about my gustatory pursuits though. Yuletide is here! I have been enjoying many stories very much. Here's an incomplete list of recs:
There Is A Lovely Land - Borgen, Birgitte Nyborg Christensen/Philip Christensen
I have been craving Borgen fic forever and this just hit the spot - a really satisfying story about Denmark winning the Euros in 1992. For my part, I really enjoyed how personal patriotism interpolated with political ideology (oo-er brainless namechecking of ~feminist theory~) in a sharp, thoughtful way. But also, this is a brilliant read about wild possibilities and incandescent joy. GO READ. ♥
Priceless - 10 Things I Hate About You, Bring It On, Kat Stratford/Missy Pantone
I've never watched Bring It On, but this is a classic. Kat Stratford goes to Sarah Lawrence and figures things out about her sexuality, which makes her totally embarrassed about being such a cliche. Also features as running commentary some of the most hilarious send-ups of feminist rhetoric I've seen in ages. I also enjoyed reading Missy as an OC very very much!
Course History - Community, Annie Edison & Troy Barnes & Abed Nadir gen
"Some of the classes that Annie, Abed and Troy have taken together at Greendale over the years." Need I say more? This hits the comic, sometimes unreal tone of the show perfectly. Even if you don't watch Community (why are you even on the Internet then?!), you will enjoy this as a fic about silly college classes and shenanigans. Also, hi, favourite friendship OTP ever ♥
A Place To Call Your Own - Chronicles of Chrestomanci
One of the reasons I'm glad I read DWJ's novels this year is the wealth of Yuletide fic offerings it's opened up to me. This is very much a story about Janet settling into Chrestomanci Castle, and being killed by kindness. Stories about confused teenage girls wanting to be left alone? YES PLEASE. Really really well-written.
The Adventure of the Silver Bell - Tommy and Tuppence - Agatha Christie
TOMMY & TUPPENCE SOLVE A CHRISTMAS MYSTERY. This is fond and sweet and heartwarming, like the kind of comic Kate Beaton would draw about her own family.
a thing with feathers - To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout
I reread TKAM recently and was struck by how uncritical its examination of race was, in certain ways. This story makes up for that: a continuation of Scout's life after the novel (it's set after WWII), when she goes to New York City and meets new people. Incidentally, the two lines of the fic is one of the best beginnings I've come across in a long time.
Dyke - Mean Girls, Regina George/Janis Ian
The hurty flipside of the hilarious skewering of girl-on-girl hate politics that was Mean Girls. The middle school story of how Regina and Janis fell out; not quite what Regina told Cady.
John Childermass's Last Employer - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, John Childermass/Gilbert Norrell
Light on the slash content BUT TOTALLY AMAZING NEVERTHELESS. This gets down the tone of the novel so well - everything from the acerbic narratorial sides to the footnotes and backstory contained therein. Also, this is Childermass's story, and I don't think I've ever seen it done that well, but also generously written enough that one sees the fascinating side of Gilbert Norrell's personality.
Dark Towers & Lonely Roads - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Arabella Strange
"Arabella Strange at Christmas, 1817. A brief glimpse of her life after the end of the book." An incredibly well-crafted little gem of a story; I like this picture of her life. Also I find it delightful that Stephen Black and Lady Pole take tea with her once a week; and of course Lady Pole is wont to go on ill-timed rants about Jonathan Strange. ♥!
The King's Roads - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Martin Pale/Francis Pevensy
"Martin Pale, last of the Aureate magicians, was traveling in Faerie when he met a child who had been abducted from England over two hundred years earlier. This is what happened afterward." One of the most well-crafted faerie bargains ever. I am impressed.
Jingu All The Way - Journey to the West, Sun Wukong
Hilarious and farcical and exactly how Journey to the West fic should be written (verse interpolation included). I'm pretty sure I know who wrote this, based on the fact that I, uh, also devoured the tiny amount of Journey to the West fic available at Yuletide last year. ANYWAY. Cross-cultural Christmas fic! What more could you want!
This entry was originally posted at http://extemporally.dreamwidth.org/229362.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Enough about my gustatory pursuits though. Yuletide is here! I have been enjoying many stories very much. Here's an incomplete list of recs:
There Is A Lovely Land - Borgen, Birgitte Nyborg Christensen/Philip Christensen
I have been craving Borgen fic forever and this just hit the spot - a really satisfying story about Denmark winning the Euros in 1992. For my part, I really enjoyed how personal patriotism interpolated with political ideology (oo-er brainless namechecking of ~feminist theory~) in a sharp, thoughtful way. But also, this is a brilliant read about wild possibilities and incandescent joy. GO READ. ♥
Priceless - 10 Things I Hate About You, Bring It On, Kat Stratford/Missy Pantone
I've never watched Bring It On, but this is a classic. Kat Stratford goes to Sarah Lawrence and figures things out about her sexuality, which makes her totally embarrassed about being such a cliche. Also features as running commentary some of the most hilarious send-ups of feminist rhetoric I've seen in ages. I also enjoyed reading Missy as an OC very very much!
Course History - Community, Annie Edison & Troy Barnes & Abed Nadir gen
"Some of the classes that Annie, Abed and Troy have taken together at Greendale over the years." Need I say more? This hits the comic, sometimes unreal tone of the show perfectly. Even if you don't watch Community (why are you even on the Internet then?!), you will enjoy this as a fic about silly college classes and shenanigans. Also, hi, favourite friendship OTP ever ♥
A Place To Call Your Own - Chronicles of Chrestomanci
One of the reasons I'm glad I read DWJ's novels this year is the wealth of Yuletide fic offerings it's opened up to me. This is very much a story about Janet settling into Chrestomanci Castle, and being killed by kindness. Stories about confused teenage girls wanting to be left alone? YES PLEASE. Really really well-written.
The Adventure of the Silver Bell - Tommy and Tuppence - Agatha Christie
TOMMY & TUPPENCE SOLVE A CHRISTMAS MYSTERY. This is fond and sweet and heartwarming, like the kind of comic Kate Beaton would draw about her own family.
a thing with feathers - To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout
I reread TKAM recently and was struck by how uncritical its examination of race was, in certain ways. This story makes up for that: a continuation of Scout's life after the novel (it's set after WWII), when she goes to New York City and meets new people. Incidentally, the two lines of the fic is one of the best beginnings I've come across in a long time.
Dyke - Mean Girls, Regina George/Janis Ian
The hurty flipside of the hilarious skewering of girl-on-girl hate politics that was Mean Girls. The middle school story of how Regina and Janis fell out; not quite what Regina told Cady.
John Childermass's Last Employer - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, John Childermass/Gilbert Norrell
Light on the slash content BUT TOTALLY AMAZING NEVERTHELESS. This gets down the tone of the novel so well - everything from the acerbic narratorial sides to the footnotes and backstory contained therein. Also, this is Childermass's story, and I don't think I've ever seen it done that well, but also generously written enough that one sees the fascinating side of Gilbert Norrell's personality.
Dark Towers & Lonely Roads - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Arabella Strange
"Arabella Strange at Christmas, 1817. A brief glimpse of her life after the end of the book." An incredibly well-crafted little gem of a story; I like this picture of her life. Also I find it delightful that Stephen Black and Lady Pole take tea with her once a week; and of course Lady Pole is wont to go on ill-timed rants about Jonathan Strange. ♥!
The King's Roads - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Martin Pale/Francis Pevensy
"Martin Pale, last of the Aureate magicians, was traveling in Faerie when he met a child who had been abducted from England over two hundred years earlier. This is what happened afterward." One of the most well-crafted faerie bargains ever. I am impressed.
Jingu All The Way - Journey to the West, Sun Wukong
Hilarious and farcical and exactly how Journey to the West fic should be written (verse interpolation included). I'm pretty sure I know who wrote this, based on the fact that I, uh, also devoured the tiny amount of Journey to the West fic available at Yuletide last year. ANYWAY. Cross-cultural Christmas fic! What more could you want!
This entry was originally posted at http://extemporally.dreamwidth.org/229362.html. Please comment there using OpenID.