50bookchallenge, 15000pages
Book #43 -- Charles DeLint, Little (Grrl) Lost, 268 pages.
Yes, you have read the title right, and no, it's not out yet. This is the prize of my ARC haul from ALA this year and I about squealed when I saw it on the shelf. This one along with Robin McKinley's new book had me bouncing with glee at the Penguin booth, much to the amusement of the booth representative. And it is definitely worth the excitement. As DeLint novels go, it's probably in the middle -- it lacks the truly magical nature of Moonheart and some of the earlier Newford stuff (or perhaps I'm more cynical than I used to be) but it is still high-end fantasy and DeLint has not lost his ability to make the magical characters just as real and sympathetic as the human ones. The story-line follows two tracks -- that of T.J., a country girl whose family has just moved to the suburbs and who is having trouble reconciling to city life, and Elisabeth Wood, the Little who T.J. discovers living in her floorboards. The two get separated on a mission to find out more about Elisabeth's Little heritage and the narrative switches between the two as they both attempt to contact our old friends Sheri Piper and Jenky Wood. Of course many life lessons are learned along the way, but the story is so engrossing you almost don't notice that there really are Morals. Which is pretty much how DeLint's work has always been. It's a fast read too -- I picked it up on Saturday and finished it early this morning, and this is while attending other conference stuff as well.
Book #44 -- Frank Beddor, The Looking Glass Wars, 358 pages.
This was an ARC from last year, and the first in a trilogy, the second of which was another ARC score from this year. It is an incredible retelling of Alice in Wonderland, but this isn't the Disney version. Seven-year-old Alyss Heart's world is turned upside down in a moment as her Aunt Redd breaks into the palace, slaughtering Alyss's parents the Queen and King of Wonderland, and forcing her into exile in an alternate world -- London. Alyss lives in England for 13 years, ultimately accepting, at the urgings of her friends and adoptive family, that her memories of being a princess in Wonderland are nothing more than the imaginings of a traumatised child. Then, on her wedding day, she is found by Redd's forces, rescued by the Alyssian resistance, and taken back to Wonderland to hopefully defeat Redd, and resume her rightful place as Queen. This is one of the most imaginative books I've read all year, and I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.
2007 Book List
Progress toward goals: 176/365 = 48.2%
Books: 44/50= 88%
Pages: 14780/15000 = 98.5%
Yes, you have read the title right, and no, it's not out yet. This is the prize of my ARC haul from ALA this year and I about squealed when I saw it on the shelf. This one along with Robin McKinley's new book had me bouncing with glee at the Penguin booth, much to the amusement of the booth representative. And it is definitely worth the excitement. As DeLint novels go, it's probably in the middle -- it lacks the truly magical nature of Moonheart and some of the earlier Newford stuff (or perhaps I'm more cynical than I used to be) but it is still high-end fantasy and DeLint has not lost his ability to make the magical characters just as real and sympathetic as the human ones. The story-line follows two tracks -- that of T.J., a country girl whose family has just moved to the suburbs and who is having trouble reconciling to city life, and Elisabeth Wood, the Little who T.J. discovers living in her floorboards. The two get separated on a mission to find out more about Elisabeth's Little heritage and the narrative switches between the two as they both attempt to contact our old friends Sheri Piper and Jenky Wood. Of course many life lessons are learned along the way, but the story is so engrossing you almost don't notice that there really are Morals. Which is pretty much how DeLint's work has always been. It's a fast read too -- I picked it up on Saturday and finished it early this morning, and this is while attending other conference stuff as well.
Book #44 -- Frank Beddor, The Looking Glass Wars, 358 pages.
This was an ARC from last year, and the first in a trilogy, the second of which was another ARC score from this year. It is an incredible retelling of Alice in Wonderland, but this isn't the Disney version. Seven-year-old Alyss Heart's world is turned upside down in a moment as her Aunt Redd breaks into the palace, slaughtering Alyss's parents the Queen and King of Wonderland, and forcing her into exile in an alternate world -- London. Alyss lives in England for 13 years, ultimately accepting, at the urgings of her friends and adoptive family, that her memories of being a princess in Wonderland are nothing more than the imaginings of a traumatised child. Then, on her wedding day, she is found by Redd's forces, rescued by the Alyssian resistance, and taken back to Wonderland to hopefully defeat Redd, and resume her rightful place as Queen. This is one of the most imaginative books I've read all year, and I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.
2007 Book List
Progress toward goals: 176/365 = 48.2%
Books: 44/50= 88%
Pages: 14780/15000 = 98.5%