Listening and reading and thinking about writing.

[heliopausa]

There's been more listening than reading happening for me lately.  Music, for starters - a terrific Bach concert, and another of unthemed scraps from all over, which began with Octet for Eight Strings (Prelude and Scherzo) by Shostakovich which was new to me, and brilliant.

But I've been listening to literature, too, courtesy of Librivox - to Arthur

Comments

[asakiyume]

Of course! Tofu counts as a pulse too! And peanuts--nice job!

I'm growing some soybeans for edamame--do you know the dish? It's the soybean pods, lightly boiled and salted, very simple and delicious.

Your reading sounds rich and varied, and definitely food for all kinds of thought. (The way I'm talking about food, you'd think I hadn't eaten, and yet I have...)

[heliopausa]

I do know it, and it is simple and good. But I don't have access (that I've found) to the beans still in the pod. (I'm wondering now if they're growable from the dry seed. It'd have to be in a pot.)

I've looked at my reading since, and wondered if The White Company could be described as noblebright. :) (Of course, it's historical, not fantasy, so not really in that particular race.) Sir Nigel is certainly noble and good, and Alleyn, the squire is unswervingly good; but what they mostly do is engage in combat and observe the world around them. Alleyn does intervene to stop a fight once, and stops someone from telling a lie, but that seems a bit thin, for a whole book'sworth of adventure.

About Reepicheep, of course, there is no question. :)

[asakiyume]

Now that's an interesting thought: using the term to describe a character rather than a work as a whole. C.S. Lewis's whole (fictional) oeuvre would come under the umbrella for sure.

Some of the people commenting on the entry were wondering why the term was necessary at all, and I think when we think of chivalrous knights, whether human or mouse, it does seem we've had characters with these qualities ever since we've been telling stories, so in a sense, they're right.

I definitely got the feeling that the term was adopted in response to the (perceived) popularity of so-called grimdark stories. I haven't read any stories i'd characterize as grimdark, which would lead me to wonder if it's a kind of paper tiger to oppose, except for the fact that I've heard numerous folks on LJ bemoaning how popular it is as a story style. People usually raise up Game of Thrones as an example, but other things as well. I think the people writing those stories might say they're writing stories not that are "grimdark" but in which people behave in what

[heliopausa]

Yes, I think that it's been a major strand in story-telling forever - the Fairy Queene, or Damon and Pythias, say. It's a strand I like a lot, and I'm very much with the concept of writing/publishing/promoting stories that don't deride or erode human values - but I'm not very keen on the term, or the idea of trying to find a label for such. :( But I'm not a book publisher, and I hope the project goes well.

I'm not sure how new the grimdark aspect is; noir and horror have been around for a good long time - is grimdark just a word for horror-with-humans? Nor do I really know how prevalent it is now - I'm very very under-read in contemporary fantasy! I have noticed in just about every genre a fashion for giving stories a darkish sheen - e.g. the fashion for using the word "bone/s" in the title (just as there's a fashion for "the something's something". The Bone-speaker's child - title free to a good home.)

[asakiyume]

(And I really like the quote describing the man gradually waking up to the fact that the woman is quite knowledgeable.)

[heliopausa]

I also laughed at how he instantly switched to mentally congratulating her on not being conceited - which is so idiotically patronising, and also conceals a healthy dose of self-congratulation for his own learning. :D
(But he's basically a nice young man, and comes good in the end.!

(and how hilariously dry is that "told her all that he knew" alongside "he was far from ignorant"! :D Oh, it was a long evening for the woman too polite to interrupt!)

[wellinghall]

I haven't read The Edge of the World, but would like to. I know a *little* about the period; Norse voyages to Iceland, then to Greenland, and finally to America; north Atlantic voyages by the British and others; and contacts between Britain and Europe.

[heliopausa]

It's a very interesting, but rather frustrating read, so far. I'll read further, and report.

[wellinghall]

I enjoyed The White Company, but hadn't made the Lewis / Reepicheep connection - thank you!

[heliopausa]

The phrase with "bobance" in it was what started me off - connecting of course with Puddleglum's (reputed) "bobance and bounce". But then the combination of little stature and great valour made me wonder. :)
And you're welcome! :)

[heliopausa]

Well... I wouldn't want to be guilty of false advertising - it is a bit florid and slow-moving, and it doesn't build to one real adventure - it's more a series of episodes, and no-one except our hero develops or changes through the story. There's of course lots of conflict and killing (not ghoulishly dwelt on, but there it is), and it's of its period in its pro-Englishness*.
On the plus side is the research about ships and legal matters and so on, and the figure of Sir Nigel, and occasional fun episodes, like the roadside dispute between two herring-eating philosophers (schools of Duns Scotus and William of Ockham).
As to your comparison - Doyle is a lighter read, but Scott does plot better! :D
*It does concede that the French are worthy enemies, but the Spanish are sneaky and unreliable allies, which fits exactly the prejudices of the time of writing.