The Book of the Remembrancer

Book Review: Lirael by Garth Nix

Lirael is the second book in Garth Nix's "Abhorsen Trilogy".  Unfortunately, this semester has been quite busy and I was only just able to finish it this past week--two months after finishing the first book Sabriel (and having to pause on the last 70ish pages of this over 700ish monster while I went to Mexico over Thanksgiving week...). Despite its size, and the forced pauses in between, the pages seemed to have flown by and there never seemed a dull moment.

To avoid any potential spoilers for the first book in the series, this is going to have to be pretty vague~

In this installment of the "Abhorsen Trilogy", we meet some new characters (like Lirael) that do have some connection to the characters of the first story. While I miss the characters of the first book I'd grown attached to, Lirael's rather... depressive personality was interesting once I'd pulled apart the different dimension and motivations of it. Especially the way that she changed her focus, seemingly without realizing it.




(This is all too vague. Spoilers will now commence)



At first I thought her single-minded desire to possess The Sight and to be a "true Daughter of the Clayr" was annoying and childish. But then I thought, how ostracizing must that feel, to be in such a closed society and to not have even the most fundamental of skills? It would be like how Link would have felt if a fairy had never come to him since he wasn't a true Kokiri child; It would be how Neville would have felt if his grandmother's fears had been true and he really was a squib and he never got his Hogwarts letter; It was how Charlotte Lucas began to feel and why she decided to marry Mr. Collins. That anxiety and fear that there is something fundamentally wrong with you, that you are somehow other from all of your peers, and that it makes you less of a person is a very heavy thing to deal with. I think Garth Nix very accurately portrayed what that anxiety and paranoia would do to a person and how it would color their interactions with other people and the world in general. So while she just seemed to be whining at first, I came to appreciate and root for her as the story went on.

And now for Sameth. He was so capable, selfless, and brave in that first glimpse of him across the wall that the young man he is portrayed as at home afterwards (shirking responsibilities, hiding from people, and incapacitated by fear) was quite surprising. However, he admitted to never fitting in there due to the assumption that he would take up the mantle of the Abhorsen. He'd been touched by Death, and in the time it took for him to reclaim that piece of his soul the doubt in himself was overwhelming to the point where anything he could accomplish would have been better than the disappointment of inaction towards The Book of the Dead. And so he left. He wants to be useful, but going into Death (quite rightly) terrifies him, and so he also feels that he is a failure and will not be accepted by his peers/family.

Lirael and Sameth both have growing up that they need to do, and unfortunately there are quite dire circumstances that must be dealt with, so they are doing the best that they can.

And Now a Recap After Our Intermission...

With the semester coming to a close, let's take a moment to reflect, shall we?

* Over the first weekend in October, Our traveler went on Fall Retreat, swam in freezing Lake Michigan, and was Baptized~

* Somewhere in the course of all of this, she had an epiphany of what to do post-graduation. And so, the rigorous application for the JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching ) Program began, as well volunteer hours devoted to the lovely bound friends in the stacks of the Rare Book and Special Collections Library (including the vault!). So, currently she hopes to teach English in Japan for a year or two (and work off as much of her school debt as possible) before returning stateside to enter a *gasp* graduate school program to earn her Masters of Library Sciences (why she didn't see all of this coming as the natural course of action the World may never know...)

* Eventually, Thanksgiving Week came around, and it was off to Mexico! This little update could not do justice to the revitalization and perspective-shifting effect it had on her, so let's just suffice it to say that she is living life with a new perspective; one that's been a long time coming.

* There were outings to the Theatre to sit in the middle of a Russian play (Tolstoy: "Three Sisters")

 

* There were crazy fun photo shoots and time spent and conversations had with the best of friends

* And the Shire was a beautiful harbor in the semester's storm

 In the absence of updates life has continued. Does recording it give it more validation? If we don't recall it and reminisce over it will the importance of the events and the emotions evoked, simply fade? I don't think so. We are changed, even ever-so-infinitesimally by the simple choices and moments in our lives. It is the culmination of all of those little choices, and not the obviously daunting ones, that truly showcase our personalities and who/what we desire to become.

The Book of the Dead

Book Review: Sabriel by Garth Nix

Sabriel is the first book in Garth Nix's "Abhorsen Trilogy". It's one of those books I had always glanced at while trying to find what I was looking for in the fantasy or young adult sections because it had such an interesting title; but for whatever reason, I never picked it up. When my friend Katie started reading it and recommended it, I was quick to agree and soon after found that many of my friends had already read it (one even admitting she had debated whether or not to recommend it to me, as it seemed like a book I would like but it would perhaps give too much fuel to my already vivid nightmares). 

However, I was not dissuaded and soon enthusiastically dove into the river of the Dead, following the necromancer Sabriel on her journey (which I will not be spoiling ;3 )

I really liked the book Sabriel for a few different reasons: 

First, I had never read a book specifically about a necromancer before, and so I appreciated the different light they were shed in and their ability to quiet the Dead as apposed to the usual power-hungry sorts simply seeking cheap guards or servants. 

Secondly, the style of the writing was very effective. It seems I've read too many poorly emotive first person narratives that become dull part-way through, or omnisciently narrated fantasy novels that use too modern of a vernacular. Sabriel had omniscient narration that seemed to fluidly shift in and out of a particular character's mind at any given time, and also kept consistent the speech and thought patterns of the characters and the general narration. 

Furthermore, the relationships between the characters and how they viewed themselves did not seem forced, or haphazardly constructed. Evidence of their circumstances and upbringing made their personalities ring true (and they never broke down into a whining wreck because "things in the real world were so much harder/scarier/tiring/etc."; which is always appreciated. I understand those characters are usually supposed to be empathized with, but I usually just lose respect for them...)

Overall it was exciting to read and had one of the most fast-paced last 1/3 of a book I have ever read ^^;; I'm excited to pick up the second in the series, Lirael, and see how the Kingdom has fared since Sabriel left off~

Journey to the South

Well folks, she's officially beyond slight interest and has now actually committed to yet another adventure abroad, though this one being of a more spiritual than academic nature. That's right, she's headed on the Mexico Mission trip~

She's always felt that she's been living a pretty selfish life. She takes for granted the people and the opportunities college life grant her and usually just scrapes by instead of really flourishing. To that effect, mission work has always been appealing to her in that it would force her to live solely and sacrificially for other people and to completely disregard her own comfort. More importantly, it would force her to make God her sole source of peace instead of constantly using escapist tendencies like reading to superficially feel better moment by moment.

Her church announces and goes on this house building trip to Tijuana every year, and yet for some reason this year she actually felt like she could go (expenses aside...). One of the main goals of the trip is to teach first time mission goers what mission life is like and what's happening around the world. She's excited to get her feet wet with something she feels God's really trying to get her attention with!

They still have a bit to go before the Thanksgiving week departure, and she still has to figure out/raise support for the mandatory $850 travel/housing/food fee and then as much of the cost of a house (~$800) as she can get. Bring on the extra work shifts ^^;

Summer Book List (take VI: final)

("Summer" having technically started on Friday, May 4th)

READ:

A Discovery of Witches

Percy Jackson: TheLightning Thief

A Well Timed Enchantment

Heir Apparent

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Hunter’s Moon
Library Wars (vol 1-7)
Divergent
Wildwood Dancing
Percy Jackson: The Titans Curse
Ender's Game

American Gods
Percy Jackson: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Percy Jackson: The Last Olympian

Trickster's Choice
Trickster's Queen
Graceling
The Graveyard Book
Wicked Lovely
Carnival of Souls
Shadow of Night
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

READING:
The First Confessor

PLANNING TO READ:

The Eyes of the Dragon
The Talisman
Black House


"Carnival of Souls" is the second book by Melissa Marr I've read, and I liked it a lot better than "Wicked Lovely" (not that it was that bad ^^; ). Her use of multiple perspectives made the other world and creatures she created seem much more believable in their motivations, while still maintaining a mystery as to what was going to happen next. And I like not knowing~

Oh my goodness, Deborah Harkness PLEASE write the next book in the All Souls Trilogy soon, because "Shadow of Night" was amazing! Her way of weaving in historical facts and personas, as well as growing the main characters and answers to questions that lead to two more questions... It was quite the engaging read~

Oh Harry, how I missed your snappy comments! Re-reading the Sorcerer's Stone for the first time since grade school (and the movies were being churned out)  was a lot of fun! Everything went by much faster than I remembered it!

(a short caveat: I also read 18 books in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy-->Song of Solomon) and a seven part fanfiction, with each of the seven stories averaging the same number of pages as a Percy Jackson book (~130 pgs). I didn't add these during the updates, but they are the reason why there might have been differences in the amount of books I read each segment of the summer.)

There's a website I've started using called Goodreads.com that let's you track the books you've read and gives you recommendations for the different genres. I highly recommend it, it helps me satisfy the obsessive compulsive desire for cataloging (and we can be friends, if you want~).

A Jolly Holiday

Despite our heroine's many protestations concerning her ability (*cough* or lack there of *cough*) to speak Japanese, she was most graciously asked to put her talents to use in helping out a friend. His family was hosting a gentleman from Japan for a week as a sort of Michigan and Japan annual exchange program. Yoshizo-san said he had very little grasp of English, and even though her friend and his sister had taken classes on Japanese, they were several years out of practice and could only carry on with the basics. And so she was invited to dinner and then on an excursion the next day to see the lakeside dunes to the west.

She was excited to reunite with her friend and his welcoming family for the first time since the spring, but the day approached with fearful anxiety as well. "What am I to do? I haven't spoken all summer, and the poor fellow is sure to expect a soon-to-be fourth year student to have a level of proficiency twice as great as my own..." Her thoughts and imagination made the guilt and gnawing anxiety nearly too much to bear.

And yet once the night came, and she was reunited amongst friends (who were far too grateful for her "helping"), and Yoshizo-san had both a workable grasp of English and a kind, patient personality, she could finally feel like things would turn out alright. He was from the same prefecture she had stayed in when she had studied in Japan, and knew many of the same places. The evening's conversation was easy and enjoyable, in ways it had never been for her in Japan.

The following day, she was picked up and brought back to their house for pancakes to get ready for their Sand Dune Exploration Excursion Extraordinaire! Momma G, Poppa G, their Japanese guest, and the translator got in the subaru and headed into the west (with out the sad music) (and with a couple with 4 year old and 10 month old boys named Alex and Sam with their own, very quiet Japanese guest).

Sand dunes have always created in her a longing sense of nostalgia for her carefree childhood in Ludington. The memories of skating up the sun-burned sand, and trying to roll back down to the the base the fastest, and racing into the waves of Lake Michigan, trying to go deeper and still jump over the crests that continuously swept towards the shore...She was very much looking forward to this trip.

They stopped and had a quick bite to eat, with our translator giving Yoshizo-san a brief explanation of the items on the menu, and then swapping him what she had gotten when he decided it looked better ^^;; They carried on to the state park and hiked through the wooded trails to the shore:

(Momma G, Yoshizo-san, Sam and Alex and their dad, Niko-san,  the kids' mom, and Poppa G)

They were all delighted to feel the lake breeze and (literally) get their feet wet. Little Alex especially appreciated our heroine's willingness to wade the waves and lift him repeatedly whenever they "jumped" a wave ;3

Eventually, it was time to call it a day, and they trekked back to their cars and went their separate ways back home (not before our traveler's car stopped for an ice cream treat~). They chatted the hours away on their journey back, and and continued to unnecessarily thank her for the help that she was. In truth, she was the one who was grateful: her one goal in life is to be useful, and to be given such practice as she was able to get over the 24hr+ period and to gain actual self-confidence and worth from the experience were the real accomplishments. She knows she isn't as good at the language as she would like, but after this weekend she finally feels stable in it for the first time in over a year.

Home Sweet Hole

At last! The ladies of the Shire have reunited and are busily making their little hole more like home. With two corgi puppies,

(courtesy of Leggers)

(This Dexter and Roxie puppy attack brought to you by Leggers)

drawers full of tea,

and a black-out inducing curtained Crow's Nest

they are claiming this new land as their own. Between Mariokart N64 battles, movie sing-a-longs, and family taco nights,

life has begun to find its rhythm.

Into the Woods

Well, it was that time again. Only a couple days left before she was to return north and back to regular life. (Regular, indeed….) That familiar feeling of subtle anticipation/dread mixed with a bit of excitement/sadness. It’s the reason she doesn’t like traveling, from the compulsion to pack perfectly to the nagging feeling that she’s ending something and leaving people she loves. It goes both ways, since she considers both places to be her homes. You’d think as she got older the excursions through the looking glass would have gotten easier, but since she is still inherently her (full of desperation and good intentions) it seems she’s just realizing more and more how lost she is.

And what better time to hike through an unfamiliar mountain’s woods than when you already feel lost?

She and her sister grabbed water bottles and a quick breakfast and drove to a privately owned mountain that is open for free use to the public—Sugarloaf.

Even though neither one of them had been hiking recently, they climbed on and kept a steady pace through the rocky inclining and declining path. All was quiet but for the crunching of the sand beneath their sneakers. 

She tried practicing light footwork and jumped from rock to rock whenever the opportunity arose, which was more often than not. It was a cool and shaded morning under the canopy, and there hadn’t been a good rain for a few days, so the conditions were about as close to perfect as she could imagine. And beside the profusion of spiders scurrying about (blasted rock spiders… go back to Death Mountain…) there was little wildlife about with only a couple squirrels rustling in the distance and a few birds calling overhead. 

She welcomed the joint solitude of her sister, both not speaking while they hiked and lost in their own musings. She was winded, yet still hungry to continue onwards. It was invigorating seeing the raw beauty of God and continuing through it.

She figured it out after coming back that they had hiked 4 miles in about the 2 hours they had trekked out there (from b10 to b4 and back). They were quite satisfied with themselves. And then many afternoon naps ensued~

Summer Book List (take V)

("Summer" having technically started on Friday, May 4th)

READ:

A Discovery of Witches

Percy Jackson: TheLightning Thief

A Well Timed Enchantment

Heir Apparent

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Hunter’s Moon
Library Wars (vol 1-7)
Divergent
Wildwood Dancing
Percy Jackson: The Titans Curse
Ender's Game

American Gods
Percy Jackson: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Percy Jackson: The Last Olympian

Trickster's Choice
Trickster's Queen
Graceling
The Graveyard Book
Wicked Lovely

READING:

PLANNING TO READ:

Shadow of Night

Fire
Percy Jackson: The Lost Hero
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone



Having only just put down "Wicked Lovely" an hour ago, I'm in a book hangover yet again and haven't decided what to read next (even though I have three of the four PtR books on hand).

I discovered for the first time (and have been warmly reminded this summer) many beautiful stories, and I'm so grateful for it. This most recent update covers the second time I've completed the Trickster's books (that I adore for so many reasons), finally getting to read an amazing book a great friend (and book suggester) recommended so long ago in "Graceling", finding an instant favorite in "The Graveyard Book" because it makes her sad in a Sally Sparrow sort of way, and even the diverting "Wicked Lovely" that I'd heard of what seems like forever ago (probably only 4 years) that reminded me of the Tales of Faerie I used to read in high school. I wish I would have commented on the books I'd completed for the past lists.....wait.... this is the internet... TIME CAN BE RE-WRITTEN!!! (in other-words, I'm probably going to go back and edit those past entries to included commentary haha)

I think I'm going to technically cut off "summer" on the 20th of August when I have to be at work--and therefore school-- full time again. So there will probably only be one more Summer list (but maybe I'll do a post for every book I finish after that; at least for incentive to continue posting during the school year instead of finking out like last year *cough*).

Companions (of the non-time-travel sort)

While she is very protective of her solitude, she dearly loves spending time with her family and friends. What a treat is was when she was finally able to do just that with her brother and his beau; and familiarizing herself more and more with two great cities!

Their first adventure was off to the Capital (and not the one that people tend to not return from when playing games in it), and was a study in public transportation. From city bus to metro stops, their fare-cards were put to good use. Conversation was easy, despite whatever worries she may have had. And after a few mix ups in locating the Spy Museum (it was undercover...), they prowled their way through the declassified secrets of the cloak and dagger. Finding themselves ravenous afterwards, they followed some local advice and ate at a rustic/industrial little place called Pizza Pi.

Sun-dried tomato and pesto are officially the best pizza toppings. Ever.

Next came an abundance of walking and many sites:

Washington Monument

WWII Memorial

WWII Memorial

WWII Memorial

Lincoln Memorial

Alex and Brittany being cute

Smithsonian Castle

A lovely little garden(would be a great reading place!)

....Weird animal heads that were too reminiscent of Doubt

The Capitol Building

Conscious of the fact that they'd be off on an even grander (and more strenuous) adventure the following day, they made their way back to their home port.

The next day was to conquer the Big Apple. Public buses to D.C. metro to Megabus to subway and they were stumbling around trying to smart phone their way to the WTC memorial. Which, after a bit of misdirection, they arrived at:

(oh look, the elusive sibling pair is spotted)

It was quite surreal to be at the WTC memorial park and to see the museum. Remembering that it had already been over a decade, and all of the lives that had been affected...

Once they'd left, they entertained hopes of riding a ferry to Lady Liberty herself, and so they headed for Brooklyn Park.

...and found a beautiful community garden...

...a lovely park/ restaurant courtyard...

...and discovered they were on the wrong side of the docks.... 

...but appreciated the view...

...despite the finding they'd missed the last ferry.

They headed back uptown, and experienced a little too much the packed-bodies/ towering buildings, and so ducked into a *cough*overpriced*cough* pub for a bite to eat (that wasn't as good as the fare from the day before~)

an oddly empty side walk

After dinner, they walked and browsed the souvenir shops until they reached Central Park.

realllllly bad shakey-hand shots w/o flash...

oh look! another...

After a pleasant stroll through the Park (and getting lost by coming out a different entrance/exit), they ventured back down the 20ish blocks to the general location where they would be picked up by Megabus to return home. And since they had a few hours to spare, and Alex is Alex, they passed the time in a 2nd story pub that was famed for its "99 beers on tap". Breaking her general rule (since he did have a point that they'd never had a drink together, even though she'd been of age for almost two years...) she let them order her a gin and tonic, and a hard cider following that (as well as delicious potato and cheese perogies) (interestingly enough, none of them were carded during any of this, not by the body-guard looking man by the entrance, or their two waitresses). When the time came, they made their way down the street to the bus stop to wait in line, and rode the night bus back home~

Summer Book List (take IV)

("Summer" having technically started on Friday, May 4th)

READ:

A Discovery of Witches

Percy Jackson: TheLightning Thief

A Well Timed Enchantment

Heir Apparent

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Hunter’s Moon
Library Wars (vol 1-6)
Divergent
Wildwood Dancing
Percy Jackson: The Titans Curse
Ender's Game
American Gods
Percy Jackson: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Percy Jackson: The Last Olympian
Trickster's Choice


READING:

Trickster's Queen
Graceling

PLANNING TO READ:

Shadow of Night

Anansi Boys
Fire
Graveyard Book
Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero
Heroes of Olympus: The Son ofNeptune

More…?

(soooooo, I am fully aware I probably won't get all of the "planning to read" books knocked out before school starts, but I also don't know which I'm going to choose yet? Especially since the next Heroes of Olympus book is coming out this fall...)
(I never thought I'd read this many books this summer, hahaha, I must have really been making up for lost time~)


Also. I hate formatting.


(Edit 8/04/12 to include book review):

I'm not as enamored with Neil Gaiman as some, perhaps, but I do like his style of writing. So far I've read "Stardust", "Good Omens", and "Neverwhere" by him, so I was excited to add "American Gods" to the list. while it was a bit coarse for my taste, I've encountered that before in Stephen King's book so it didn't put me off too much. It was especially interesting to read this tale while reading the Percy Jackson books since both deal with the presence of all of the different ancient deities being around and having influence on the present world. The main character was amazing, though, and that doesn't always happen.

I read the last two Percy Jackson books "Battle of the Labyrinth" and "The Last Olympian" back to back (naturally). I've decided that I really like the series (which I felt from the first book, haha) and find it adorable how the characters have grown up over the course of the series~

Oh "Trickster's Choice", how I love thee and thy sequel. Although I had planned to only read new books this summer, I found a pristine copy of TC at the same used book sale as "Ender's Game" also for under a dollar! And even though the first time I read this I rushed and got frustrated at the pacing sometimes, the second time reading it really made me realize how much I love this story.

Gettysburg (A Study in Two Parts): 2

In which three adventurers without power at home traveled to an old butchering yard and found a wooden covered bridge (that people used to be hung from?!):

Were dissatisfied with the path that lay neatly before them and found a new friend while exploring the embankment wall:

Found relief from the disturbingly hot heat while venturing across and through the creek/stream/small river that was coated with slippery mucked stones but was beautifully clear:

(Came back on the other side of the bridge to hear the tiny squeaks of a family of bats <3 <3 <3):

Lurked around/on/in/under the Devil’s Den:

And found a loyal companion guarding the memory of his former masters:

It was a very good day~