N. T. Wright was recently brandished at me in an internet discussion about the historicity of Jesus. So I went to the bat library and reserved everything he'd written, with the intent of demolishing the argument of someone I've never seen, whose opinion I do not particularly respect.
Two weeks later I've only got one book back, it's about something totally different, and the argument is long over. I read it anyway.
The Last Word is a book about scripture and how Christian authorities and lay people should treat scripture in their decision-making process. It's quite a slim little volume, and it leans heavily towards the 'tell' end of the 'show/tell' spectrum. Long on argument, short on supporting evidence.
This seems to be because it's written to the 'choir', so to speak. This is intended strictly for Christian, and mostly for Christians who are already well-educated about the history of the Church.
I'm the one (educated) but not the other (Christian) so this was pretty much a waste of my time.
More POD shenanigans.
While writing my review of A Feast For Crows I stumbled across this puzzler:
.
It's a unauthorized chapter by chapter 'analysis' of A Feast For Crows, available through Amazon as an e-book.
Apparently this guy has written similar unauthorized guides to the Half-Blood Prince and Dan Brown's upcoming book.
This strikes me as questionable.
I haven't seen the text so I can't say how much original material they contain.
But given the recent brou-ha-ha over the Star Wars fan fic sold on Amazon, broken by Lee Goldberg, I have to wonder where the line is.
.It's a unauthorized chapter by chapter 'analysis' of A Feast For Crows, available through Amazon as an e-book.
Apparently this guy has written similar unauthorized guides to the Half-Blood Prince and Dan Brown's upcoming book.
This strikes me as questionable.
I haven't seen the text so I can't say how much original material they contain.
But given the recent brou-ha-ha over the Star Wars fan fic sold on Amazon, broken by Lee Goldberg, I have to wonder where the line is.
Reading Journal Entry: A Feast For Crows by George R. R. Martin
George R. R. Martin's sweeping saga has been the latest big thing in fantasy for several years now. The ending of the first volume, A Game of Thrones, upset me so much I put it down and waited a year before picking up the sequel. That's always a good sign.
The key to his popularity is three-fold: one, the complexity of the work - a richly detailed pseudo-medieval setting, ambiguous characters, multiple players with multiple goals. Two, a ruthlessness unmatched in other fantasy authors (with the single except of Mary Gentle); the man does not mind killing off those major characters that you like so much. Three, pretty dragons!
Unfortunately all three factors are a bit wacky here. The dragons have escaped altogether, into the next book. What was a healthy sense of violence towards his characters has turned into a tendency towards resurrection and trick endings. And the complex framework has spiraled out of control, plotlines and viewpoints multiplying without rhyme or reason.
I am trying to picture Martin writing this book and my mental image is of him wrestling a bear. Which would be something tosee, because he's quite hairy.
I'm afraid he's a victim of B.A.D.: Big Author Disease. It's happened to some of the giants of the field. Bradley, Heinlein, McCaffrey, Jordan. Something happens to certain authors once they reach a certain type of success. I don't know what it is. But someone who previously might have turned out neatly-plotted fast-paced volumes suddenly starts producing monstrous obese books that clearly need to be edited to within an inch of their lives.
And yes. It is nippletastic.
The key to his popularity is three-fold: one, the complexity of the work - a richly detailed pseudo-medieval setting, ambiguous characters, multiple players with multiple goals. Two, a ruthlessness unmatched in other fantasy authors (with the single except of Mary Gentle); the man does not mind killing off those major characters that you like so much. Three, pretty dragons!
Unfortunately all three factors are a bit wacky here. The dragons have escaped altogether, into the next book. What was a healthy sense of violence towards his characters has turned into a tendency towards resurrection and trick endings. And the complex framework has spiraled out of control, plotlines and viewpoints multiplying without rhyme or reason.
I am trying to picture Martin writing this book and my mental image is of him wrestling a bear. Which would be something tosee, because he's quite hairy.
I'm afraid he's a victim of B.A.D.: Big Author Disease. It's happened to some of the giants of the field. Bradley, Heinlein, McCaffrey, Jordan. Something happens to certain authors once they reach a certain type of success. I don't know what it is. But someone who previously might have turned out neatly-plotted fast-paced volumes suddenly starts producing monstrous obese books that clearly need to be edited to within an inch of their lives.
And yes. It is nippletastic.
Reading Journal Entry: Tam Lin, by Susan Cooper, Hutton
Tam Line the second, by British fantasy powerhouse Susan Cooper, illustrated by Warwick Hutton.
This retelling features a Margaret instead of a Janet, and doesn't really have much over the Yolen version. Hutton's watercolors are airy and translucent - not really to my taste, to be honest, except for a lovely forest glen. They made the whole story seem unsubstantial to me.
I like the font.... faint praise.
This retelling features a Margaret instead of a Janet, and doesn't really have much over the Yolen version. Hutton's watercolors are airy and translucent - not really to my taste, to be honest, except for a lovely forest glen. They made the whole story seem unsubstantial to me.
I like the font.... faint praise.
Stupidest Viswanathan post ever
From Malcolm Gladwell, an apparently otherwise intelligent human being:
When Doris Kearns Goodwin borrowed, without attribution, from a history of the Kennedys for her history of the Kennedys, that's serious. She's a scholar. And we have an expection of scholarship that it is supposed to reflect original thought. We have no such expection for genre novels, Harlequin romances, slasher films, pornos, or, say, the diaries of teenagers.
It is worth reading, I think, the actual passages that Viswanathan is supposed to have taken from McCafferty. Let's just say this isn't the first twenty lines of Paradise Lost.
(...)
Calling this plagiarism is the equivalent of crying "copy" in a crowded Kinkos.
When Doris Kearns Goodwin borrowed, without attribution, from a history of the Kennedys for her history of the Kennedys, that's serious. She's a scholar. And we have an expection of scholarship that it is supposed to reflect original thought. We have no such expection for genre novels, Harlequin romances, slasher films, pornos, or, say, the diaries of teenagers.
It is worth reading, I think, the actual passages that Viswanathan is supposed to have taken from McCafferty. Let's just say this isn't the first twenty lines of Paradise Lost.
(...)
Calling this plagiarism is the equivalent of crying "copy" in a crowded Kinkos.
Reading Journal Entry: Tam Lin by Jane Yolan and Charles Mikolaycak
I'm still chewing my way through George R. R. Martin's latest.
Meanwhile here's my take on a version of Tam Lin. I was looking for the modern re-telling written by Pamela Dean, which comes highly recommended. Instead I ended up with two picture books, one by fantasy author Susan Cooper and one by fantasy author Jane Yolen. Excuse me, are there any female fantasy authors out there who haven't written a version of Tam Lin? Anyone? Anyone? Maybe J. K. Rowling can tackle it after she finished the next Harry Potter book. Which, by the way, I'm quite ready for.
Tam Lin is a nice fairy tale; unusual in that it's got a female heroine. Janet (or Margaret) is impregnated by a strange man when she transgresses on haunted ground; she must rescue her lover from the elf queen before he is sacrificed to the devil.
Yolen's take is pretty straightforward, with bold, stylized art by Mikolaycak. I love the swirling tartans that Janet and Tam wear. They completely won me over. What can I say, I'm a Scot at heart.
The style is reminiscent of Mucha, which I intend as a compliment.
Meanwhile here's my take on a version of Tam Lin. I was looking for the modern re-telling written by Pamela Dean, which comes highly recommended. Instead I ended up with two picture books, one by fantasy author Susan Cooper and one by fantasy author Jane Yolen. Excuse me, are there any female fantasy authors out there who haven't written a version of Tam Lin? Anyone? Anyone? Maybe J. K. Rowling can tackle it after she finished the next Harry Potter book. Which, by the way, I'm quite ready for.
Tam Lin is a nice fairy tale; unusual in that it's got a female heroine. Janet (or Margaret) is impregnated by a strange man when she transgresses on haunted ground; she must rescue her lover from the elf queen before he is sacrificed to the devil.
Yolen's take is pretty straightforward, with bold, stylized art by Mikolaycak. I love the swirling tartans that Janet and Tam wear. They completely won me over. What can I say, I'm a Scot at heart.
The style is reminiscent of Mucha, which I intend as a compliment.
Desperately seeking tickets
The Locus Awards Ceremony is in Seattle, June 16th to 18th.
I did not buy tickets right away and now they are sold out.
I really, really, really want to go.
If you know anyone who has tickets to sell, please let me know.
I did not buy tickets right away and now they are sold out.
I really, really, really want to go.
If you know anyone who has tickets to sell, please let me know.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
