![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Further brief notes: books
Mar. 11th, 2009 03:17 pmDamosel: In Which the Lady of the Lake Renders a Frank and Often Startling Account of her Wondrous Life and Times. by Stephanie Spinner. (Knopf, 2008)
This ya fantasy re-interpretation of the Arthur story is an interesting take, though I didn't find it as engaging as others (say, Gerard Morris' Squire's Tales) but it sticks with the classical plot and introduces an intriguing non-human narrator, as well as a sympathetic human one. I'm not sure whether the non-humanness of the Damosel, the floating-in-water feeling of her narrative, is what made it feel so ... odd. Nevertheless, I am glad I read it.
Princess Ben. by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. (Houghton Mifflin, 2008)
A nice little young adult fantasy, combining the misfit princess and the misbehaved princess genres. Strong female heroine, with a not-completely-horrible treatment of weight. I liked it, and liked the main character. The writing was good with flashes of impressiveness and just the sort of treatment of day-to-day things and multifaceted characters I like to see.
The Storyteller's Daughter by Cameron Dokey. (Scholastic, 2002)
Forgettable teen retelling of the Scherazade story. Don't bother.
The Laughter of Dead Kings by Elizabeth Peters (William Morrow, 2008)
I love Vicky Bliss, though this isn't the best of the series. John is not handled well, and Schmidt seems rather wooden in the first part of the book. On the other hand, who can resist Peters and her madcap desert races, people who seem to be something else and possibly are, and of course the archaeology. Worth it just for the revelation about Schmidt near the end, the feeling of completion, and the unexpected guest appearance of the author...
This ya fantasy re-interpretation of the Arthur story is an interesting take, though I didn't find it as engaging as others (say, Gerard Morris' Squire's Tales) but it sticks with the classical plot and introduces an intriguing non-human narrator, as well as a sympathetic human one. I'm not sure whether the non-humanness of the Damosel, the floating-in-water feeling of her narrative, is what made it feel so ... odd. Nevertheless, I am glad I read it.
Princess Ben. by Catherine Gilbert Murdock. (Houghton Mifflin, 2008)
A nice little young adult fantasy, combining the misfit princess and the misbehaved princess genres. Strong female heroine, with a not-completely-horrible treatment of weight. I liked it, and liked the main character. The writing was good with flashes of impressiveness and just the sort of treatment of day-to-day things and multifaceted characters I like to see.
The Storyteller's Daughter by Cameron Dokey. (Scholastic, 2002)
Forgettable teen retelling of the Scherazade story. Don't bother.
The Laughter of Dead Kings by Elizabeth Peters (William Morrow, 2008)
I love Vicky Bliss, though this isn't the best of the series. John is not handled well, and Schmidt seems rather wooden in the first part of the book. On the other hand, who can resist Peters and her madcap desert races, people who seem to be something else and possibly are, and of course the archaeology. Worth it just for the revelation about Schmidt near the end, the feeling of completion, and the unexpected guest appearance of the author...
