The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden by Catherynne Valente

A Book of Wonders for Grown-Up Readers

Every once in a great while a book comes along that reminds us of the magic spell that stories can
cast over us–to dazzle, entertain, and enlighten. Welcome to the Arabian Nights for our time–a lush and fantastical epic guaranteed to spirit you away from the very first page….

Secreted away in a garden, a lonely girl spins stories to warm a curious prince: peculiar feats and unspeakable fates that loop through each other and back again to meet in the tapestry of her voice. Inked on her eyelids, each twisting, tattooed tale is a piece in the puzzle of the girl’s own hidden history. And what tales she tells! Tales of shape-shifting witches and wild horsewomen, heron kings and beast princesses, snake gods, dog monks, and living stars–each story more strange and fantastic than the one that came before. From ill-tempered “mermaid” to fastidious Beast, nothing is ever quite what it seems in these ever-shifting tales–even, and especially, their teller. Adorned with illustrations by the legendary Michael Kaluta, Valente’s enchanting lyrical fantasy offers a breathtaking reinvention of the untold myths and dark fairy tales that shape our dreams. And just when you think you’ve come to the end, you realize the adventure has only begun….

Ever since I finished reading this book, I have been trying to think how exactly am I going to explain the structure of this book, which I have to say normally isn't my main question on finishing a book. Normally I would be thinking what will I say about the characters, or the plot for example, but this time it is the structure.

The best way I could think of is to try and explain it in terms of an old advert that used to be on TV (at least I think it was an advert). At the beginning of the story, there is a person looking out a window, but when the camera pans back it turns out that the window is painted onto a jug sitting on a table, and when the camera pans back again it turns out that the jug is in a painting, and then the painting is on the cover of a book, and the book is pictured on a TV, and the TV is on a movie screen. I hope as a description this gives you an idea of what I mean when I say that this book has a kind of cascading structure within it.

The story opens with a young prince who goes into the garden and meets a young girl. She is a young urchin who everyone within the palace ostracises, and he knows he isn't meant to talk to her, but when he does, she begins to tell him a fascinated story, and soon he is sneaking away to listen to the girl's stories whenever he can get free of his very strict and domineering sister.

As the initial story is told, we meet a character within that story who then begins to tell another story. Then, one of the characters begins to tell another story and so on. As a structure this does sound confusing, but it is testament to the author's skill that despite the incredibly challenging task she has set herself, the stories do not become jumbled or confused. Valente manages also to not only descend through the different layers of tales, but almost seamlessly ascend back through those same layers until we are back with the boy and the girl at the palace.

And what of the stories themselves? Well, they are a collection of fantastical folk lore type stories. There are princes who go on quests (as all handsome young princes seem to need to do), there are beautiful princesses who are locked in towers, or at least what you can see of them through the window is beautiful. It may well turn out that they are part bird, part horse, part pig in those parts that you can not see. There are stars that have fallen to earth, magical ships, there are people who turn into birds, there are bears who have been sentenced to live as men and skin traders who will take the skin of one creature and give it to another, for a price. And yet despite the different stories that are all jumbled up, and the many different types of characters and events, this is definitely a fun, albeit dark, read. Note that I didn't say easy read, because it is a book that you need to concentrate on, but the effort is certainly rewarded in the end.

It is hard to even choose a single story as a favourite as they are so interconnected, but I did enjoy the story of St Sigrid, and also the connected story Eyvind, the bear who becomes a man for love.

This was the final book I needed to read to complete Quest the Second as part of Carl's Once Upon a Time II challenge. Carl has a reputation of organising really great reading challenges, and it is well deserved! Thanks so much for hosting this one Carl. I really enjoyed the books that I read for it.

It was also one of the books that I nominated for the Heard It Through the Grapevine challenge!

Have you reviewed this book? If yes, leave a link in the comments and I will link to it.

Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Twisted Kingdom

Quest the Second complete

Today I finished reading In the Night Garden by Catherynne Valente which was the final book that I needed to read to complete the Once Upon a Time II challenge.

I'll be back over the weekend with the review, but tonight I am off to a birthday party. Truth be told I would like to be falling asleep on the couch, but some times it just doesn't work out that way.

Ephemera duology (Sebastian and Belladonna) by Anne Bishop

As a passionate fan of the Black Jewels trilogy by Anne Bishop, it is inevitable that I would want to check out her backlist. Whilst it is safe to say that neither the Ephemera duology or the House of Gaian trilogy achieved the same dizzying heights of the Black Jewels books, I did enjoy the story. I can't imagine how much pressure there is in trying to create a whole new story that wows all readers in the way that the Black Jewels trilogy has.

Long ago, to stop the onslaught of the Easter of the World, Ephemera was split into a dizzying number of strange and magical lands connected only by bridges that may take you where you truly belong, rather than where you had intended to go.

Now, with the Eater contained and virtually forgotten, the shifting worlds of Ephemera have been kept stable by the magic of the Landscapers. In one such land, where night reigns and demons dwell, the half-incubus Sebastian revels in dark delights. But in dreams she calls to him: a woman who wants only to be safe and loved-a woman he hungers for while knowing he may destroy her.

But a more devastating destiny awaits Sebastian, for in the quiet gardens of the Landscapers' School, evil is stirring. The prison of the Eater of the World has weakened - and Sebastian's realm may be the first to fall.

Intoxicating, erotic and intensely romantic, Sebastian is for those who know on which side of the heart - Light or Dark - their passions lie.

Okay, I am going to try and give a brief overview of the world that Bishop has created in this book. It definitely shares some elements with the other trilogies in that there are different lands that are connected and there is something that is endangering those connected lands. The lands are created by landscapers, and are connected by bridges. The people who live in these lands can cross to other parts of the lands by crossing over one of the bridges, and generally they will end up wherever their heart desired but there are times where they will end up somewhere else, which may bring them into contact with many dangerous creatures.

One of the lands is a place called The Den, which was created by the landscaper Glorianna. She is something of an outcast amongst the landscapers because she is much more powerful than many of the other landscapers in Ephemera. She created The Den so that her childhood friend and cousin Sebastian could have a place to live, for Sebastian is an incubus, and along with many other of society's unwanted characters, he lives in a place that is attractive to those who want to come and live out their fantasies in a discreet manner. Whilst Sebastian is happy in The Den, he longs to find the one woman that he is destined to love. He is also destined to find out the truth about his powers, most of which he has no idea that he has, let alone how to use them. Sebastian's friends amused me a lot - in particular his best friend who also is an incubus and who really wants to be able to find true love of his own.

At the Landscaper's School, the Eater of the World has long been loosed from his cage, and as It gradually creeps through the landscape It changes the landscapes, destroying the links to the other worlds, and destroying peoples lives by both killing them and just causing chaos and mistrust.

Into Sebastian's world comes Lynnea. She is an innocent who is looking for a home, having been kicked out of her adopted family's home. As Sebastian tries to control his incubus urges, and those of his fellow demons, he also has to teach her how to survive in her new world.

In some ways, the relationship between Sebastian and Lynnea is somewhat cliched, particularly in Lynnea's wide eyed innocence in the face of all the depravities within The Den, but what does make the story interesting is the relationships that Sebastian, and to a lesser extent Lynnea, have with his aunt and her children, Glorianna, also known as the Belladonna, and Lee who plays a key role in keeping the worlds of the Ephemera together in his role as a Bridge.

It turns out that while Glorianna has created The Den for Sebastian, he now must face his father and his cronies to not only discover the true strength that Sebastian has, but also ultimately to save his home, and his links to everyone he loves.

In Sebastian, national bestselling and award-winning author Anne Bishop introduced a stunning new realm, a world of strange and magical landscapes connected only by bridges – bridges that may transport you where you truly belong, rather than where you wished to go. But only the magic of the Landscapers can protect this world from the entity determined to enshroud it in darkness...

One by one, the landscapes of Ephemera are falling into shadow. The Eater of the World is spreading its influence, tainting people's souls with doubts and fears, and feasting on their dark emotions. With each victory, the Eater comes closer to extinguishing Ephemera's Light.

Only Glorianna Belladonna possesses the ability to thwart the Eater's plans. But she has been branded a rogue, her talents and vast power feared and misunderstood. Determined to protect the lands under her care, Glorianna will stand alone against the Eater if she must – regardless of the cost to her body and soul.

But she is not alone. In dreams, a call has traveled throughout Ephemera: "Heart's hope lies within Belladonna." That call has traveled far from the landscapes Glorianna claims and reached Michael, a man with mysterious powers of his own. It awakens a fierce hunger within him to find the dark-haired sorceress he's dreamt of, over and over again – a beautiful woman named Belladonna.

As Michael and Glorianna's hearts call out to each other across the Landscapes, together they may offer Ephemera the very hope it needs...

The story of Ephemera continues in the second book of the duology. Glorianna is still ostracised from within the small community of landscapers that survived the destruction that The Eater of the World inflicted at the Landscaper's School. Most people within the worlds are terrified of the power that the Belladonna wields, and there are those who would go out of their way to try and destroy her once and for all. They believe her to be evil, so as she tries to destroy the Eater of the World, she must also battle to protect herself from her other animals.

For Glorianna herself, she has long accepted that her struggle will be a lonely one, that there is no man alive who would have her, given the potency of her powers, but the cries of her heart are being heard, and are being heard by Michael the Musician. He is being drawn to the dark haired beauty of his dreams, and must search until he finds her. The path of true love never does go smoothly, and this story is no exception. Michael has to make a choice, between saving the world by destroying The Eater of the World, and his beloved. He also has to try to look after his beleaguered sister - a young girl who seems to have magical powers, but yet is more than just a landscaper.

The development of the relationship between Glorianna and Michael is much more layered and complex than that of Sebastian and Lynnea in the earlier book, but both books suffered a little by the complexity of the world that Bishop tries to create. There was also a much better balance between the two characters. Where Sebastian was the jaded, seen it and done it all twice, character and Lynnea was the overly innocent and wide eyed character, Michael and Glorianna are more equals, both having experienced the more difficult side of having the powers they have, and the impacts on those people around them.

If I was asked which of the three series would be best to introduce readers to the writing of Anne Bishop, there is no doubt in my mind that it would be the fabulous Black Jewels trilogy. However, this duology was an entertaining enough distraction while we wait for the next book that Anne Bishop publishes. Luckily for me, I have a copy of Tangled Webs still here to read, which is part of what has now become the Black Jewels series. I was happy to see on her website recently that the next book in the series has it's cover, which you can see here.

This was one of the books that I nominated to read as part of the Once Upon a Time II Challenge.

The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint

In novel after novel, and story after story, Charles de Lint has brought an entire imaginary North American city to vivid life. Newford: where magic lights dark streets; where myths walk clothed in modern shapes; where a broad cast of extraordinary and affecting people work to keep the whole world turning.

At the center of all the entwined lives in Newford stands a young artist named Jilly Coppercorn, with her tangled hair, her paint-splattered jeans, a smile perpetually on her lips, Jilly, whose paintings capture the hidden beings that dwell in the city's shadows. Now, at last, de Lint tells Jilly's own story...for behind the painter's fey charm lies a dark secret and a past she's labored to forget. And that past is coming to claim her now.

"I'm the onion girl," Jilly Coppercorn says. "Pull back the layers of my life, and you won't find anything at the core. Just a broken child. A hollow girl." She's very, very good at running. But life has just forced Jilly to stop.

There's a fair chance that if you read the first paragraph of this review and then move on, you are going to think that I didn't enjoy this book at all but I really did! I am however starting with a mini-rant about the Newford books! How can there not be a recommended reading order for these books. It was obvious in the story that there were people who were friends with Jilly whose stories had already been told. If there is one thing I cannot stand then it is reading a series out of order...and yes I am a bit anal about it! So the fact that there isn't a beginning, a middle and an end (even if it hasn't yet been written) just really does my head in! I am pretty sure I am not alone in needing to read series in order...am I? Anyway...moving on.

As I have only previously read one Charles de Lint book in my pre blogging days (The Little Country), and one short story in the Excalibur anthology it is fair to say that my exposure to the work of this author is limited. He is someone whose books I see around the place, and think, yes I really should read some more of his books but it just hasn't really happened yet. What prompted me to finally pick up another de Lint book? It was chosen as a book club read at my online reading group. I ended up reading it a bit late for the discussion, but I am glad that I picked it up even though I didn't get it read on time.

In this book, we are (re)introduced to Jilly Coppercorn. She is at the centre of extensive group of friends who live in Newford and in many ways is the glue that holds that group together. She is an artist who paints, amongst other things, the other world or the dreamlands, and yet she has never been able to get to that other world herself like many of her friends can.

One night, Jilly is hit by a car and is left in a coma. When she awakes she is paralysed down one side, her painting side, and is distraught. The one good thing is that now she can go to the other world as often as she wants just by going to sleep for in the other world she is not the broken girl, and yet, she still is emotionally. Jilly has worked hard to build up her life in Newford, and become a different person from the young girl of her past, cutting all ties to her family and friends and to the events that shaped her.

Even when she travels in the other world though, she is made aware of her need to heal emotionally, to become whole. Her friends are worried that she may well succumb to the lure of the dreamlands where she can still climb trees and run. Her friends are also worried about not only the hit and run that put Jilly in hospital, but also an unexplained break in at her apartment where many of Jilly's dreamland paintings were destroyed, and then some really strange sitings of Jilly. Can all these events be linked?

At the same time as we are reading Jilly's story, we are also meeting another character - a very emotionally disturbed young woman by the name of Raylene. We learn of her past, and the decisions that she has made. It is clear very early on that there is a connection between these two characters, but de Lint does a great job of drawing out the exposure of that link.

In itself, this book has a powerful message to tell, or at least it did for me. Both Jilly and Raylene came from a desperately bad childhood situation and both were heading down a similar path, and yet, through the power of making better decisions, and accepting help and friendship, ended up in very different places, mentally, physically and socially. There were times that I really disliked Raylene as a character, and yet de Lint managed to give her story enough balance so that there were other times when my heart was breaking for a young girl who just never seemed to catch a break.

Another aspect of Jilly's storyline that I found interesting was the fact that despite the way that she had managed to become a very upbeat and positive person, there was still definitely a journey to be undertaken to enable her to be able to have a relationship with a significant other. The emotional journey for her was as important, if not more important, than her physical healing, and in many ways those two aspects were co dependant.

Along the journey that this story takes us on we meet many fantastical creatures - people who appear normal in the Newford world and yet are half dog, half man in the dreamlands, characters who need people to believe in them in order to be real, or else they will just fade away, fae, unicorns. A really interesting mix of creatures and characters.

Given the types of issues our characters go through in this book (child abuse, prostitution, drugs, crime, death) it would not have been surprising if it was a depressing book, but it really wasn't. There was definitely a hopefulness and a positive energy that was present when the cover was closed for the last time.

I will be reading more of de Lint's Newford series, just as soon as I can figure out what order I want to read them in!

As well as being a book club book, it was also one of the books that I nominated to read as part of Carl's Once Upon a Time II challenge.

Have you reviewed this book? If yes, please leave a comment with a link to your review and I will link to your blog.

Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Things Mean a Lot
The Written World
Rhinoa's Ramblings

Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of Faerie by Neil Gaiman

One of the things about borrowing books from the library is that you never know which edition of a book you are going to get. I must confessed that when I requested Stardust, I definitely wasn't expecting to get a picture book sized book, and I had to go back to the online bookstores to check whether that was normal or not, but it seems that I just managed to get an illustrated version (published by DC Comics) as opposed to the straight written version. Of course, then it took me ages to find a picture of the actual cover that I had. I hate it when I can't post exactly the same cover.

Neil Gaiman is one of those authors who I have seen raved about at various places are blogland, and I have been tempted to read him for a long time, particularly as I started reading more fantasy. Having said that, this is the first time I have ever read Gaiman, but it won't be the last time.

The story opens in the very early days of Queen Victoria's reign, when we meet a young man by the name of Dunstan Thorn, who lived in the village of Wall. Near the village of Wall, there is a wall that is guarded to prevent people from crossing over into the neighbouring faerie lands.
Once every nine years, there is a market held at Wall, where all types of folk come to trade goods and meet. When Dunstan goes to the market he meets a beautiful young woman, and has a tryst with her, despite the fact that he is promised to another woman. Dunstan goes on to marry his betrothed and settle down, but then months later a baby is left on the doorstep with a name tag saying Tristan Thorn.

Whilst there is a bit of time taken to set up the above storyline, the book really is about Tristan and his adventure. When he is a teenager, he is in love with Miss Victoria Forester, as are most of the other young men in town. When out walking one evening with Miss Forester, they see a falling star, and Tristan promises "For a kiss, and the pledge of your hand...I would bring you that fallen star", and so begins Tristan's journey, as he crosses into the faerie lands in search of the fallen star.

When he finds the star, who unfortunately has broken her leg in the fall, he binds himself to her with an unbreakable silver chain, thus earning her scorn, but after various incidents involving others who are also searching for the star for their own nefarious purposes, they come to respect and like each other and they find themselves bound together, not by a physical chain, but by a much stronger invisible bond. Along the way they meet unicorns, witches, are changed into other creatures and spend time on a flying ship.

Eventually, we find out about Tristan's true identity and his destiny, that the star, whose name is Yvaine, shares with him, but not before he comes face to face with Victoria once again.

Whilst I really enjoyed the fairy tale like story, I have to admit that it took me ages to read this book. Part of the reason was because of the size of the book. It really wasn't a convenient size to hold whilst lying in bed, which is where I was reading this book most of the time. The other distraction was the imagery in the book which was really detailed and really added an extra dimension to the story.

The story itself was lovely, and I am definitely going to see whether I can track down a DVD of the movie so that I can see how it translated to the big screen. I must confess that when I first saw the trailer of the movie, and they were talking about one of the main characters being a fallen star I was a bit puzzled as to what that all meant, but now having read the book, I can definitely see how it was done in the book, and I am looking forward to seeing the movie's portrayal.

If you have read the story in a normal novel format, or perhaps have seen the movie (or both), then I don't think you would be disappointed if you tracked down this version of the book that includes the artwork by Charles Vess and read the book again.

This is one of the books that I nominated to read as part of Carl's Once Upon a Time II Challenge. I only have one more book left to read for this challenge. I also have several reviews to write before the challenge finishes next week, so I really should just hurry up and get on with it!

Have you reviewed this book? If yes, please leave a comment with a link to your review and I will link to your blog.

Other Blogger's Thoughts:

SomeReads
Bookworms and Tea Lovers
Trish's Reading Nook
Passion for the Page
Sophisticated Dorkiness

Two Keys to the Kingdom reviews

Arthur Penhaligon is supposed to be in bed - after all it's only 12 hours since he saved the world. But there's no time to rest. Grim Tuesday has laid claim to the Lower House and the First Key, and now his misshapen servants are repossessing Arthur's world and plunging it into financial disaster. To stop them, Arthur must venture back into the House - that surreal, unpredictable realm where he almost met his death.

With companions old and new, Arthur embarks on a heart-stopping adventure that will take him from the dismal Pit of the Far Reaches, all the way to the heart of a sun and back. Racing furiously against time, Arthur must find the second piece of the Will, claim the Second Key and save both his own world and the House from the destructive greed of Grim Tuesday.

After being pleasantly surprised by the first book in this series (Mister Monday), I very quickly borrowed this next book in the Keys to the Kingdom series, anxious to pick up where the story left off.

I have to confess though, that I was a little less enamoured with this book. It felt much darker, like Arthur was in much more danger than he was in the first book, although when I think back it is likely that they were on a par. Normally a bit of a darkness in a book doesn't bother me but I guess my foremost thought in relation to these books is that they are YA books, and as such, I expect that my son will be interested in reading these books, or ones similar, in the not too distant future.

Maybe it isn't the darkness that bothers me at all - after all, all three of these books that I have read now have a degree of darkness within them. Perhaps it is more that the pacing of the book was a bit off. One cannot help but admire Nix's very active imagination when it comes to the characters who inhabit the world inside the House, but during this novel there were, for me, times when the narrative dragged, before suddenly picking up the pace and setting off in a break neck speed in a quest to have Arthur claim the second Key, and the second part of The Will.

Arthur has only been back in Earth for twelve hours, when he receives a call on the special telephone telling him that he is required back in the House. Whilst Arthur has claimed dominionship over the Lower House by defeating Mister Monday in the first book, that also means that he has inherited all the responsibilities of Mister Monday, including all his debts and Grim Tuesday has decided that it is time for Arthur to pay. Unfortunately, Grim Tuesday is not only limiting himself to the world of the House, but also is also making claims in Arthur's world, so suddenly not only does he need to save the day again within the House, he has to do it in time to save his family, friends and indeed the world from financial ruin.

I guess in summary I would say that this wasn't a bad read, but it's not the best in the series in my opinion.


Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Books and Other Thoughts

Arthur Penhaligon has a broken leg and a bad attack of asthma, but there's no time for recovery. Drowned Wednesday has sent a ship to pluck him from the safety of his bed, miles from any ocean, and sail him back to the House.

From hospital room to the high seas, Arthur must battle pirates, storms, monsters made of Nothing and a vast beast that can't stop eating. Arthur struggles to unravel the mystery of the Architect's disappearance, and the plotting of the Trustees. For the sake of all that dwell in the Secondary realms, he must discover the third part of the Will and claim the Third Key.

But first...can Arthur trust the Raised Rats? Where are Leaf and Suzy? And how will he survive life aboard ship on the treacherous Border Sea?

Drowned Wednesday is the third book in the Keys to the Kingdom series.

If I was a bit disappointed in Grim Tuesday, it is fair to say that I was delighted with this instalment in the Keys to the Kingdom series.

The book opens with Arthur in hospital again, having suffered another asthma attack and a broken leg. He has received an invitation from Lady Wednesday to come for tea, so despite the fact that in earth time he has only been back for a short time, he knows to expect that he will be going back into the House some time soon. What he doesn't know is how.

Unfortunately, the how happens whilst he is being visited by his good friend Leaf, and suddenly the two youngsters find themselves adrift on the Border Sea with only his hospital bed as a raft. When Leaf is accidentally taken aboard the ship that was supposed to take Arthur to Lady Wednesday, Arthur has to try and figure out a way to get to his tea, find Leaf and then get her back to his own world. Along the way, Arthur inadvertently causes some of the dreaded pirate Feverfew's treasure to be stolen, in the process making him a mortal enemy.

Part of the charm of this story for me was that a lot of the action was set in and around boats and ships, thereby allowing the introduction of many fun characters like the tattooed doctor whose tattoos displayed a different scene on his face depending on how he was feeling, and who helped Arthur with a cast that is made out of a crab's exoskeleton for his broken leg. There were also the Raised rats who can communicate instantaneously throughout the secondary realms but using their two way bottles, and Wednesday's Dawn who is most at home underneath the sea.

When it turns out that Lady Wednesday has been cursed, and so now she is actually a huge whale, Arthur's tea date seems destined to be anything but friendly. Now he needs to find the third part of the Will, free Leaf, defeat Feverfew and get back home.

There is an interesting twist in the end of this novel, which makes me want to read the next one sooner rather than later!

One thing that does have to be said at some point is that this is not a series that you can start half way through. The world building that is done within this novel if very much building onto what we already knew from the first books, and many of the same characters make appearances, or at least are mentioned.

Drowned Wednesday is one of the books that I nominated to read as part of the Once Upon a Time II Challenge!

Other blogger's thoughts:

Books and Other Thoughts

If you have read and reviewed either of these books, please let me know and I will put your link in this post.

Lion's Honey by David Grossman

Samson the hero; a brave warrior, leader of men and Nazarite of God? Or a misfit given to whoring and lust, who failed to fulfil his destiny? In Lion's Honey, award-winning writer David Grossman takes on one of the most vivid and controversial characters in the Bible. Revisiting Samson's famous battle with the lion, his many women and his betrayal by them all - including the only one he ever loved - Grossman gives us a provocative new take on the story and its climax, Samson's final act of death, bringing down a temple on himself and 3000 Philistines. In exhilarating and lucid prose, Grossman reveals the journey of a single, lonely, tortured soul who never found a true home in the world, who was uncomfortable in his very body and who, some might say, was the precursor of today's suicide bombers.

I originally added this book to my TBR list because it is part of the Myths series published by Canongate. Other books that I have read from this series are Dream Angus by Alexander McCall Smith (about the Celtic god of dreams and love) and Weight by Jeanette Winterson which is a retelling of the story of Atlas and Hercules. Given that those were both retellings, albeit with a bit of modern day storytelling added in Dream Angus, I was expecting another retelling when I read this book. That is not what I got. If I was to be the person cataloguing this book I am not sure that I would have even called it fiction. The first few pages of the book are the story of Samson, taken directly from the King James Version of the Bible. I guess I was a little surprised to see that, but then again, it isn't terribly long so I though 'okay that's probably as good a place as any to start'. What followed was more of a long essay dissecting the Bible story trying to ascertain motive for some of Samson's actions including but not limited to dissecting his relationship with his parents, why he lived amongst the Philistines, and the women that he was associated with. A couple of examples - Why did he feel the need to use 300 pairs of foxes to burn the Philistines fields and why did he not tell his parents that he had killed a lion with his bare hands, and most importantly, why was it that he told Delilah the secret of his strength. In saying that it was not what I expected, I am not saying that I didn't enjoy it because for the most part I did. It was very interesting to read through the text and then refer to the footnotes at the back which may have been referencing the Torah, or some other studies of Samson done by a variety of scholars over the years. Would I have picked it up if it had not been part of this series - probably not. Do I feel compelled to pick up any other work from this author - not really. It was a quick read, and different from most other things I read. And besides...it was the first completed read in the Once Upon a Time II challenge...so that has to be a good thing! Other Blogger's Thoughts: Rhinoa's Ramblings Things Mean A Lot

Once Upon a Time II

Whilst I didn't participate in last year's Once Upon a Time Challenge, I am definitely going to be this year. The details are all up here.

The Journey

This is really as simple as the name implies and is to Once Upon a Time as the experience was to The Sci~Fi Experience. It means you are participating but not committing yourself to any specific number of books. All reading is a journey, perhaps none more so than reading fantastical fiction. By signing up for The Journey you are agreeing to at least read one book within the four categories during March 21st to June 20th period. Just one book. It has always been of utmost importance to me that the challenges that I host be all about experiencing enjoyable literature and sharing it with others. I want you to participate. Hence, The Journey.

Quest the First

Read at least 5 books that fit somewhere within the Once Upon a Time II criteria. They might all be fantasy, or folklore, or fairy tales, or mythology…or your five books might be a combination from the four genres.

Quest the Second

Read at least one book from each of the four categories. In this quest you will be reading 4 books total: one fantasy, one folklore, one fairy tale, and one mythology. This proved to be one of the more difficult quests last year merely because of the need to classify each read and determine which books fit into which category. I am not a stickler, fear not, but I was fascinated watching how folks worked to find books for each category.

Quest the Third

Fulfill the requirements for Quest the First or Quest the Second AND top it off with a June reading of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Love the story, love the films, love the idea of that magical night of the year and so this is my chance to promote the reading of this farcical love story.

I am not 100 percent sure of which quest it is that I am going to undertake. These are the fantasy books that I currently have out from the library, divided into the relevant categories (I hope I have them in the correct categories anyway).

So basically what I am saying is that I have enough books to fit into Quest the First, but if I am going to do Quest the Second then I will need some book recs for Folklore. Any suggestions? Edited to add In the Night Garden by Catherynne Valente. Happy to read other suggestions still though.

The again I do own a copy of A Midsummer Night's Dream. I'll decide later if I can fit it in or not.

Fantasy

Belladonna by Anne Bishop (review here)
Onion Girl by Charles de Lint (review here)
Drowned Wednesday by Garth Nix (review here)

Mythology:

Lions Honey by David Grossman (review here)

Fairy Tale

Stardust by Neil Gaiman (review here)

Folklore

In the Night Garden by Catherynne Valente (review here)