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Lily Fairbairn
Half-elven
Jan 14 2020, 3:53pm
Post #1 of 15
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It's the middle-of-January reading thread!
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After about three flakes of snow here last weekend, we're now headed back into warmer than usual weather. We're starting to see the odd green plant poke tentatively up out of the ground, and hear the odd bird twittering away, and want to tell them, "Go back! It's still January!"
I finished reading Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad and, no surprise there, thoroughly enjoyed it. The plot works itself out with lots of clever twists and incidents. There's no one like Pratchett for wit and profound truths on the same page.
(My husband and I stumbled over a dramatization of Pratchett's Going Postal, with Charles Dance as Vetinari, David Suchet as the villain, and Claire Foy as the heroine. Neither of us has read this one so we have no criticisms of the adaptation, just sat back and enjoyed it. PTerry himself made a cameo right at the end, something we noticed with wobbly smiles. So many horrible people in the world and we lose the good ones!)
(I've always pictured Alan Rickman as Vetinari, but Dance captured the character well.)
I finished listening to Louise Penny's Kingdom of the Blind. This installment (fourteenth, I believe) in the Inspector Gamache series read well and came to a satisfying conclusion. Like any author, there are things I like in Penny's books (a straightforward 3rd-person, past-tense narrative, the French-Canadian setting, the characters) and things I dislike (she head-hops, she can be repetitive, the plots can be a bit overdone).
But I enjoyed the book, which wrapped up a couple of issues lingering from the last one as well as having a clever plot of its own---and setting up an issue for the next installment. I was out ahead of the main characters, though, and was not at all surprised at the identity of the killer.
I have that next installment, A Better Man, on my MP3 but am going to listen to several other things before I get to it. I'm starting with Alexander McCall Smith's The House of Unexpected Sisters, a fairly recent installment in his Precious Ramotswe/Botswana series, because I have a relatively stressful week coming up and want comfort reading.
So what have you been reading?
Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing?
Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing?
Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing?
Where is the spring and the harvest and the tall corn growing?
They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow;
The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow....
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 14 2020, 5:34pm
Post #2 of 15
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Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos
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long, involved novel set in Seattle, with lots and lots of local references (including several about how absurd Seattle streets are because they have to get people around hills and various bodies of water). I enjoyed it very much. My only cavil was that almost all her characters are thoroughly nice people who seem to be on their best behavior all the time (with the exception of one central character, whom everyone else takes care of without complaint), and everything works out beautifully for everyone in the end. A fantasy that doesn't quite work, given that one of the themes is the Holocaust and another is the greed of certain people who make money out of other people's pain.
There was another Discworld adaptation in which Jeremy Irons played Vetinari, "The Colour of Magic." I thought he was perfectly cast. PTerry had a small role in that one too, as he did in "Hogfather" (my favorite of all the live-action adaptations to date). Sadly they missed the chance to have Rhys Ifans play Rincewind in TCoM and instead cast someone I'd never heard of, apparently well-known in England, who was short & round instead of long & lanky and who overacted every scene. But Irons was great.
Someone made a poster of Seattle's more ridiculous intersections:
http://www.seattlemag.com/...rsections%20crop.jpg
I am a dreamer of words, of written words. I think I am reading; a word stops me. I leave the page. The syllables of the words begin to move around … The words take on other meanings as if they had the right to be young.
-- Gaston Bachelard
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NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
my blog: https://jodybower.com/myths-archetypes-in-film/
(This post was edited by Annael on Jan 14 2020, 5:40pm)
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ElanorTX
Tol Eressea
Jan 14 2020, 7:06pm
Post #3 of 15
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Isn't there a mnemonic along the lines of Jesus Christ Built Seattle Under Protest ? (to keep a set of major streets in order)
"I shall not wholly fail if anything can still grow fair in days to come."
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Jan 14 2020, 7:08pm
Post #4 of 15
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which I'm guessing there isn't, roundabouts would work well at those intersections. Does Seattle have any? I don't remember seeing one during my visits.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded beggar with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Fantasy novel - The Arcanist's Tattoo
My LOTR fan-fiction
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 15 2020, 1:25am
Post #5 of 15
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Jesus Christ Made Seattle Under Protest:
from south to north the downtown streets are Jefferson, James, Cherry, Columbia, Madison, Marion, Spring, Seneca, University, Union, Pike & Pine.
I am a dreamer of words, of written words. I think I am reading; a word stops me. I leave the page. The syllables of the words begin to move around … The words take on other meanings as if they had the right to be young.
-- Gaston Bachelard
* * * * * * * * * *
NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
my blog: https://jodybower.com/myths-archetypes-in-film/
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 15 2020, 1:39am
Post #6 of 15
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and also, rarely flat. Streets are coming in from uphill & downhill. Take the example of the third one down on the left on the poster. It's on the side of our highest hill. The north-south street is going steeply downhill while most of the intersecting streets are slanting up or down. And houses are crammed in tightly between them all.
We do have roundabouts in more outlying areas. Most people are totally confused by them.
I am a dreamer of words, of written words. I think I am reading; a word stops me. I leave the page. The syllables of the words begin to move around … The words take on other meanings as if they had the right to be young.
-- Gaston Bachelard
* * * * * * * * * *
NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
my blog: https://jodybower.com/myths-archetypes-in-film/
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Jan 15 2020, 3:14am
Post #7 of 15
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"I am a herald and ambassador, and may not be assailed!"
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That's from "The Black Gate Opens" in The Lord of the Rings, the chapter from which I picked my screen name here, a little more than 16 years ago.
The speaker is the Mouth of Sauron, addressing Mordor's enemies led by Aragorn and Gandalf, but he probably had to watch his back, too. I think we know enough about how Mordor functioned to say that Sauron had spies who would kept track of the movements of his officials, including ambassadors like the Mouth of Sauron. (If Mordor existed today, those spies would no doubt have access to his phone and computer.) Sauron's agents likely also developed plots to assassinate such officers, if he asked them to do so. Doubtless they'd want to be compensated in some way. But I guess you can do anything in Mordor with money.
Treachery, treachery I fear; treachery of that miserable creature.
But so it must be. Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend.
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
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Jan 15 2020, 4:17am
Post #8 of 15
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I'm fine with them as long as they have only one or two lanes - any more and I have serious concerns about how they actually work.
When I lived in Auckland there were two roundabouts that I tried to avoid as much as possible (Panmure and Royal Oak, for those playing along). When I worked for a newspaper there and had the police round, I was speaking with the community constable in Panmure about that evil four-lane roundabout and he mentioned he never had a problem with it. I gently pointed out that of course he didn't, given that people would give him a wide berth in his *police car*.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded beggar with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Fantasy novel - The Arcanist's Tattoo
My LOTR fan-fiction
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sherlock
Gondor
Jan 15 2020, 11:23am
Post #9 of 15
(423 views)
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A couple of rereads. I’m reading Little Women and Fellowship of the Ring again. I read Little Women when I was about 16. I haven’t seen the latest movie yet but will at some point.
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Jan 17 2020, 7:51pm
Post #10 of 15
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While someone was climbing volcanoes, no less.
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But I don't think Tolkien ever uses the word "volcano" in The Lord of the Rings, does he?
Treachery, treachery I fear; treachery of that miserable creature.
But so it must be. Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend.
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Discuss Tolkien's life and works in the Reading Room!
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Jan 24 2020, 9:14pm
Post #12 of 15
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"Will no one rid me of this turbulent ambassador?"
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How would Sauron get the job done, do you think? Indirectly, as Henry II called for the assassination of Thomas Becket?
(My subject line quotes the statement traditionally attributed to Henry --except he is alleged to have said "priest" rather than "ambassador"-- but I see that historians believe Henry's actual words were, "What miserable drones and traitors have I nourished and brought up in my household, who let their lord be treated with such shameful contempt by a low-born cleric?" Tolkien uses the word "drones" at some point to describe Sauron's slaves, doesn't he? Although given the date, wouldn't Henry have said this in French?)
Or would it have been something more direct, like simply telling an orc to "Get rid of him!" and "Take him out!"? Although that perhaps sounds too modern.
What's the order that Palpantine issues to all the stormtroopers in the sixth (or third) Star Wars movie?
Treachery, treachery I fear; treachery of that miserable creature.
But so it must be. Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend.
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Discuss Tolkien's life and works in the Reading Room!
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Lily Fairbairn
Half-elven
Jan 26 2020, 3:58pm
Post #13 of 15
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I've been enjoying your recent essays very much, N.E.B.//
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Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing?
Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing?
Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing?
Where is the spring and the harvest and the tall corn growing?
They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow;
The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow....
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Feb 6 2020, 3:57am
Post #14 of 15
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"Will there be no retribution?"
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Thanks. There's an interesting term I've seen used more and more frequently over the past couple years, although apparently it dates to 2002: "stochastic terrorism". There's an explanation here in the Wikipedia article on a better known term: "Lone Wolf Terrorism". It describes seemingly acts of terror perpetrated in response not to a specific directive but to a generalized culture of fear and reprisal -- sort of as if Henry II had access to mass media when he raged against the actions of Thomas Becket.
Anyway, the line I quote above feels like the kind of thing that someone in Mordor might use to urge an attack on a recreant servant, but I don't think the word "retribution" appears in The Lord of the Rings either.
The word "recreant" does, though. Michael Drout wrote a great article about that back in 2004, although as I later noted to him, he wasn't quite right that Tolkien doesn't use the word in any other of his writings (something which strengthened his case that there is a deliberate parallel between the Minas Tirith chapters and King Lear): "recreant" appears in a review Tolkien that wrote of a book about Thomas Malory.
Treachery, treachery I fear; treachery of that miserable creature.
But so it must be. Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend.
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Discuss Tolkien's life and works in the Reading Room!
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How to find old Reading Room discussions.
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Aug 13 2020, 4:23pm
Post #15 of 15
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"Reginald FitzUrse has a chance to be the greatest of all time. But if he wants to be politically correct, he'll be just another guy."
Treachery, treachery I fear; treachery of that miserable creature.
But so it must be. Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend.
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Discuss Tolkien's life and works in the Reading Room!
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
How to find old Reading Room discussions.
(This post was edited by N.E. Brigand on Aug 13 2020, 4:23pm)
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