The account of Lirael's displacement and alienation was some of the best writing in the whole series, and I thought it was a wonderful expression of the loneliness many teenagers feel. I also liked Sameth's dread of being the Abhorsen, and it was such a nice twist that he wasn't meant to be one at all. It helped me think about some of the things that were going on in my own life, that maybe I was trying too hard at the wrong things thinking I have to be "strong" and power through my blockages.
I wonder what it is about marriage and childbirth that, in the popular conception, take characters out of the realm of the heroic and firmly into the prosaic. Even works with heroic parental figures often play their return or entry into heroism for laughs, e.g. Mr. Incredible trying to fit into his costume in The Incredibles. It's like there's a firm divide between boring everyday life and heroism. as though people who are married with children can only be amazing despite their status as "squares" and not because of it. I'd like to see more acknowledgement that the heroic and the prosaic are not so divided at all, and being a pillar of a family and community make you more amazing, not less.
Sabriel and Touchstone probably aren't the best examples of what I'm talking about, though. It's clearly acknowledged that the demands of their position take a toll on family life, so there's a tension between family and heroics, and frankly as the royal couple they're not beset with the demands of childcare and housework to the same degree as the rest of us. Maybe that divide between the heroic and the prosaic exists for a reason, and constitutes Truth in Television. This discussion may come down to what it means to be heroic in the first place.
I'll keep the Westmark Trilogy in mind, though my usual go-tos (Audible, Kobo, school library) are drawing blanks on the title which makes me has a sad.
McKinley does seem to like her older men for heroines, if The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown are any indication. :) It was one of the regrets of my pre-internet young life that I couldn't get The Blue Sword, but it looks like it wasn't too much of a loss. I might still look it up when I'm bored.
One of my favorite quotes is that all fiction, in fact, is fan fiction. And Inu Yasha/Abhorsen crossover sounds so awesome. XD
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branchandroot
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Date: 2013-01-30 11:07 am (UTC)I wonder what it is about marriage and childbirth that, in the popular conception, take characters out of the realm of the heroic and firmly into the prosaic. Even works with heroic parental figures often play their return or entry into heroism for laughs, e.g. Mr. Incredible trying to fit into his costume in The Incredibles. It's like there's a firm divide between boring everyday life and heroism. as though people who are married with children can only be amazing despite their status as "squares" and not because of it. I'd like to see more acknowledgement that the heroic and the prosaic are not so divided at all, and being a pillar of a family and community make you more amazing, not less.
Sabriel and Touchstone probably aren't the best examples of what I'm talking about, though. It's clearly acknowledged that the demands of their position take a toll on family life, so there's a tension between family and heroics, and frankly as the royal couple they're not beset with the demands of childcare and housework to the same degree as the rest of us. Maybe that divide between the heroic and the prosaic exists for a reason, and constitutes Truth in Television. This discussion may come down to what it means to be heroic in the first place.
I'll keep the Westmark Trilogy in mind, though my usual go-tos (Audible, Kobo, school library) are drawing blanks on the title which makes me has a sad.
McKinley does seem to like her older men for heroines, if The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown are any indication. :) It was one of the regrets of my pre-internet young life that I couldn't get The Blue Sword, but it looks like it wasn't too much of a loss. I might still look it up when I'm bored.
One of my favorite quotes is that all fiction, in fact, is fan fiction. And Inu Yasha/Abhorsen crossover sounds so awesome. XD