Sunday, December 25, 2011

Grandma Ben

I was reading Bone: The Great Cow Race by Jeff Smith, and I noticed something funny.

Grandma Ben.

Uncle Ben.

One's in the Bone books, the other is from "Star Wars." And they both have pretty similar roles.

You can see Grandma Ben to the left in the below picture. She's an old lady in a blue dress and white apron.

A cover for book six.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Reading list

Last June I came up with a reading list of books to read by the end of calendar year 2011. It was by no means a list of the only books I wanted to read, but rather was just some books that I wanted to make darn sure to read.

I finished off the reading list in the wee hours of the morning today.

Beka Cooper: Mastiff by Tamora Pierce (publication date: Oct. 25)

Inheritance by Christopher Paolini (publication date: Nov. 8)

1 Discworld book by Terry Pratchet

Devil's Rock by Chris Speyer

The Burning Island by Pamela Frierson

Septimus Heap: Syren by Angie Sage

Septimus Heap: Darke by Angie Sage (publication date: June 7th)

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. le Guin

By the way, I didn't read just one Discworld book, I read three. So far. I've been thinking of listening to another one over winter break...

Inheritance and my predictions

I finished Christopher Paolini's Inheritance in the wee hours of this morning, and now I would like to review the predictions I had made. Some of which were wildly wrong, others of which were right on. I give the reasons for all my predictions in this post. And of course, in case it isn't already obvious...

SPOILER ALERT

1) I think that Roran is a Moses figure, and that he will either a) die, or b) become king of Alagaësia and be unable to return to his former life as a farmer. -- He does not become king (although one elf does suggest him as a good possibility) and he does return to Carvahall. It is not said how well he takes to returning to life as a farmer, though.

2) Katrina will come face to face with Galbatorix, and there will be a need for her and Roran to use the rings that Eragon gifted them with. -- Nope.

3) Nasuada will die. -- Actually, she goes on to become queen.

4) That in the end of the book Eragon leaves Alagaësia with a green dragon and that dragon's rider. And Roran stands on the shore screaming in despair. Or screaming in something. -- Yes Eragon leaves Alagaësia. No the green rider and her dragon do not go with him. Yes it is Roran who stands on the shore screaming.

5) That the new green dragon hatched just outside of Ellesméra, at the Stone of Broken Eggs. -- Nope.

6) That in the end it will be a matter of who has the most Eldunarí and that Eragon must find the Vault of Souls. At the Vault of Souls Eragon must speak either his own true name or the true name of the Ancient Language -- probably his own true name. -- No it's not a matter of who has more Eldunarí. But yes Eragon had to find the Vault of Souls, and Eragon had to speak his own true name.

7) Certain persons of interest will play important parts. Persons discussed in this post. -- They do not play important roles. However, I think that Bladesinger and the teenage girl do make a brief appearance during the final battle.

8) Galbatorix will come dangerously close to finding the true name of the Ancient Language. -- He doesn't come dangerously close. He actually does find it!!! I hadn't thought it would be possible to defeat him after that.

9) Eragon and Arya will get together despite their age differences. -- Difficult to say. Paolini doesn't write any romance between them, but Arya does return Eragon's feelings. And if she didn't have responsibilities as queen I'm pretty sure that she would have left Alagaësia with him and they would have married. Or done the elf equivalent, by sticking together, anyways.

10) Eragon's true name will contain brisingr in it. -- We have no idea what Eragon's true name is. *pout*

Saturday, December 10, 2011

More reading challenges

I've signed up for three more reading challenges: science fiction, fantasy, and audio books. You can find out more by going to my Reading Challenges page.

Witchy Books Reading Challenge 2012



I am participating in Magaly's witchy reading challenge, which you can read more about if you click here! The challenge runs from January 13th to December 13th 2012, and I'll keep a list of what witchy books I've read on my brand new Reading Challenges page!

Labels

a book turned into something else (11) adult (67) Alaya Dawn Johnson (2) Andre Norton (1) Andy MacDonald (1) Angie Sage (5) Anita Diamant (3) Anne McCaffrey (3) Aric McKeown (2) art (2) audio book (10) Avi (1) banned / challenged books (7) Bible (8) Bill Amend (1) Bill Martin Jr. (1) Bill Wisher (1) book mending (1) book review (23) book signings (1) Brendan Fraser (1) Brian Jacques (7) C.S. Lewis (3) captive narrative (2) Caroline B. Cooney (2) Catherine Murdock (1) Charles Dickens (1) Charles Vess (4) Charlotte Brontë (1) chart / diagram / whatever (3) Cheryl Schwartz (1) children's lit (1) Chris Speyer (2) Christopher Paolini (27) classism (2) comedy (1) comedy (drama) (2) comics (4) Cornelia Funke (6) correcting myself (1) cover art (7) Cynthia Kadohata (2) D.H. Lawrence (1) Dan Brown (1) Daniel L. Schacter (2) Daniel Loxton (1) Daniel M. Wegner (2) Daniel T. Gilbert (2) David Abram (3) David C. Cook (1) David Levithan (1) Debora Geary (1) Diana Hacker (1) Doug Mauss (3) Douglas Adams (2) Dr. Seuss (1) dragons (3) drama (10) dreams (6) dreams / visions (7) dystopian (1) E.M. Forster (1) early books / book binding / book history / etc. (1) Emily Dickinson (1) environment (1) Eoin Colfer (10) Eric Carle (1) Ernest Hemingway (2) essay (4) Esther M. Friesner (1) fairy tale retold (1) fan art (7) fantasy (126) fantasy -- historical (2) fantasy -- urban (4) fiction (46) fiction -- historical (1) Frank Herbert (4) Fritz Klein (1) G. B. Trudeau (1) gaming (1) Gardner Dozois (4) Garth Nix (8) gender roles (2) Geoff Dyer (2) George Orwell (1) Geronimo Stilton (1) graphic novel (13) H. G. Wells (2) Hank Green (1) Harper Lee (1) Herman Melville (2) historical fantasy (7) historical fiction (29) Hollis Shiloh (1) horror (2) Hugo Petrus (1) humor (2) inconsistencies (4) it ain't real syndrome (2) J. Jacques (1) J. K. Rowling (9) J.D. Salinger (1) J.R.R. Tolkien (8) Jack Dann (4) Jack London (1) James Clavell (7) James Hutchings (1) Jane Austen (15) Jaroslav Pelikan (1) Jean Cassels (1) Jeanne DePrau (1) Jeff Smith (7) Jen Delyth (1) Jenny Erpenbeck (2) Jim Butcher (12) Jim Smiley (1) Joanne Bertin (1) Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1) John Green (8) John R. Erickson (4) John William Waterhouse (1) Jonathan Stroud (3) Juliet Marillier (13) just me rambling (2) juvenile lit (17) K.A. Applegate (2) Kage Baker (1) Kelly McCullough (2) kids literature (2) Kirby Larson (1) Kristen Britain (8) L.M. Montgomery (1) Lem Pew (2) Leo Tolstoy (1) Leslie Silko (4) LGBTQIA (9) LHoD (32) Llewellyn (1) Louise Erdrich (3) made me cry (2) magic (8) manga (1) Marion Zimmer Bradley (1) Mark Twain (1) Mary E. Pearson (1) Mary Nethery (1) masks (1) Meg Cabot (3) memoir (2) Mercedes Lackey (2) Michael Walters (1) movies (13) music / video (7) music / youtube (12) my crushes on fictional characters (7) my predictions (14) mystery (2) mythology (1) names (3) Nancy Butler (1) Nancy Resnick (1) Naomi Novik (2) narrator review (2) Nathaniel Hawthorne (2) Nathaniel Parker (1) Native American (9) natural disasters (1) nature / wildlife (1) non fiction (24) Nora Roberts (1) Northrop Frye (2) notes (6) Octavia E. Butler (1) Pam Jenoff (1) Pamela Frierson (7) Paul M. Kramer (1) Peggy V. Beck (1) Peter S. Beagle (1) pets / animals (4) Philip Pullman (2) poetry (10) questions (16) Rachel Pollack (1) racism (9) Randa Abdel-Fattah (2) Randall Frakes (2) Ray Bradbury (2) reading challenges (12) reading list (3) Rebecca Z Shafir (2) reference book (1) religion / spirituality (11) religion / spirituality / mythology (15) Rick Riordan (8) Robert A. Heinlein (4) Robert Frost (1) Robert M. Pirsig (2) romance (13) Ruth S. Noel (1) Sappho (1) Sarah Darer Littman (3) science fantasy (5) science fiction (66) Sergio Cariello (3) Seth Grahame-Smith (1) sexism (1) sexual violence (2) Shakespeare (13) Sharon Olds (1) Shaun Hutson (1) Sherman Alexie (9) Shirley Jackson (1) short story (5) signed book (1) six word novels (1) Stephenie Meyer (12) Susan Cooper (1) Susan Fletcher (1) Suzanne Collins (1) Tamora Pierce (44) Taylor Mali (1) Terminator (9) Terry Pratchet (3) textbooks (1) Thanhha Lai (1) Tim Curry (1) Tim Hamilton (1) Tom Fischbach (1) totally random (1) tragedy (drama) (5) translated literature (8) Trudi Canavan (1) urban fantasy (9) Ursula K. le Guin (47) vampires (2) Vanessa Sorensen (1) Victor Hugo (1) Virtual Read-Out (2) visions (3) werewolves (3) what I'm reading (9) what's on my nightstand (1) writing to an author (1) written for school (8) Yevgeny Zamyatin (3) young adult (61) Zack Whedon (1)