The Gawgon and the Boy

I recently finished reading Lloyd Alexander's The Gawgon and the Boy, and really enjoyed making my way through the short novel. It is a pleasant, funny read, poking sometimes into serious issues, but mostly just taking the reader along for a heart-warming ride.

The book is not really a fantasy tale, at least... no more so than that which exists in the mind of any pre-teen boy. Which is to say that everything in it is fantastic, but it is completely of this primary world that we live in.

Anyway... the relationship that develops between the Gawgon and The Boy is great. I loved both characters, and loved watching them work on one another. And The Boy's fantasy world was a delight to travel through. It was sort of like Bill & Ted, only younger and even sillier, in many ways. Oh, and with a lot of mythology thrown in with the history — more of a general classics education than a mere history project.

It's a fun book, one that I've loaned to a couple of friends for them to read. I think they'll all enjoy it as much as I did. It seems to me a difficult book not to enjoy.


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The Sword or the Ring?

I just read Michael Moorcock's verdict, in which he states that Poul Anderson's The Broken Sword is a better novel than Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring. I am afraid it is an opinion I can't quite share, though. Granted, Anderson's book is much bloodier and more violent, and it is closer to the myths of the Norsemen, but I don't think that makes it a better work than Tolkien's. For me, the chase scene when the Hobbits try to escape across the river with the Black Riders right on their tail.... that's one of my favorite reading memories for the way it sucked me into the fear and agony of the fleeing band.

I have to admit, though, that I am not the most impartial judge. I read The Fellowship of the Ring when I was young, but only got around to reading The Broken Sword this past week. There's no fair way to compare the reading experience of my younger self with that of my older self. So, I have to try to look at the books as texts, rather than simply evaluating my reading experiences with each story. And that is something that is really hard to do (and which I have not yet had sufficient time to do anyway, considering that I've only recently read The Broken Sword). Because the thing that is so great about both books is the way that they suck you right in and make you feel a part of the secondary worlds they create.



For me, and for now, Tolkien's Ring still wins out over Anderson's Sword. But reading Moorcock's opinion made me wonder what the general thought is — which do you prefer? The sword or the ring?


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Small Press Magazines, speculative poetry

I've had a good time this past week catching up on some of the recent issues of several small press speculative poetry magazines that I've let pile up recently. Besides the most recent issue of Illumen that I enjoyed reading tonight, I've also caught up on some recent issues of Scifaikuest, Aoife's Kiss, Star*Line, and have Not One of Us stowed away in my bag to read next.

It's been a good week, and over the next week, I hope to make a little more progress on the pile of magazines I've let build over the past few months.

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Lighting Your Home

Home lighting is one of the most important decisions when renovating the house. A few years ago, when I did my place, I thought long and hard about the lighting I wanted. I settled on ceiling fans throughout the house, and have been very happy with the choice. We never have to turn on the air-conditioning, which results in huge savings on the electricity bill each month.

At Lighting the Web, you can find great deals on Hunter ceiling fans, as well as lots of other home lighting products. Now is the perfect time to have a look at Lighting the Web to address all of your home lighting needs.

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Another Star Wars note

Have you heard the news?

Darth Vader just might be suffering from psychosis


At least, so say the French psychologists....

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Funny Video

I came across a funny Star Wars Rap on YouTube.

Enjoy!!


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