Reflections in that rain puddle

Away, away for Turkey Day

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:52:44 -0500

I will take a break from blogging on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week. Hope to Return on Saturday without too much weight gain. Hope your Thanksgiving is joyous and fruitful.

Those curious about Thanksgiving history and facts will find the...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:50:55 -0500

Those curious about Thanksgiving history and facts will find the Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics websites helpful and surprisingly intereresting.

Believe that I’ve mentioned Stereomood before, but may be...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:32:00 -0500

Believe that I’ve mentioned Stereomood before, but may be worth a look during the holidays. This is a free web music site that classifies music by mood so that you can find and listen to music that matches your mood or perhaps changes it.

“Fractal carpet” created with Forge Filters.

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:28:41 -0500

“Fractal carpet” created with Forge Filters.

Feeding America: the historic cookbook project is a website...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:27:19 -0500

Feeding America: the historic cookbook project is a website devoted to older, classic recipe books. May be helpful for meal preparation or just in remembering what grandmother might have cooked.

“Cobwebs in my mind” created with Xaos and filtered...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:22:57 -0500

“Cobwebs in my mind” created with Xaos and filtered just a bit with Filter Forge.

An Excellent New Series Begins

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:43:00 -0500

Gilman, Laura Anne ~ Flesh and Fire ~ Pocket, 2009 ~ 374 pages ~ Audience: adults, some teens ~ Rating: Excellent.

Opening:

“In the hills of southern Iaja, thunder had rolled through the night before, but no rain accompanied it, and the slaves were at work in the vineyards soon after sunrise. The sun had progressed to the third-quarter mark when a lean figure came to stand at the edge of the yard.”

Publication History:

Flesh and Fire is the first volume in the Vineart War series.

Setting:

The setting primarily focuses on one large vineyard estate [not all vineyards are connected to each other]. Briefly we visit a distant island and later in the book a reasonably large city. The larger setting, i.e. where these places are and how they relate to each other is not really described. Certainly, a map would be most helpful to the reader who would like to place the several scenes in context. Most of the book focuses on the vineyards of Vineart Malech and they are well described. It is clear that the author has learned much about grapes, vineyards and wines. Her descriptions of the vines, the grapes, and the distinct flavor of the wines are especially well done.

Plot:

Control of the Vin Lands has a long and complex history. Past magic had terrible consequences and the gods became angry. Magic is now restricted to the Vinearts who use their special talents to grow and make wines with particular magical properties such as healing or calming the winds. No other magic is allowed, yet somehow some one is now using magic to attack individual Vinearts and create tragic events that cast doubt on the ability of the Vinearts to protect the people. In this first volume, we gradually learn how the Vinearts do what they do and that a terrible and unexpected attack is under way.

Characters:

Vineart Malech is a Master of the vine art and is well-regarded beyond his province. He is worried about unexplained events involving distant vineyards and their Vinearts. As he gathers information, he discovers that the situation is clearly worse that he had hoped. As is the custom, he has just selected a slave to become a Vineart and someday succeed him. All of the Vinearts were at one time a slave [slaves with no family ties were thought to be free from bias and politics]. Jerzy is that slave. He remembers little of his past. His looks indicate that he came from far away. Being a slave, at least a successful and alive one, requires some skill and thought. Jerzy has both of these, but virtually no education beyond what he has learned about the grapes. He is the main character. His education and gradual knowledge of the vines and their magic is the major focus of Flesh and Fire. In the latter part of the story, Jerzy, not yet really prepared to be a Vineart but with considerable potential, is sent away to work with another Vinart and learn more potential enemies as well as develop new vinart skills. This will be a notable challenge for someone who has not traveled beyond his vineyard.

Physical Book:

There are 24 chapters. Print is dark and of average size. See-through is average. The front cover illustration by Chris McGrath shows Jerzy in a vineyard near the city of Alleppan where he has been sent to gather intelligence. I found the image to be fuzzy and not as powerful as it might have been. A simpler grape oriented design would be better.

Recommendation:

While the story itself is well-told with generally appealing characters [Malech is a harsh master], the persuasive and thoughtful development of an original magical system was especially appealing. Gilman’s description of the earth, the weather, the vines, and the taste of the wines was original and most persuasive. While I would have liked more of an introduction to the world, the continent, or the larger geographical setting, the vineyard settings were nicely done and added considerable depth to the story. The plot itself seems complex at this point, but works well in providing character background, political/religious/economic context, and bringing together the three characters [two of whom are introduced toward the end of this volume] likely to dominate future volumes. Descriptive writing as well as the dialogs are clear and fit the landscape and the characters well. Since Jerzy is only 16, the story should have considerable appeal to teens. A strong female character is briefly introduced at the end, but promises to be a major character who should appeal to female readers. This is very much a “coming of age” tale as the jacket blurbs say. I found it to be most appealing and very much look forward to the next volume.

Recommended for all but the smaller fantasy collections.

“River” was created in Elements and tweeked with...

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:08:18 -0500

Variant 1.

Variant 2.

“River” was created in Elements and tweeked with Filter Forge. Two slightly different filters used.

“Brain Cells” created with Xaos and tweeked with...

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:06:29 -0500

“Brain Cells” created with Xaos and tweeked with Filter Forge.

The Motley Collection of Costume Design at the University of...

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:05:28 -0500

The Motley Collection of Costume Design at the University of Illinois is an intriguing visual collection for those interested in dramatic presentations and the history of costume.

Brookings MetroMonitor is a quarterly report on the economic...

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:00:00 -0500

Brookings MetroMonitor is a quarterly report on the economic status in the largest metro areas in the U.S. Useful for place specific data.

Green economy profiles provide an interesting look at how how...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:17:19 -0500

Green economy profiles provide an interesting look at how how each state is doing in this area.

The Adversity Index developed by Moody s for MSNBC is certainly...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:17:00 -0500

The Adversity Index developed by Moody s for MSNBC is certainly an interesting measure of economic health in both states and metro areas.

Our hydrangeas are gradually loosing color and leaves, but...

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:14:51 -0500

Variant 1.

Variant 2.

Variant 3.

Our hydrangeas are gradually loosing color and leaves, but remain interesting to look at.

Dark but Romantic Celtic Fantasy

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:52:17 -0500

Marillier, Juliet ~ Heart’s Blood~ Roc, 2009 ~ 402 pages ~ Audience: adults, some teens ~ Rating: Very Good.

Opening:

“At a place where two tracks met, the carter brught his horse to a sudden halt. ‘This is where you get down,’ he said.”

Publication History:

Heart’s Blood seems to be a stand-alone novel.

Setting:

Ireland during the time of the Norman invasion/consolidation is the setting. Most of the story takes place at the ancient steep hill of Whistling Tor where a somewhat fallen castle remains nearly hidden by thick forest that has grown up around it. Due to a major black magic episode, the hill is haunted by a partially-alive, half-dead host of formerly human beings. The present Lord of Whistling Tor is haunted and crippled. His household consists of but one human besides himself, a last reminant of an ancient race, and three of the partially alive. The castle is very much in decline and the nearby villages have only fearful memories of the Tor and its inhabitants.

Language is Irish and Latin, but few speak or read Latin. Very few are literate.

Plot:

Caitrin’s father, a noted independent scribe, has died, her sister has married a traveling musican, and she is devastated by the loss of her father, especially since they worked so closely together. An unknown relative and her son arrives to take over and Caitrin is treated most poorly. In desperation, she runs away and finds herself at Whistling Tor where she has a temporary position transcribing journals and letters, including some magical tomes. Caitrin must find her true self and banish her many fears in a most challenging environment, including facing black magic.

Anluan is the crippled lord. Somehow, he must control the magical and sometimes evil host that occupies the Tor even though his father and grandfather died in attempting to do that. He has lost all hope for his future and the future of Whistling Tor. Caitrin hopes to change that. Perhaps she can find the secret to eliminating the terrible curse that binds the Tor.

Characters:

Besides Caitrin and Anluan, Magnus is the one human at the Tor and primarily responsible for raising Anluan and protecting him as well as keeping the castle in some kind of order. Olean, the forest man is the last of his kind. He knows the Tor, has protection from the magical host, and protects Anluan as best he can. Rioghan is one of the half-dead but is alive enough to appear to be human and serve as Anluan’s steward/chancellor. Brother Eichri is similar in nature but is a very much lapsed monk. His sense of humor lightens what is a very dark story. Lady Muirn, another of the half-dead, is a mystery and we learn little about her until the latter part of the story. There are several minor characters including a nicely done dog and a mysterious little girl spirit.

Physical Book:

There are 15 longish chapters and a brief afterword. Print is comfortably dark and of average size. See-through is average. The front cover illustration by Melanie Delon shows Caitrin in the library looking at an image in one of the magical mirrors. It is nicely done but may not clearly communicate the genre. The Australian cover is much better I think.

Recommendation:

Marillier’s Celtic fantasy stories, especially the four Sevenwaters novels have been both a critical and a popular success so this new story should be an automatic selection for most fantasy collections. The Celtic setting is well developed and persuasive. Both of the two major characters are trying to find themselves in a most difficult situation. Will Caitrin have the hidden strength to redeem Anluan and save Whistling Tor? Interactions between characters are insightful and well-done. The magic is certainly dark and its consequences most evil. The story focuses on the search to learn enough about the spells to counter them. There is little action except toward the end and that is described briefly. The theme of the story is self-discovery and how to find one’s true self. Caitrin should appeal to female readers who enjoy historical romance. The ease with which she later enountered strangers who became good friends and quickly helped her with legal and other problems was not persuasive to this reader because it happened too quickly.

Two slightly different versions of the same pansy image. This...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:25:18 -0500

Variant 1.

Variant 2.

Two slightly different versions of the same pansy image. This one in another bed.

One version of kale will add color through winter. This one...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:22:58 -0500

One version of kale will add color through winter. This one looks like lettuce to me.

The Master Gardener has added pansies for color in our...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:19:26 -0500

The Master Gardener has added pansies for color in our increasingly brown and bare front raised bed. Here is one.

SF Signal has a most interesting feature where notable...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:17:03 -0500

SF Signal has a most interesting feature where notable artists/illustrators select and briefly comment on favorite SF and F jackets or covers.

The Native American Records digital database is likely to be a...

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:15:14 -0500

The Native American Records digital database is likely to be a wonderful resource for scholars and students. While grateful for the firm that has done the digitization and provided access, it still troubles me that national archival materials are only available via fees.