"Beauty" is a pretty limp heroine IMHO, McKinley's version or no. Even if she is a bibliophile.
Hmm. It's sounds like the finest party I can imagine getting paid to go to.
Mal ,'Shindig'
We're Literary 2: To Read Makes Our Speaking English Good
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Katerina Bee - Jun 11, 2004 11:49:27 am PDT #3239 of 10002
Herding cats for fun
Calli - Jun 11, 2004 12:03:06 pm PDT #3240 of 10002
I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul—Calvin and Hobbs
Speaking of spunky heroines, a friend of mine told me that the original Nancy Drew books had Nancy as a much more independent heroine, and that they were watered down when republished in the '60s. Has anyone here heard anything about this? My friend has forwarded some Snopes-disproved stuff in the past, so I don't know how much to credit this theory. I suppose I could ebay some Nancy Drew first editions and compare them to later reprints, but I'm not quite at that level of curious.
Connie Neil - Jun 11, 2004 12:21:27 pm PDT #3241 of 10002
brillig
The 30s and 40s were actually a very good time for spunky/sassy heroines. I think the post-WWII "the men are home from the wars, time for the women to get back to womanly things" trend was what changed things. IE, the 50s.
Hil R. - Jun 11, 2004 12:21:50 pm PDT #3242 of 10002
Sometimes I think I might just move up to Vermont, open a bookstore or a vegan restaurant. Adam Schlesinger, z''l
There are definite differences between the various reprints of Nancy Drew (I remember once finding a few different versions of the same title and comparing them -- it wasn't just small changes, but entire scenes were changed), but I really can't remember enough to say whether the original was more independent or not.
Calli - Jun 11, 2004 12:29:34 pm PDT #3243 of 10002
I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul—Calvin and Hobbs
The Nancy Drews I read were all my sister's. She was born in 1959, so they were probably mid- to late-60s imprints. So I've no idea what the originals were like.
Harriet Vane, from the Dorothy Sayers books in the 30s, seemed pretty spunky. I like the beginning of Have His Carcase:
The best remedy for a bruised heart is not, as so many people seem to think, repose upon a manly bosom. Much more efficacious are honest work, physical activity, and the sudden acquisition of wealth.
Sounds good to me. Although I wouldn't mind having both cures.
Susan W. - Jun 12, 2004 9:18:20 pm PDT #3244 of 10002
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights
Mmm, that reminds me it's been over a year since my last Wimsey re-read.
§ ita § - Jun 13, 2004 8:01:29 am PDT #3245 of 10002
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
Does anyone know how on or off Neal Stephenson is with the theology/anthropology/linguistics behind Snow Crash? I'm finding myself incredibly distracted.
Nutty - Jun 14, 2004 4:42:07 am PDT #3246 of 10002
"Mister Spock is on his fanny, sir. Reports heavy damage."
ita, my general impression of Snow Crash was that it was a pile of inelegant hooey, badly infodumped, but I can't break that down into details. (I didn't like the book enough to remember which parts felt like hooey and which didn't.)
Anne W. - Jun 14, 2004 5:01:09 am PDT #3247 of 10002
The lost sheep grow teeth, forsake their lambs, and lie with the lions.
"Beauty" is a pretty limp heroine IMHO, McKinley's version or no. Even if she is a bibliophile.
This is why I think her re-visiting of the trope in Rose Daughter is so much better.
Still, for me, The Blue Sword will forever remain the OTMcKinleyNovel.
§ ita § - Jun 14, 2004 5:13:00 am PDT #3248 of 10002
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
So far we are of one mind on this, Nutty. I can't work out why I didn't hate it the first time, so I'm reluctant to cut bait on it.
I'll make my way out of this particular piece of exposition (how could your protagonist (sorry -- Protagonist) sitting around talking to an AI (of limited I) for yonks not kill a story?)