new posts in all blogs
Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: dykons, Most Recent at Top [Help]
Results 1 - 11 of 11
How to use this Page
You are viewing the most recent posts tagged with the words: dykons in the JacketFlap blog reader. What is a tag? Think of a tag as a keyword or category label. Tags can both help you find posts on JacketFlap.com as well as provide an easy way for you to "remember" and classify posts for later recall. Try adding a tag yourself by clicking "Add a tag" below a post's header. Scroll down through the list of Recent Posts in the left column and click on a post title that sounds interesting. You can view all posts from a specific blog by clicking the Blog name in the right column, or you can click a 'More Posts from this Blog' link in any individual post.
I've been rereading Everlost by Neal Shusterman. There are so many great things about this book, but one thing that really struck me is how much I LUV the monster in this story, The McGill. He's not a good monster. The McGill is nasty and mean and he likes it that way. He works hard to be a terror. Don't worry. Those arent' the things I love.
What I love is that even though he's so repulsive, Shusterman still finds a way to make him likable in a way that you hate to love a villan. I've been trying to pinpoint the aspects of this great monster and what makes him so great. Here's what I've come up with so far.
1) He's written w/ humor, in a way that made me think of this monster as more of a young boy trying to be a bully.
2) The McGill develops a respect for the female protagonist even though he isn't prone to giveing repect to anyone.
3) This is probably my most favoritest part and
PARTIAL SPOILERS BELOW: In Everlost, there are 2 thru-lines that are weaved together nicely. They are shown early in the story and follow through til the end and are tied together by showing the reader how the McGill came into existence.
A. In Everlost, people will sink into the ground if they stand still for too long and will sink to the core of the earth. No one is able to get out of the core of the earth. The souls just sit and wait until the end of time.
B. In Everlost, if you forget what you look like, your appearance will change accordingly. ie: someone who prized their smile might start to develop too many teeth. A bully that used his fists might grow oversized hands etc.
Now, this is the good part: Toward the end we find out that before the McGill became the McGill, he was just a regular little boy who sank to the middle of the earth. But . . . as he sat there with all the other sunken souls, he imagined himself strong and powerful. Little by little as his body changed accordingly, he grew strong enough to claw his way out. Something that no one else had done before. However, the very thing that gave him the ability to climb out of the depths is the same thing that turned him into something mean, horrible and heartless.
As the McGill grows in fondness for the female protagonist, his features start to change again; only this time he starts to become less horrific.
Isn't that brilliant!!!! So many threads come together and the monster isn't just a monster for monsters sake. He has a past. He has endearing qualities.
I can't think of any other literary monster that has struck a cord in my quite like this one.
How about you? Do you have any monsters/villans that you love to hate or hate to love?
Have you read anything by Eva Ibbotson? It's a treat, I tell you. When I read Eva's books I get the feeling like the narrator is the cutest, plump English, apron-clad grandmother in the whole world, and that she's telling me the story over a plate of fresh chocolate chip cookies and milk. To get the most out of reading Eva Ibbotson, you really must read her books out loud and in your best British accent. It's a hoot! :0D
I recently finished reading The Secret of Platform 13 and there's a great example of how the differing perceptions of the characters can give us insights into their personalities and how they think.
This book is about a Prince that is kidnapped from a magical kingdom. 9 years later, an unlikely foursome of rescuers are given the task to rescue the Prince. One of these rescuers is a giant one-eyed Ogre. The rescuers need to go into the real world unnoticed, so they have to cover the giant Ogre in a lotion that will make him invisible. Except for his one eye.
The boy that they believe to be the prince is a horrible and spoiled boy named Raymond.
The boy that they wish was the prince is a servant boy named Ben.
Here are the different reactions of Ben and Raymond upon their first observation of the Ogre's disembodied eye.
Bens Reaction in Chapter 4:
"The ogre had managed to follow them to the bench with his eye shut, but the Prince's" ( They think that Ben, was the prince at this point) "voice pleased him so much that he now opened it. Cor frowned at him, Gurkie shook her head--they had been so careful not to startle the Prince, and invisible ogres are unusual; there is nothing to be done about that. But the boy didn't seem at all put out by a single blue eye floating halfay up the trunk of the tree.
'Is he. . . or she . . . I don't want to pry, but is he a friend of yours?"
Raymonds Reaction in Chapter 7:
"But now Raymond sat up very straight and pointed to the door. 'Eeek!' he shouted. 'There's a horrible thing there! An eye! It's disgusting; it's creepy. I want my mummy!'
The others turned their heads in dismay. They knew how sensitive the ogre was, and to call such a clean-living person 'creepy' is about as hurtful as it is possible to be. And sure enough, a tear welled up in Hans' clear blue eye, trembled there . . . and fell. Then the eye vanished, and from the space where the giant sat, there came a deep, unhappy sigh."
Sometimes a gem jumps up and lands in your change purse. I had that delightful experience last night.
Many of you know that I host a Kids Night craft every Tuesday at my restaurant. Last nights craft was "Decorate a Glitter Wand"
Can you say MESSY?
Covered in glitter, I looked like a Fairy God Mother by the end of the night. I got a lot of stares when I went to the grocery store before returning home.
Anyway. . . . back to the purupose of the story
One little girl, about 4 or 5, was in heaven making this glitter wand. Her enthusiasm shined brighter than the glitter. At one point she put her nose as close to the glitter and glue as she could w/o getting it on her skin as she gushed
"Ahhhhh, there's nothin' like the smell of sparkly and sticky!"
And so I thought "Wow! What a great example of how a small child thinks."
As adults we've been programed to think inside the box. You CAN'T smell "sparkly" you see it. You CAN'T smell "sticky" you touch it.
Not for this child-like innocence. She associates a smell with what she sees and touches.
How sweet. How pure
As an apiring children's author, I'm constantly on the lookout for how I can escape an adult mindset and tap back into the perspective of a child.
This little girl inspired me to think of the things that I love and rethink how I would describe them. My challenge is for you to do the same.
This little girl didn't just like glitter and glue. She liked the sparkly and sticky.
I love the beach: the weather, sand and the water
But that just sounds boring. How would this child describe the beach?
It's been harder than I thought.
Some that I've come up with is
There's nothing like the smell of blue, splashy hot and shell hunting.
What can you come up with? You can use the beach or anything else that you may love. (I hear that some people don't like the beach.) Shocking. I know.
Anyway. Just pick something you like and try it! I'd love to hear what you come up with.
I appologize for the progressively huge letters. I keep trying to make the font smaller, but it's not working. I don't know why. !?!?!?!?!
After a tragic house fire, an orphan is sent to China to live with his cantankerous and dirt-poor Grandfather. When Steve finds a magic paintbrush, he is able to grant their wishes, until their greedy landlord finds out about the paintbrush and threatens eviction if they don't give it to him.
This is a touching and compelling MG novel. It's underlying theme explores dealing with the death of a loved one and how memories can be like still having them around. I was drawn in by the character: got teary eyed when he spoke of missing his mom and dad, and my heart lifted with joy when he found the magic paintbrush and discovered that his Grandfather wasn't quite so bad after all. It's a quick and easy read and a great example of voice, character and believable dialogue.
If you took your protagonist on a trip, what would he/she pack?
I'm taking a slow hike through "Reading Like A Writer" by Francine Prose. I have a hard time reading non fiction. They aren't page-turners. I've had the book for over a month and I'm only in chapter 3. But it's worth the trudging.
I loved the idea from chapt 2 about using character choices as one way to show personality and mindset. Is your character mature or immature? cautious or carefree? neat or messy?
Prose uses an example from "A Distant Episode" by Paul Bowles. A professor traveling to the North African desert packs two small overnight bags full of maps, sun lotions, and medicines.
Prose says:
"The contests of the Professor's two small over night bags full of maps, sun lotions, and medicines provide a tiny mini-course in the importance of close reading. The protagonist's anxiety and cautiousness, his whole psychological makeup, has been communicated in five words (maps, sun lotions, and medicines) and without the need to use one descriptive adjective or phrase. (He was an anxious man, who worried about getting lost or sunburned or sick, and so forth.) What very different conclusions we might form about a man who carries a bag filled with dice, syringes, and a hand gun."
This section made me want to think of my own protagonist. Do I know her psyche well enough to show her personality through her unique packing choices?
Then I also thought about the certain things I always pack: I always take lip balm and more books than clothing, and what does my husband pack: mostly just clothes and always waits til the last minute to pack. I know someone that always packs a can of lysol disinfectant spray. . . what choices do we make that show who we are? It makes an interesting character study and a fun creative exercise.
The next step: Go back through my MS and see what scenes provide opportunity to show personality through choices. It's kind of like mining for diamonds. You've got to locate the gems, bring them to the surface and then make 'em shine!
Gotta go help my protagonist pack now. Buh-bye!
http://www.gamemaker.nu/upload/image/FantasySword1.jpg
The cliche = The poison of manuscripts
How can we describe that funny feeling in the pit of our stomachs when we're around that certain someone that make us go weak in the knees? (note the cliche)
Butterflies? Nope. Way over done.
Fluttering? Nope. That one is used a lot too.
Here's how Shannon Hale tackled this cliche in "Princess Academy".
This is from Chapter 11.
"Being near him made her insides feel like twisted vines, choking and blooming all at the same time, and her only thought was that his smile was worth trudging for."
So, here's to Shannon Hale! I here-by name you Master Cliche-Slayer
. . . for Oscar Day, I present you with a celebrity reviewer, movie actress Saffron Burrows in the Guardian. Good job, too.
My Oscar hopes: No Country for Old Men, Coen brothers, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, none of them*, Amy Ryan, Persepolis; don't care about the rest but think the un-nominated Eastern Promises shoulda won for Best Score.
My predictions: No Country for Old Men, Coen Brothers, Daniel Day-Lewis, Javier Bardem, Julie Christie, Ruby Dee (Richard's pick because I can't decide), Ratatouille. Atonement for Best Score although it sucks big bombastic rocks.
*I know this isn't an option. It's like the Newbery and Caldecott: once you've decided that "choosing the best" is a defensible activity, then something has to win. We're talking comparatives, not superlatives, a distinction not observed in Zadie Smith's recent short-story contest. So I guess I'll go with Julie Christie. She makes me go misty.
In one of the group homes I lived in after college (not like it sounds, but too haphazard to be a commune) one of my housemates had placed in the bathroom an oversized children's paperback book called What Is a Girl? What Is a Boy?, affixing to it a note that said something like "this is for all you losers who can't tell the difference." The book was a photoessay showing boys and girls engaged in all kinds of anti-gendered behavior, and the last two spreads showed a naked boy and girl, then a naked man and woman, explaining that genitalia was the only meaningful difference between the sexes. By Stephanie Waxman, it was published in 1976 by Peace Press in California . (It was republished in 1989 by T.Y. Crowell. Had Us become Them?)
K. T. Horning's post "Retro Reads: Before Heather" makes me remember those days. I'd love to have the Horn Book take a good look at this era of leftist small press publishing for children--any takers?
Who needs old closet case Dumbledore when Claire has put together a first-class list of out-n-proud GLBTQ-and-sometimes-Y fiction?
I've got an editorial in the upcoming Horn Book about the outing of Dumbledore, who in fact joins a long line of characters who coulda-woulda-shoulda be gay if the reader so inclines--like Shakespeare in Susan Cooper's King of Shadows as we discussed here a few weeks ago. Or Harriet the Spy. (Or Sport, Beth Ellen, or Janie.) Betsy and Tacy! Frank and Joe! Nancy and George! Or not, too--the point is that characters become your imaginary friends whose lives, loves, and destinies can become what you need them to be.
I'm reminded of 1965, the momentous year when Barbie became flexible. Durable characters always are.
This Newsweek story about the over-diagnosis of developmental problems in kids reminds me of a discussion in my children's lit class in library school. We were all enthusiastically talking about Harriet the Spy until one student, an infiltrator from the psych. department, sputtered, "I can't believe you all are recommending children read this book about a sociopath."
for this picture of dykon Louise Fitzhugh, looking like James Dean's love child on KT Horning's new blog Worth the Trip. The blog is going to be devoted to coverage of GLBTQXYZ books for kids and teens and with KT at the helm you know the thinking and writing are going to be first-rate.
Wow, I'm going to add Everlost to my reading list. Yes, I do have a monster I love! Bartimaeus from Jonathan Stroud's The Bartimaeus Trilogy (although he's not really a scary monster). He's likable for at least one of the reasons you mention--humor. I think another reason he's likable, and why a lot of "monsters" are likable, is his gruff exterior combined with a heart of gold. Interesting post.
Ooooh that sounds good! I'm putting it on my list! I love a good bad guy!
Hey MG! I"m going to have to put The Bartimaeus Trilogy on my reading list too! sounds great!
Hi Ello! Yep, he's a good, bad one!:0)
I'll go with The McGill also! You nailed it. He is done really well.
Oh I loved Everlost too! I picked it off the shelf just on a whim and had no idea how awesome it would be!
Thnx PJ. I knew I wouldn't be the only one who loves the McGill.
Christina, ohhhh! it's always so much fun to pick up a fantastic book w/o knowing how FAB it's going to be! I love when that happens!
This sounds like a good book. I'm adding it to my list!
From your "50 Books" list, it looks like you've been on a Shusterman binge. He must be good!
Wow, I need to read this one. A modern day Beauty and the Beast!
I am definitely intrigued. I love Bartimaeus too.
I skipped the spoilers, but I'm going to look for this book!
I loved the McGill and Everlost -- loved Unwind even more.
That sounds like an intriguing bad guy!
Sounds like a great book. I'm more into PBs that anything else, so my idea of a monster is probably a lot different than most. While everyone is loving the Twilight series, the closest I can get to a vampire is Bela Lugosi.