Today in the world of literature...

Today in the world of literature –The Book and Brier Patch in Regina, Saskatchewan announced it will be closing its doors July 31st. This will be sad day. The Book and Brier is Regina’s largest independent book store. An icon for independent business. And yet, succumbed, like many, to the big box stores and online shopping. An interesting thought that he mentions is that the ebook was also part of his demise. Keep this in mind because I would like to discuss the ebook one of these days. The full article is here:

Now if you weren’t familiar with the Book & Brier it was a quirky place that held great events for Saskatchewan and Canadian authors. I have been to several book launches there and also hung out in their coffee shop often as a university student. They had a great selection of unique books great for gifts and puzzles and board games. It will be sadly missed. I am happy to hear though that they will continue to provide service to schools. They were a great supplier of Canadian books to meet school curriculum.

In addition to this news, I also have other news- I read my first fantasy book outside of CS Lewis and JK Rowling. For those that do not know me, I have a hard time with the fantasy genre. I like some science fiction but I cannot seem to get into the fantasy realm.

My husband likes it, though he’s more into historical fiction. But he has all of the David Eddings books sitting on our book shelf and still gets cranky when you mentioned that he died without finishing his series last summer. I have tried to pick those books up several times but can’t get my head around the maps that introduce the book so I don’t even make it to the story.

I also do not find myself drawn in by the cover art. I know, I know, don’t judge a book by its cover- but lets face it, we do. Remember, I read Blink. And dragons and wizards and dark oranges, greens and blues do not attract me in that way at all.

I like a story grounded in reality with a little bit of fantasy sure- romance, magic realism- something to make the book seem magical, but it cannot be set in a magical world. I find myself hunting for plot holes. Even in my beloved Harry Potter I do this.

I had tried several times to read JRR Tolkien. And I never made it past the first couple of chapters. I can’t even make it through the movies without falling asleep. But last week I picked up a Fantasy novel, borrowed from a friend, and decided to have one last try. My friend explained that since meeting me she had been opened up to a whole new world of books outside her limited fantasy and midevil fiction. She argued that it was her turn to reciprocate and that I should read something she liked. So she provided me with a copy of Piers Anthony’s A Spell for Chameleon. And last night, I finished it.

So, the verdict? It was fun in the way the cutesy creatures can be in Harry Potter. But my problem was with the protagonist, Bink. The “evil magician Trent” was relatively well developed though it would’ve been nice to see more of his back story, but Bink was awful. How cheap of an author to be in a whole realm of magic and choose luck to be the magic of your lead character? Bink was honorable, admirable and all things a strong protagonist in a quest plot should be. But his most important characteristic is luck. They call it something else and I can’t really explain it further as it ruins the end of the book, but it was cheap and completely turned me off.

The writing was also awkward near the end. Throughout the book is this mild tone but near the end, where the plot only sort of thickens, there is suddenly minor curses and direct vulgar language instead of the innuendo used throughout the novel. It makes it seem out of place and awkward. Again, like the author was too lazy to develop the details to show the emotional change and intensity of the situation and instead resorted to cursing. Know that I don’t get offended by that kind of stuff, I just find it cheap that the author chose that route.

Now, in my friend’s defense, she warned me this was a “fluff” book. Books that are light and fluffy like meringue are fine. Everyone needs like reading. And if I would have been in junior high again I likely would’ve enjoyed it. But this was beyond fluff.

So I guess after that diatribe I have realized that fantasy isn’t so bad, but this book was. And I would probably give another author another shot sometime, but maybe there really is a genre out there I won’t read.

So if any of you are Fantasy fans, why do you read this stuff? What am I missing?

Lastly, I know I said there were three lists. And there are, but I got side tracked with the closing of the Brier and with the ending of my first fantasy novel. I should also tell you that I leave tomorrow for a couple of days. When I get back I will share the list of my most cherished books and get on with discussing books with you.

Thank you to the earlier followers of the blog, it means a lot! And I hope today wasn’t too much of an ill written rant that it turns you off. It was a quick entry. Happy Canada Day on Thursday and I will probably post again Saturday!