Author: Shannon Hale
Rating: 
Reading Level: 5th and up
Pages: 290Publisher: Bloomsbury
Edition: Galley, 2006
This is the third installment in the series started with Goose Girl and followed by Enna Burning. I put down everything else I was going to read because I so enjoyed the first two books. I liked this one, but was slightly disappointed that the water magic (after wind and fire, water is a natural element to follow) is not as prevelant and powerful in this one as the other two in the previous volumes. It is also less satisfying that the main character is not the one who learns and wields this power -- I missed the passages that would have been there to describe the sensation and emotion of the process of calling, forming, and controlling water, if Razo has been the water-speaker.
The characters are definitely well defined and likable; the secrets and the final revelation didn't come to me as a total shock but made the read entertaininig; the puppy love is so sincerely and deftly presented that I had to smile at Razo and his love. There are a couple of holes in this "detective" story that should have been addressed (for instance, the girl who baked the tart was never questioned after the accidental death of the poisoned dog...)
Shannon Hale is a wordsmith, just reading these sentences made me happy: "People opened their doors and shutters, pulled chairs and tables outside, and gossiped with neighbors as they ate, serenaded by a crooked moon." "Warehouses crammed together, elbowing for a bit of river side." "The Ingridan autumn air was pleasant and cool and carried with it a round feeling like something complete -- a full moon, a full plate, the end of a good day." Many many more vivid imageries and poetic descriptions. Maybe some readers find this slowing down the pace, but I just enjoyed reading them.
This is a book that every single person should read. Satrapi has the gift of injecting much humor into a story that is ultimately tremendously disturbing and sad. The images (being a Graphic non-fiction) are fittingly simplistic and yet so expressive: the war dead, the tortured, the rebellious teens, the loving parents, the everyday people. I cried at least 3 times in different places. If I hadn't been reading it in the crowded school cafeteria, I probably would have cried more than that -- but I also laughed out loud a few times at the wit and comical situations Marji experienced. What an amazing accomplishment.
This reads so differently from Blade Runner which it inspired. I am more or less indifferent to the book -- I like the philosophical aspect of it but also am a bit bored reading too much musing and not enough action. Might be a bit unfair since my expectation was based on the action-packed movie..
