Narnia – a scene from the Disney film: Photo by c.W. Disney / Rex Features.
Have you ever wanted to escape to a magical world of fun and mayhem? Lindsay Taylor and Suzanne Smith, the authors of the Hattie B, Magical Vet series want to know, then offer their personal favorite fantasy realms, from Narnia and Neverland to Wonderland and Willy Wonka’s factory…
Someday, I’d like to think that the worlds of my Worldweavers series and The Were Chronicles will be at the top of readers list of their favorite magical places.
Taylor and Smith’s favorite of their top 10 list? Narnia, of course.
Narnia: C.S. Lewis managed to conjure such vivid imagery of a faraway mythical land, a place where the animals can talk, where the White Witch rules and the formidable Aslan guards the land and leads battles that it is impossible to have anything less than a fantastic vision of Narnia in your mind. If we could choose to travel to any magical world we would choose Narnia every time.
See their other choices HERE
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A friendly bite
I had a delightful time at Bitten by Books, answering some unusual interview questions about everything from whether I can fake an accent to my favorite vacation (easy, the first time I swam with dophins, in Tahiti).
That, of course, was followed by questions about the writing of Ransom, and the Were World in general, and then an interaction with the readers who frequent the book review site – an interaction which was still going on two days later.
This has been quite a ride, and some of the readers’ comments have been SO much fun to answer. I’ve been peppered with everything from which of my characters I most identify with to my favorite Muppet and everything in between. Swing by and take a gander at the interview there, but then do go on and scan the comment section. It’s well worth it.
Bitten by Books Q&A HERE
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The Future of Women on Earth May Be Darker Than You Thought
“It’s easy to get caught up in the internet gender war trainwreck,” Annalee Newitz writes at io9, “where we’re still arguing over whether women belong in tech or rape victims are liars. But let’s set that shit aside and take the long view: Do we have any evidence that the future will bring greater freedom to women, or should we expect more dystopia?”
She notes that “One of the most important mathematicians in classical antiquity, Hypatia, was a woman. Every other ancient mathematician we study today? Male. Hundreds of dangerous pirate captains sailed the high seas in the 16th century. But hey! One of them was a woman!”
Illustration by Steven Belledin
“I could…look back in numb terror, counting how few generations separate me from women who had the same voting rights that my cats do right now. How easy it would be to take my rights away, turning the last century into a weird tangent in a history that has mostly featured women as what Zora Neale Hurston once called ‘the mules of the world.’ ”
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If you would like to take a step to aid women, Care 2 is urging the U.S. Congress to: “Pass the International Violence Against Women Act”
You can add your name HERE
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Good times at Village Books
My own local book store, Village Books in Bellingham, reports sales were up 9% over last year’s holiday season. Unfortunately, books were up only 2% while non-book sales were up 18%.
As an author, I say “unfortunately”, but co-owner Chuck Robinson has a different POV, of course: sheer delight.
“About 49% of the month of December was in non-book products”, Robinson commented at Shelf Awareness. “Village Books’ wearables category, which includes scarves, jewelry, socks and even bras, did so well this holiday season that if it was separated from the rest of the operation, it would constitute a “sizable women’s accessory store” on its own.”
Over the past few holiday seasons, Robinson said, the non-book side of his business has continued to grow rapidly. Robinson also reported a calmer, happier atmosphere in the store this season, with fewer staff members mentioning encounters with grumpy shoppers.
“Nearly every staff member commented on how pleasant customers were,” he said. “In spite of seeming less rushed, we did notice folks shopping later on Christmas Eve.”
Village Books tries to help. Photo by Alma Alexander
Robinson reported that Village Books sold a “boatload” of The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, which was the store’s Whatcom Literacy Council pick of the year.
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Things You Didn’t Know About ‘The Lord Of The Rings’
For example: Christopher Tolkien, the son of J.R.R. and editor of his posthumous works, hated the Peter Jackson movies.
If you’re a dedicated fan and essentially consider Middle Earth a second home, Todd Van Luling writes in the Huffington Post, you probably have your own extensive knowledge of trivia surrounding J.R.R. Tolkien’s work. Since The Hobbit was released in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings 17 years later in 1954, Tolkien has garnered an extensive following, and has sold hundreds of millions of books. It’d be a decent bet to guess you own at least one of those copies.
Read the whole article HERE
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THIS ‘n THAT
More Hilarious Questions Posed to the NYPL Pre-Internet
See other questions HERE
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Quote of the Day
“Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.” ~ Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
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Alma Alexander My books Email me
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