It's Wednesday, here's a book post
Apr. 12th, 2023 09:20 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lizbeeSqueezing a couple of weeks' worth of books into one post -- I didn't read as much as I expected over the Easter long weekend, instead playing a lot of Dragon Age: Origins.
The Grandest Bookshop in the World by Amelia Mellor
I noted this when it came out a couple of years ago, mostly because I was outraged that I didn't come up with the central conceit myself: what if Cole's Book Arcade, but magic? (Hi, yes, that was ego speaking.) Then I forgot about it until I saw Mellor speak at Clunes a few weeks ago -- I liked what she said about writing historically accurate diversity but being careful in her depiction of historically accurate racism, so I bought her books.
And you know what? As much as I love Melbourne history and weird bookshops, I could not have even begun to conceive of this book. (DOWN, ego! Down!) It's full of a particular kind of magic, whimsy, riddles and wordplay which is very appealing to young readers -- think Jessica Townsend or even JKR -- and which is basically my kryptonite.
So I got to put my ego aside and enjoy the ride, which was a lot of fun: in a world where anyone can do magic (just like anyone can play the violin...) and spells exist alongside the industrial revolution, Pearl and Vally Cole discover that their father has done a deal with the sinister Obscurosmith to restore their sister Ruby to life. With the Obscurosmith coming to claim the Book Arcade for himself, the kids make a deal of their own and engage in a battle of wits and puzzles with an opponent who wields terrible power and isn't afraid to cheat.
I thoroughly enjoyed the mixture of magic and mechanical marvels (which might seem a bit steampunk at first, except they really existed), but I particularly loved the relationship between Pearl and Vally, who are still trying to figure out how to relate to one another without their sister Ruby between them.
The Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor
Back in lockdown I fell in love with the Marwood and Cat Hakesby-nee-Lovett mysteries. Technically they're historical mysteries set in Restoration England, thoroughly researched and overall great, but they're ALSO extremely tropey Slow Burn / The Grumpy One Is In Love With The Other Grumpy One / He's ACop Clerk and Sometime Spy For Lord Arlington And She Did A Bit Of Murder That Time romance. The last book, the fifth, saw them finally get together (There Was Only One Bed) and then immediately fall apart (That Never Happened); this one sees Marwood Fall For The Wrong Girl While Cat Denies She Is Jealous, before they finally make it work.
There is also a murder, some espionage, assorted shenanigans as the entire French and English courts attempt to maneuver sweet, innocent (or ... is she?) Louise de Kérouaille into Charles II's bed, and also Cat endures some mansplaining while Marwood gets hit in the head. A lot. Frankly he needs a spa week almost as much as Benjamin January.
Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton
Like everyone else who was on LiveJournal in the '00s, I fell in love with Beaton's historical and literary cartoons, followed her as she recorded the illness and eventual death of her sister, and have quietly cheered as she went on to have success with her picture books and an animated series.
But I didn't actually know anything about her. I definitely had no idea that she was posting to Hark! A Vagrant from the oil sands of Alberta. Ducks isn't quite an autobiography, and it's not quite a deep dive into the oil industry of Canada, or the working conditions of the oil sands, or the dangers that women face in a space where they are isolated and heavily outnumbered. But it's sort of all of these at once.
It's not an easy read at all -- rape is explored, though not explicitly depicted, but the relentless misogyny is just as hard to endure. I had a serious book hangover when I finished it. But I'm very glad that I read it -- not least because Beaton's art reaches new heights. Her human figures are deceptively simple, but burst with so much movement that you could almost miss the detailed and realistic renderings of scenery, from the natural beauty of Alberta to the industrial equipment that surrounded her.
The Grandest Bookshop in the World by Amelia Mellor
I noted this when it came out a couple of years ago, mostly because I was outraged that I didn't come up with the central conceit myself: what if Cole's Book Arcade, but magic? (Hi, yes, that was ego speaking.) Then I forgot about it until I saw Mellor speak at Clunes a few weeks ago -- I liked what she said about writing historically accurate diversity but being careful in her depiction of historically accurate racism, so I bought her books.
And you know what? As much as I love Melbourne history and weird bookshops, I could not have even begun to conceive of this book. (DOWN, ego! Down!) It's full of a particular kind of magic, whimsy, riddles and wordplay which is very appealing to young readers -- think Jessica Townsend or even JKR -- and which is basically my kryptonite.
So I got to put my ego aside and enjoy the ride, which was a lot of fun: in a world where anyone can do magic (just like anyone can play the violin...) and spells exist alongside the industrial revolution, Pearl and Vally Cole discover that their father has done a deal with the sinister Obscurosmith to restore their sister Ruby to life. With the Obscurosmith coming to claim the Book Arcade for himself, the kids make a deal of their own and engage in a battle of wits and puzzles with an opponent who wields terrible power and isn't afraid to cheat.
I thoroughly enjoyed the mixture of magic and mechanical marvels (which might seem a bit steampunk at first, except they really existed), but I particularly loved the relationship between Pearl and Vally, who are still trying to figure out how to relate to one another without their sister Ruby between them.
The Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor
Back in lockdown I fell in love with the Marwood and Cat Hakesby-nee-Lovett mysteries. Technically they're historical mysteries set in Restoration England, thoroughly researched and overall great, but they're ALSO extremely tropey Slow Burn / The Grumpy One Is In Love With The Other Grumpy One / He's A
There is also a murder, some espionage, assorted shenanigans as the entire French and English courts attempt to maneuver sweet, innocent (or ... is she?) Louise de Kérouaille into Charles II's bed, and also Cat endures some mansplaining while Marwood gets hit in the head. A lot. Frankly he needs a spa week almost as much as Benjamin January.
Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton
Like everyone else who was on LiveJournal in the '00s, I fell in love with Beaton's historical and literary cartoons, followed her as she recorded the illness and eventual death of her sister, and have quietly cheered as she went on to have success with her picture books and an animated series.
But I didn't actually know anything about her. I definitely had no idea that she was posting to Hark! A Vagrant from the oil sands of Alberta. Ducks isn't quite an autobiography, and it's not quite a deep dive into the oil industry of Canada, or the working conditions of the oil sands, or the dangers that women face in a space where they are isolated and heavily outnumbered. But it's sort of all of these at once.
It's not an easy read at all -- rape is explored, though not explicitly depicted, but the relentless misogyny is just as hard to endure. I had a serious book hangover when I finished it. But I'm very glad that I read it -- not least because Beaton's art reaches new heights. Her human figures are deceptively simple, but burst with so much movement that you could almost miss the detailed and realistic renderings of scenery, from the natural beauty of Alberta to the industrial equipment that surrounded her.
no subject
Date: 2023-04-12 03:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-12 04:19 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-12 07:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-12 11:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-13 07:03 pm (UTC)I'm not from Cape Breton, but I am from another part of Canada that boomed and then went bust, and I was living in Edmonton with a house full of roommates working up in the oil sands around the time this was set. The book really captured something we don't see in media all that often.